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September 5, 2026

Bernadzik takes Q3 at Asian Buggy Champs

Alex Bernadzik has kicked off Day 2 of qualifying at the Asian Buggy Championships finale in Jarkarta with a TQ run, the 3rd of the 5 qualifiers producing a Team Associated 1-2 as Hyunkyu Jung recorded the second fastest time on what was a slower track than yesterday. With Pekko Iivonen making the first day of qualifying at West Side Raceway his own, topping both qualifiers, it was Jung and Bernadzik who battled out Q3 as the Finn used the round to test a harder compound tyre. Unfortunately for Jung traffic in the closing stages of the run cost him the top spot with Bernadzik, once again setting the fastest lap of the round, securing his first TQ by half a second from the young Korean. With the run the slowest of the three so far, the track almost 5-seconds off yesterday afternoon’s Q2, the Top 3 would be completed by Infinity’s Jason Nugroho. A 46-second lap half way through the round saw Iivonen stop the clock with the fourth fastest time ahead of Jayden Edmunds, the Sparko driver struggling for pace after putting on a brand new set of tyre for the run.

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September 4, 2026

2 from 2 for Iivonen as last lap error costs Bernadzik Q2

Mayako’s Pekko Iivonen made it 2 from 2 on the opening day of qualifying at the fourth & final round of the Asian Buggy Championships in Indonesia, the Finn taking Q2 after a late mistake by Top Seed Alex Bernadzik. Having topped the opening qualifier, Iivonen set the early pace of the afternoon run but again setting the fastest lap of the round Bernadzik’s Team Associated went to the top of the timing screens 2-minutes into the 5-minute qualifier. On the final lap however a mistake from the Australian would see him drop 1-second on his previous lap time, allowing Iivonen to top times by 1.061 of a second. Behind it was Korean teenager Hyunkyu Jung who posted the third fastest time ahead of Jason Nugroho and Sparko’s Jayden Edmunds.

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September 4, 2026

Iivonen takes opening ABC qualifier in Jakarta

Mayako’s Pekko Iivonen has TQ’d the opening qualifier at the concluding round of the 2026 Asian Buggy Championships in Jarkata, Indonesia. The Finn took the first of the five scheduled qualifiers at West Side Raceway ahead of Top Seed Alex Bernadzik, the Team Associated driver 2.7-seconds off the TQ pace after a slow start on new tyres. Making it three different manufacturers in the Top 3, Sparko’s new FEMCA Champion Jayden Edmunds was a similar margin off his fellow countryman Bernadzik to open with a P3 effort. While taking the opening TQ in eBuggy ahead of Edmunds with his Team Associated, Hyunkyu Jung encountered traffic on the opening laps of his first nitro qualifier hampering his chances of a double, but it was a costly mistake on the teenager’s penultimate lap that meant the 4th fastest for Q1. Infinity’s Jason Nugroho upheld home honours as he set the fifth fastest time ahead of the Mugen Seiki of Australian teenager Zac Foster.

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September 3, 2026

Bernadzik tops first seeding in Indonesia

Alex Bernadzik topped the opening round of seeding at the season finale of the Asian Buggy Championships today in Indonesia, the Australian heading a 1-2 for Team Associated. Over the 41-seconds West Side Raceway lap, he would have a 4/10ths of a second advantage over team-mate Hyunkyu Jung as each drivers best two consecutive laps were recorded. A more technical track layout than the Championships’ previous 2024 visit to the dirt track, traffic seemed to be the biggest challenge for drivers in the randomly created seeding groups. Completing the Top 3 for the first of the two seeding rounds, the second getting Friday’s action underway here in Jakarta, was Mayako’s Pekko Iivonen who was 7/10ths off Bernadzik’s pace. The Sparko of Jayden Edmunds was next up, the Australia fourth fastest ahead of the Infinity of Jason Nugroho, one of the few drivers not to sauce his tyres, and the Sworkz of fellow Indonesian Adrian Wicaksono.

