World Champions Alexander Hagberg and Bruno Coelho will hold an Xray Work.Shop this coming Monday, the 22nd of February in preparation for the forthcoming Thailand International R/C Touring Car Championship event in Bangkok, Thailand. The workshop is focused on the the Xray T4 touring car and more information can be found here.
Tekin have announced the signing of European frontrunner, Hupo Hönigl to their team. The 2015 Austrian 1/8th E-Buggy national champion will use Tekin motors and speed controllers to power his Xray 1/8th, 1/10th and 1/12th scale rides in the coming season and he has the following to say about the deal:
I’m really happy to join Team Tekin after already using the Rx8 and T8 for a full season in my 1/8th electric car with amazing feeling and absolutely flawless. Also it is a bit like a revival for me, because in the beginning of my career (22 years ago) I used Tekin speedos and they were great and I have good memories only. I’m really looking forward to a successful year with my new power unit.
Source: Tekin [teamtekin.com]
The annual Köngen Indoor Masters were held in Germany last weekend, attracting some of the fastest drivers from Germany and Switzerland to compete in a total of six 1/10th off-road classes. The 2WD Modified Buggy category was TQ’d by Schumacher’s Micha Widmeier while the 4WD Modified and Truck Modified class TQs being snatched by multiple Swiss national champion, Patrick Hofer (Team Associated). In the triple A-mains Patrick would make a clean sweep by taking all three class wins in style to make it a title trifecta. In the 2WD class Patrick was sidelined on the podium by TQ Luca Widmeier while Yokomo’s Björn Prümper rounded out the top 3 result. In 4WD Modified Buggy it was again Micha Widmeier who grabbed the runner-up spot behind Patrick with Fabian Luca Widmer (Yokomo) completing the top 3 result. Finally in Modified Truck Robert Hard and Karsten Boehlke would complete a Team Associated podium sweep.
View the 4WD and Truck podium here
The opening round of the Spanish Nitro Series Espanolas was recently held at the Nitro 15 track in Villareal. Edu Escandon took the 1/10th 200mm class TQ with his Novarossi-powered KM Racing car. Behind him, Jonhy Pastor (Mugen/Novarossi) and Juan Hidalgo (Mugen/Novarossi) came in second and third respectively. In the main final Edu would set the fastest lap and a new track record, but the win would be for Juan Hidalgo in front of Jonhy Pastor. Raul Amella (Xray/Novarossi) completed the podium result in third.
Source: Novarossi [novarossi.it]
The fourth and final round of the French Indoor National Championship was held this past weekend in Zillisheim in the East of the country. Three titles were still up for grabs in the Touring Modified, Touring Stock and Formula class. In the Modified category Leo Arnold had the best chances to snatch the overall title after winning five of the five qualifying rounds to take the overall TQ and the pole position for the finals. The fight was on for the 2 spot on the grid between Alexandre Laurent, the title rival, and Jeremy Limoges. Jeremy finally took the 2nd spot with a better time over the 5 minute runs.
Continue reading the report here
The recent team driver exodus over at HPI Racing and HB continues with the announcement that JJ Wang is the latest factory team driver to leave. Following the departure of Andy Moore, Freddy Südhoff and also team manager Hiroyuki Kasuya in the past few weeks, JJ parting ways with the Japanese manufacturer leaves just Jilles Groskamp as the sole remaining Factory onroad team member. This is what JJ has to say about his departure:
I would like to inform everyone that I have ended my contract with HPI/HB Inc. The past 6 years has been a life changing experience for me. I would like to give a big thank you to Tatsuro Watanabe, Hiro Kasuya, and Toshihiko Hara for supporting me and believing in me from the start. I also want to give a big thanks to my teammates from all over the world. It was fun meeting everyone and it has taught me that there’s more to a team than just results. I will never forget the laughter we shared and the experiences we’ve been through. It was truly an amazing ride. I am certain that this is a new beginning of my racing career and I am really looking forward to what the future holds for me. I wish HPI/HB the best and I look forward to seeing you all at the track soon!
The fourth and final round of the French Electric On-road Indoor National Championship was held in Zillisheim over the weekend. In the Touring Stock 13.5T class Laurent Desperries took the TQ after the qualifiers and he would hold on to the win in the mains to grab the victory from runner-up Hai Long Tran. With the win Laurent also secured himself the championship title in the 13.5T class. The final podium spot at round four went to Renaud Brusselle from fourth placed Sylvain Lammaing.
Source: HRC Distribution [hrcdistribution.com]
Awesomatix have announced the signing of former HPI/HB driver, Freddy Südhoff to their team. The multiple ETS A-finalist was under contract with the Russian company already from 2012 to the end of 2014 and he will race Awesomatix’ new A800 car at all major European races including the European Championships as well as the World Championships in Beijing. Freddy had this to say about the deal:
I am really happy to announce that I have signed a contract with Awesomeatix. Immediately after testing the new Awesomatix A800 car, I feel very exciting to come back to this team. The fact that we know each other from previous years working together will help us to become even more close. I am looking forward to a great racing time with Awesomatix. Special thanks to Oleg Babich and Max Mächler for giving me the opportunity to be a part of the team.
Source: Awesomatix [awesomatix.com]
