October 5, 2025

Phend finally hits the top in Q4 Down Under

Having started out qualifying day at the IFMAR 1:10 4WD Offroad World Championships in Sydney with a P3, but then having two rough rounds, Dakotah Phend finally hit the top in Q4 heading a 1-2 for Xray as David Ronnefalk also ended the day with his best run.  With Team Associated’s Marcus Kaerup getting his second TQ run of the day in the previous round, Q4 would see the Dane DNF, his car coming to a halt 3-laps in.  While Kaerup didn’t have an explanation for the car stopping, Salton Dong from his electronics sponsor Hobbywing revealed afterwards that their data from car led them to believe it was a radio issue as a result of lost signal.  Overall it was a tough round for Associated after they topped the opening three qualifier.  Defending World Champion Davide Ongaro TQ’d Q2, but the Italian wouldn’t have a clean run and ended up 9th.  Kouki Kato would be their fastest driver in P7.  Behind Xray it would be Schumacher who were the next best in a repeat of Q3 when they finally got themselves somewhat into the mix.  Orlowski, who went to the top of the timing screens for most of the run, would complete the Top 3 ahead of Broc Champlin and Daniel Kobbevik.  Putting in the most consistent performance of the day Burak Kilic capped of a strong day with P6, his Mugen Seiki prototype never outside the Top 6 today having opening with a P2 run in Q1.

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October 5, 2025

Kaerup takes opening 4WD qualifier ahead of Kilic

Team Associated’s Marcus Kaerup has TQ’d the opening round of 4WD qualifying at the IFMAR 1:10 Offroad World Championships, the 2WD Top Qualifier fastest from the Mugen Seiki prototype of a very focused Burak Kilic.  As things hot up both on and off the track in Australia, running in the second fastest heat group it was Kilic who laid down the benchmark for the top seeded heat as they took to the track in the hot midday conditions.  With reigning World Champion Davide Ongaro leading them out, initially it was Xray’s Dakotah Phend who set the pace before Kaerup went to the top with his team-mate Ongaro holding P2.  While Kaerup set the fastest lap while in the process of executing a clean run, we would see mistakes from both Phend and Ongaro.  With a roll over, Phend eventually got P3 2/10ths of a second off Kilic.  Also with a roll over, Ongaro would finish P5 just 0.002 off the Xray of David Ronnefalk.  The round would finish with 3 Xray drivers in the Top 6 however young Polish talent Bartek Zalewski would be DQ’d in post race tech for an unmarked battery promoting Schumacher’s Daniele Kobbevik to 6th.

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October 5, 2025

FIRST LOOK – Mugen Seiki 1:10 4WD Buggy Prototype

First making an appearance at the EFRA European Championships in Slovakia back in early August, Japanese manufacturer Mugen Seiki is debuting the prototype of its upcoming entry into the 4WD market here at thhe IFMAR 1:10 Offroad World Championships in Sydney, Australia.  In the hands of team driver Burak Kilic, the buggy is off to a very impressive start setting the second fastest time in the opening round of qualifying today.  Red RC was given a first look at the prototype just after its Q1 run.  Having unveiled their first 2WD Buggy, the MSB1, at the previous 1:10 Offroad World Championships in Arizona 2-years ago, the 4WD is again the work of Japanese car designer Shin Adachi.

View Chassis Focus here

October 4, 2025

Deja vu as Kaerup tops 4WD Seeding in Sydney

The opening day of 4WD action has ended at the 1:10 Offroad World Championships and in a somewhat deja vu outcome of what we witness in 2WD in Australia on Monday, it was Team Associated’s Marcus Kaerup who concluded proceedings by topping seeding.  While the Dane ended the day fastest, unlike 2WD he didn’t have it completely to himself in practice.  After the opening two free practice rounds it was the defending World Champion Davide Ongaro who sat at the top of the times before two more rounds promoted Schumacher’s Daniel Kobbevik to pace setter on the reversed Hills RC Off Road track layout.  Seeding would open with Kobbevik carrying his form as he went fastest in CP1 ahead of the Xray of American Brennan Schimmel, the Slovakian manufacturer very much in the hunt after their 2WD woes.  With Kobbevik unable to improve on his best 3-laps in the second seeding round, Kaerup, who was only 6th after the first one, would go a tenth quicker than Kobbevik to goe into qualifying tomorrow as the Top Seed.  With Kobbevik carrying the number no.2 for qualifying, it would be Dakotah Phend who ended up being closest to the Scandinavian duo, the American 3/10ths of a second off the pace.  Also bettering his time in CP2, David Ronnefalk set the fourth fastest time with Schimmel’s CP1 time giving him P5, Xray looking strong with 3 cars in the Top 5.  Failing to make the Top 10 in any of the four free practice rounds, Michal Orlowski ended the day with a run that sees the Schumacher driver complete the Top 6 ahead of Ongaro while his team-mate & newly crowned 2WD World Champion Broc Champlin finds himself in the second fastest heat.  As history shows however this isn’t such a bad thing, the American having also started out in the second fastest qualifying group in 2WD.

