Red RC » R Off Road

May 13, 2023

Coelho wins 2WD at Euros Warm-up

Bruno Coelho took the win in 2WD at the 1:10 Electric Offroad Euros Warm-up Race today in the Netherlands. With the RACO2000 astro surface track in Utrecht hosting the EFRA European Championships from July 17th to 22nd, the Warm-up Race attracted a strong entry of factory drivers including reigning champion Tommy Hall. In qualifying it was top Dutch racer Wesley van Helmond who became the Top Qualifier with two TQ runs from 4 rounds with team-mate Michal Orlowski making it a Schumacher 1-2 as he topped the final qualifier. Coelho’s Xray was fastest in Q3 putting him third on the grid in front of Hall’s Team Associated. In the triple finals Coelho would improve his buggy with the new pace allowing him to win A1 & 2 for the overall victory. With Orlowski winning A3, the podium was a reverse of the qualifying order with Van Helmond completing the Top 3 as Hall finished 4th and Xray’s Max Götzl fifth. Tomorrow drivers will battle it out for the 4WD win.

Image: Bruno Coelho [Facebook]

May 8, 2023

Widmaier double at Austrian ‘Dirt’ Nationals

Fresh from his Truggy win and Buggy podium at the Philippine Masters in Manila last weekend, Sworkz’ Micha Widmaier was back in action in 1:10 Buggy completing a double victory at the Austrian ‘Dirt’ Nationals. In 2WD Widmaier would secure the TQ from LRP’s Moritz Lautenbach and his Schumacher buggy while in 4WD his closest challenger on the Max RC Racing track situated in Perg was the Team Associated of Lucas Grainer. In the finals, the defending champion would lay claim to both titles in grip dirt conditions after 2 of the 3 A-Mains with the 2WD podium completed by Lautenbach and Grainer while in 4WD Grainer got second with veteran Austrian offroad racer Peter Pinisch completing the Top 3.

Image: Micha Widmaier [Facebook]

May 8, 2023

Barufollo takes the big win at Silver State Indoor Champs

Marco Barufollo took the big win at the Silver State Indoor Championships, the Tekno driver winning the Nitro Buggy final from young talent Phi Long Nguyen and Mason Fuller. Qualifying for the Las Vegas event, that this year attracted a record 1100 entries, saw TLR’s Dakotah Phend leave his mark on proceedings as he TQ’d all three categories he was contesting including the big one, Nitro Buggy. On Saturday, he would take the win in eBuggy over Spencer Rivkin but suffered some issues in Nitro Truggy before recovering to finish 4th, the win going to Ryan Maifield over Ryan Lutz. Sunday’s Nitro Buggy encounter started with Phend out front as second place started Cole Ogden hit issues early on and dropped down the order. Just after the 9-minute mark Phend would suffer a flame out coming in for fuel that would drop him on a lead he would never regain. Up front it was a battle between Barufollo and Long Nguyen, the Louisiana driver showing no fear against the Italian driver and putting a pass on him for the lead at the halfway mark. Barufollo would get back to the front and eke out a lead over the HB Racing driver, the winning margin for the Hotrace Tyres team driver 9-seconds at the end of the 45-minutes. With the Top 6 all finishing on the lead lap, it was Fuller who would complete the podium ahead of Lutz, Phend and Rivkin.

Image: Marco Barufollo [Facebook]

May 6, 2023

TQ hat trick as Phend tops Nitro Buggy at Silver State

Dakotah Phend has completed a TQ hat trick at the Silver State Indoor Championships claiming the overall TQ in the big one, Nitro Buggy, on Day 2 of qualifying. The opening day of qualifying at the Las Vegas event saw the TLR driver crowned Top Qualifier in both eBuggy and Nitro Truggy before the switch to Nitro Buggy and eTruggy for the second day of quali action. The opening round would see HB Racing’s Cole Ogden top the times from Phend and the Tekno of Ryan Maifield. In Q2 it was Team Associated’s Spencer Rivkin who set the pace ahead of Sworkz’ Camden Lime with Phend down in P6. The third & final qualifier however saw the Michigan driver hit the top with the fastest time ahead of the Tekno of Italy’s Marco Baruffolo. Overall this left Phend with pole for the A-Main ahead of Ogden, Rivkin, Baruffolo and Lime. With Phend not contesting eTruggy, the TQ would go to HB Racing’s Mason Fuller ahead of Rivkin and Phi Long Nguyen.