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September 3, 2026

Drivers full of praise for track at Asian Buggy C/ships Finale

With free practice for the season finale of the Asian Buggy Championships complete, drivers have been heaping praise on Adrian Wicaksono for his track layout for the season finale here in Jakarta, Indonesia. After the race was cancelled last year, West Side Raceway returns to the Season 4 calendar after it previously proved a huge hit with driver as the concluding round of the 2024 championship. With many of this weekend’s race favourites making their first visit to the Southeast Asian country for Round 4, they are all relishing a weekend of racing on the ‘proper dirt track’ which over the previous edition takes things up a notch by being a lot more technical. One of the drivers expected to be in the mix for a podium in the main Nitro Buggy class this weekend, on his track design Wicaksono explained, ‘basically the previous year it was more like an open layout, fast with big sweeping corners. This year I wanted to make the track more technical but still have enough space for passing.’

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September 1, 2026

Smith crowned double British 1:10 Offroad Champion

Ben Smith is the new double British 1:10 Offroad Champion, the Schumacher driver claiming his first ever National title success on Saturday with a 2WD podium finish and then doubling up on Sunday to take the 4WD title in style with victory at the season finale hosted by Batley Model Car Club. Having finished runner-up to Team Associated’s Tommy Hall in both championships last year, Smith lifted the 2WD title by 2-points from Hall with 5-points separating the Top 2 in 4WD. The sixth & final round of the championship would see Scotland’s Daniel Pole secure the 2WD TQ and win for Associated. Becoming the fourth different winner of 2026, his first win of the season came ahead of Luke Holdsworth and Smith. In 4WD, it was the perfect weekend for Smith as he secured the TQ ahead of Hall with Josh Holdsworth lining up third for Schumacher. In the finals they would finish as they started.

Image: Schumacher [Facebook]

August 31, 2026

Tellez crowned 1:8 Euro B Buggy Champion in Portugal

Usually a marker of more to come, Spanish racer Iker Tellez is the new EFRA 1:8 Nitro Buggy European B Champion, the Team Associated driver winning the title ahead of Top Qualifier Bradley Baird at the ACDB Os Beirões track in Guarda, Portugal. A champion that counts David Ronnefalk, Juan Carlos Canas, Riccardo Berton, and Mattia Polito as some of its past champions, in qualifying it was the Mugen Seiki of Northern Ireland’s Baird that secured the overall TQ with fastest times in the final 2 of the 4 rounds. Fastest in the opening round, British Agama driver Erik Lykke qualified in P2 followed by Tellez, fastest in Q2, and Portuguese Xray driver Pedro Gomes. Winning his Semi in the fastest time it was Lykke who started on pole ahead of Tellez, Gomes and Baird. At the start of the 45-minute final a strong start by Tellez saw him take a lead he wouldn’t relinquish with the fastest lap of the race helping him to a winning margin of over half a lap on Baird. Lining up 11 on the 13 car grid, Spain’s Erik Becerril Rodríguez came through to complete the podium with his Team Associated ahead of the similar buggy of Italy’s Andrea Cairoli.

Image: EFRA [Facebook]

August 31, 2026

Edmunds becomes double FEMCA Asian Champion in Malaysia

Australian Team Sparko driver Jayden Edmunds completed the double at the FEMCA 1:8 Offroad Asian Championship which took place in Malaysia over the weekend. Racing on the oil treated Putrajaya Offroad RC Park track which is located south of the capital city of Kuala Lumpur, the race to be crowned the official champion of Asia attracted just 49 drivers and with Kyosho’s back to back champion Phi-Long Nguyen not in attendance this year, the title was wide open. In qualifying five rounds saw Edmunds take the TQ with 3 fastest runs compared to the two of the compatriot Zac Foster whose Mugen Seiki took P2. In eBuggy, Edmunds, who only joined Sparko at the end of June, completed a clean sweep to lock in the TQ again ahead of Foster. In the 12-car eBuggy main, Edmunds took A1 and 2 to lift his first FEMCA title before going on to secure the double in the 1-hour 15-car Nitro final. From the front he controlled the race to win with a comfortable margin over Foster while from P4 on the grid it was Malaysia’s very own Ken NG who completed the podium with his Sparko.

Image: Jayden Edmunds [Facebook]