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August 13, 2016

Semi line-up complete in Gubbio

The 7th running of the Nitro Touring Car World Championship is down to the final 22 with most significant driver to bump up from the 1/4 finals being 2014 runner up Yuya Sashashi. The Serpent driver bumps up on to the back of the Semi B final grid after finishing third 3-seconds behind Capricorn driver & pole sitter Kyle Branson who in turn was 3-seconds back on the 1/4 B Final winning Team Infinity of Carmine Raiola. Unfortunately for 2014 Finalists JJ Wang his attempt at the third bump up felt short as he finished 4th, half a lap back on Sashashi. In the 1/4 A Final Toni Gruber would book his place in the Semis going one better than in 2014 as he took the win ahead of 2010 Worlds runner up Takehiro Terauchi. There was dramatic finish to the second of the encounters as 1/8 final winner David Loppini ran out of fuel on the last lap while holding third, gifting Dirk Wischnewski the final spot in the Semis.

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August 13, 2016

New World Champion to be crowned, Hagberg crashed out

Nitro Touring Car will get a new World Champion this evening as defending champion Alexander Hagberg’s race came to a end on the 1/8 Finals this morning in Gubbio. Struggling from the start of the event, never featuring strongly on the time sheets, the Xray driver would qualify 34th putting him second on the grid for the Semi B final. With pole sitter Alessio Agostinelli flaming out on the restart, a timing issuing forcing the race to be stopped after the original 09:00 start, Hagberg took the lead of the race and looked in control. However 12 laps in to the 20-minute final, the Swede’s race was to come to an end as Joe Kerry excited the pitlane and made contact with Hagberg. With the contact resulting in a chunked rear tyre Hagberg would have to pit to change the tyre bringing an end to his chances of progressing. Having struggled like Hagberg in qualifying and bumped up to the 1/8 final after winning yesterday evening’s 1/16 final ahead of Paolo Morganti, JJ Wang would again take the win ahead of his fellow US driver to progress to the 1/4 final. Australia’s Jeff Hamon would secure what should have been the final bump up spot after holding off the recovering Agostinelli, who after setting the fastest lap of the race, was less than 2-seconds back but after the race Morganti was disqualified for a bodyshell infringement.

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August 12, 2016

Jerome Treignier confirmed for Dragon Stone Champs

The organisers of the inaugural 2016 Dragon Stone Asian Nitro Buggy Championship in Luoyang City, China, have announced the addition of RC Concept’s Jerome Treignier to the ever growing field of drivers and supporters. Jerome will be available for technical support with additional high-class confirmations awaited soon. More information about the race can be found on the event’s Facebook page here.

August 12, 2016

Mazzeo wins Super Pole

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Alessio Mazzeo has booked his place in the Nitro Touring Car World Championship final alongside fellow countryman & Top Qualifier Dario Balestri. Running third of the four Super Pole contenders, there was a huge roar from the crowd as the Serpent driver bettered the time of provisional pace setter Dominc Greiner who bettered the opening time of Robert Pietsch. With Simon Kurzbuch to run last, Mazzeo wasn’t content with his lap and sending the crowd into a frenzy with a blistering 6th & final lap that was almost 1/10th faster. With the benchmark clearly set, 16.302 the time to beat, Kurzbuch would try but was no match for the popular Italian managing a best time of 16.467 on his last lap, an identical time to that of Greiner.

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August 12, 2016

Kurzbuch takes final qualifier in Gubbio

Simon Kurzbuch has taken the final round of qualifying at the 1:10 Nitro Touring Car World Championships in Gubbio. With the overall TQ decided yesterday when Dario Balestri posted his third TQ run in the penultimate round, the Shepherd driver topped the times from Mugen’s Takaaki Shimo with 2012 World Champion Meen Vejrak completing the Top 3. With Balestri using the sixth qualifier to run in a new rod and diffs in the Capricorn, it was Kurzbuch who laid the TQ pace eventually taking it by just over 2/10ths from Shimo. The big focus of the final qualifier would be on who would make the new for 2016 Super Pole that will be fought out by the drivers qualifying from 2 through to 5. In the end other than Kurzbuch the round would only see Q6 count as an improved points haul for former Worlds Top Qualifier Robert Pietsch who got a P6 to secure the final Super Pole placing behind Serpent pairing of Dominic Greiner and Alessio Mazzeo.

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August 11, 2016

Balestri is World Champs Top Qualifier

Dario Balestri is the Top Qualifier of the seventh running of the Nitro Touring Car World Championships. The Capricorn driver claimed his first World Championship pole position with a third TQ run in the penultimate round of qualifying at Miniautodromo Internazionale M.Rosati. After a tough start to Day 2 of qualifying in Gubbio, Balestri took control for the second half of the day as he topped the rescheduled Q2 concluding heat backing that up shortly afterwards with another perfect performance to put the overall TQ beyond the reach of his rivals. Despite conditions being cooler for Q5, which was run later in the day due to the rescheduling of the timetable following yesterday’s rain, the Italian was able to see off Team Shepherd’s Simon Kurzbuch with Mugen’s Takaaki Shimo completing the Top 3. For Q3 topping Alessio Mazzeo, a spin at the end of the straight would end his quest for the overall TQ while for surprise Q4 pace setter Syoki Takahata the round would result in a P11.

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August 11, 2016

Surprise TQ run for Takahata in Q4

Syoki Takahata took a surprise TQ in the fourth round of qualifying at Worlds in Italy. Running in the fourth fastest heat, the KM Racing driver would set the fastest time ahead of Dominic Greiner who looked set to take the round as his rivals self destructed in the top heat. Coming to the line on the TQ pace, Greiner would launch his car across the loop believing it would be his finishing time but he got there 0.002 too early. Spinning in his attempt to get the best possible finish time, once he discovered he was still on the clock and recovered he ended the qualifier with 24-second lap time around the 16-second Miniautodromo Internazionale M.Rosati track. With Greiner 8-seconds off Takahata, the pair the only drivers to run 19-laps, best of the rest on 18 would be Greiner’s Serpent team-mate Tadahiko Sahashi who completed the Top 3. Unfortunately a partly stripped rear belt which occurred in the warm-up would leave Q3 Top Qualifier Alessio Mazzeo to struggle around for a P4 for the round.

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August 11, 2016

Mazzeo TQs third qualifier at WC

Alessio Mazzeo has TQ’d the third round of qualifying at the Nitro Touring Car World Championship. After a delayed start to the second day of qualifying as the rain that halted Q2 continued overnight in Italy, the Serpent driver was fastest in the slower track conditions ahead of Robert Pietsch and team-mate Tadahiko Sahashi. Having taken the opening round of qualifying yesterday, Dario Balestri would manage only the 7th fastest time, as he was hampered by a shock issue on his Capricorn. Again Bruno Coelho would show strong running on a TQ pace like in Q1 but this time rather than a mistake of his own the Xray driver would crash into the Shepherd of Simon Kurzbuch which spun in front of him in the windy conditions.

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