Image : Jconcepts [Facebook]

May 5, 2023

Phend kicks off Silver State with TQ double

Team Losi Racing’s Dakotah Phend led the way on the first day proper of the Silver State Indoor Championships taking a double TQ in Las Vegas. This year’s Joey Christensen run event has attracted a record 1100 plus entries with Day 2’s action made up of qualifying for eBuggy and Nitro Truggy. Running 3 rounds of qualifying with the best two to count, it was Team Associated’s Spencer Rivkin who took the opening eBuggy round from Phend. The second time of asking it would be Phend at the top from the Xray of Ty Tessmann. Making it three different chassis manufacturers to post a TQ round but all running on JConcepts tyres, Mason Fuller set the pace in Q3 for HB Racing. Overall this secured Phend the TQ from Rivkin, Fuller and Tessmann. In Nitro Truggy, Phend sealed the No.1 spot for the A-Main with TQ runs in the opening two rounds ahead of Tekno’s Ryan Maifield. Having opened with two disappointing rounds, Sworkz Camden Lime hit the top in Q3 ahead Kyosho’s Ryan Lutz, but overall it Maifield who secured second spot on the grid ahead of the Kyosho of Portugal’s Joao Figeuiredo, Lutz and Rivkin. Next up for the more than 400 drivers is a long day of Nitro Buggy and eTruggy qualifying.

Image : Jconcepts [Facebook]

May 3, 2023

Philippine Masters 2023 A-Main Videos

After more than two-years of a break following Covid, Asia’s premiere Offroad race returned on April 28-30th with a challenging track layout in the capital of Manila. A bucket list destination race, the Philippine Masters attracted drivers from 15-nations across the globe with the sell out entry enjoying the country’s amazing hospitality and fun atmosphere of the race at the Circulo Verde track. Watch all the action from both the Buggy and Truggy A-Main encounters on our Youtube channel and see how both finals unfolded in these Asian Buggy Championships productions with commentary by the one and only Scotty Ernst.

Source: Philippine Masters [philippinemastersrc.com]

May 2, 2023

Polito wins Italian National Championship Round 2

Sworkz driver Mattia Polito took the win at the second round of the ultra competitive Italian 1:8 Offroad National Championship over the weekend. With Round 1 Top Qualifier & Winner Davide Ongaro in Manila where he would dominate the Philippine Masters for his third win of Asia’s premiere offroad race, this was an opportunity for his rivals to secure valuable points in his absence. Hosted by the AOL Club in Policoro, a charming town on the Ionian coast, qualifying would see Infinity team driver Riccardo Berton secure the TQ. Strike one for Hotrace Tyres in the big Italian tyre manufacturer rivalry with Polito second for Matrix Tires. Behind, Alex Zanchettin completed the Top 3 ahead of Marco Ravaglia while Marco Baruffollo found himself qualifying down in the B-Main. In the 45-minute final, Polito would get by Berton setting the fastest lap of the race with his Gi-mar powered Sworkz on his way to victory by 19-seconds from the pole sitter. Having bumped up to the A-Main to start 11th, Baruffollo would takes his Tekno through the field to complete the podium by just four seconds over Leonardo Valente with Zanchettin fifth.

Image: Modellismo RC [Facebook]

April 30, 2023

Ongaro takes dominant Philippine Masters win

Back to back World Champion Davide Ongaro gave a master class performance today in Manila to become Champion of the Philippine Masters, Asia’s premiere Offroad race making its return this weekend after a Covid hiatus. The Team Associated driver’s third trip to the Circulo Verde track, the win of today’s 1-hour final gives the Italian a 100% winning record in the Capital City. Starting from the TQ, having topped all four rounds of qualifying, with Mayako’s Robert Batlle lining up second, the huge crowd of onlookers were anticipating an intense battle between the two World class drivers based off Batlle’s faster pace but lack of luck in qualifying. Unfortunately the finals day wasn’t to be a luckier day for the Spaniard. Early into the race, his buggy stopped on track as if he had flamed out before throttling up again but this was the start of the failing of his throttle servo. He would retire just as the race entered the second half. While Ongaro was in control out front, despite having of moment himself when he flamed out during second fuel stop, it would be freshly crowned Truggy Champion Micha Widmaier who came through for second while a delighted Christian Wolhuter made it two Sworkz on the podium after a good battle with fellow Australian Aaron Dexter.

Check out full event coverage here