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October 4, 2025

Kobbevik tops practice at 4WD Worlds

Daniel Kobbevik has topped free practice at the IFMAR 1:10 4WD World Championship, the Schumacher driver setting the fastest 3-consecutive laps in the fourth & final round of free practice in Sydney.  Topping the third round of practice ahead of Dakotah Phend, that time wouldn’t better Davide Ongaro’s FP2 time but finding almost a full second in FP4 the Norwegian went to the top ahead of Ongaro, who failed to improve on his earlier time.  Team Associated’s Marcus Kaerup also had his fastest time in FP4 to end up third quickest ahead of Burak Kilic, the Mugen Seiki driver finding a huge chunk of time to his improve his 3-laps by over 2-seconds to record fourth.  With his FP3 time, Phend completed the Top 5 just ahead of Xray team-mate David Ronnefalk who was another who closed free practice with his best run.

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October 4, 2025

Ongaro fastest as 4WD gets underway in Australia

Defending World Champion Davide Ongaro has set the early pace as the 4WD action gets underway at the IFMAR 1:10 Offroad World Championships in Australia.  Having just missed the A-Main cut in 2WD, after two rounds of 4WD free practice it was the Italian who leads the way from 2WD Top Qualifier & Team Associated team-mate Marcus Kaerup.  With the first practice more a sighting run for the drivers on the freshly prepared track, racing now running in the anti-clockwise direction and the jump surfaces reworked for that change, the second round was more indicative of form and it was good to see Xray, after their struggles in 2WD, back in the mix.  Dakotah Phend would post the 3rd fastest time based off 3-consecutive laps with team-mate David Ronnefalk managing 5th fastest.  In between them, Daniel Kobbevik led the Schumacher team as team-mate & newly crowned 2WD World Champion Broc Champlin was brought back down to reality with only the 18th fastest time.  Describing his opening two practice runs as ‘alright’, Champlin said they are ‘still trying to get the car into a better window’.

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October 3, 2025

Xray XB2’26 2WD Buggy

With the 1:10 Offroad World Championships taking place currently in Australia, Xray has unveiled their latest 1:10 2WD Buggy, the XB2‘26.  The buggy, which is offered in a Carpet or Dirt kit options, features an all-new 2.5 mm chassis lineup with optimised flex with a mid-size for carpet, short-size for dirt.  Reinforced and revised C-block improves durability in demanding race conditions while all-new rear D-block with optimised suspension geometry provides 1° toe for carpet and 3° toe for dirt.  The buggy gets a stronger rear roll center holder for long-lasting reliability.  In terms of weigh saving there are all-new ultra-light titanium turnbuckles on all suspension links, new lighter differential outdrives which reduce rotational mass for faster acceleration, sharper braking, and improved drivetrain efficiency.  On the suspension side, all-new -1 mm shorter shock caps extend the up-travel range, new spring collars -6 mm allow a wider ride height adjustment window, and stiffer 4-dot front & rear springs included in the carpet kit for more consistent handling.  An all-new 6-dot lower rear shock tower ensures consistent handling on carpet while new wider offset settings for carpet (rear 5-slot, front 2-slot) give maximum stability.  The Dirt kit includes a wider, higher downforce rear wing for enhanced traction.

View the full XB2’26 presentation here

October 2, 2025

Champlin on top of the World Down Under – Schumacher gets first 2WD World title

Broc Champlin is the new IFMAR 1:10 2WD Offroad World Champion, the American securing the biggest accolade in the sport by winning the opening two A-Mains in Sydney, Australia, and claiming Schumacher’s first 2WD World title.  Kicking off finals day at the Hills RC Off Road track with a TQ run in the fifth & final qualifier to line up second behind Top Qualifier Marcus Kaerup this was to be a hint of what was to come.  With Champlin all over the rear wing of Kaerup in A1 there would be contact on the penultimate lap, the pair touching mid air in the double double.  With Kaerup’s Associated going tumbling, Champlin came out of it just in the lead after a drag race down the straight with World Finals debutant Davey Batta.  2-time World Champion Spencer Rivkin would come through from sixth to complete the Top 3 as Kaerup crossed the line in fifth.  With a protest against Champlin proving unsuccessful for Kaerup, the Dane would lead away A2 again with Champlin applying the pressure and four laps in as he got his buggy on two wheels, Champlin didn’t need a second invitation to go through to the lead.  It was to be a lead the 23-year-old would hold, a mistake from Kaerup putting an end to any potential come back, and crossing the he became the latest IFMAR World Champion on the 40th anniversary of the championships.  With the new Champion locked in, Champlin becoming the 15th driver to join the 2WD roll of honour, A3 would decide the remaining podium places.  With Kaerup finally convert his pole position into a win this would see him salvage a podium behind Batta, as he, Rivkin, and Daniel Kobbevik all finished on the same points.

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