Red RC » R On Road

September 16, 2026

Newly crowned World Champion Matsukura set for Singapore International Nitro GP

Having confirmed Mugen Seiki’s reigning double 1:8 Onroad World Champion Shoki Takahata earlier this month, the organisers of the Singapore International Nitro Grand Prix have now confirmed newly crowned 1:10 Nitro Touring Car World Champion Naoto Matsukura for the 20th anniversary of the race. Like Takahata, Matsukura became a double Nitro Onroad World Champion, the first driver to achieve the accolade in 1:10, when the Infinity driver took the win in Gubbio, Italy, last Saturday. Taking place on October 10-11, the same weekend as the Singapore F1 Grand Prix, over the last two decades of the Singapore International Nitro GP, the Radio Control Modellers’ Club’s annual international race has welcomed numerous World Champions. 2026 looks like attracting its greatest line up of World Champions yet with drivers getting to race on the track’s newly laid asphalt.

Source: RCMC Singapore [Facebook]

September 16, 2026

Masami Hirosaka’s Team Associated RC28R – Chassis Focus

The inaugural Team Associated 1:28 International took place in Las Vegas recently running from September 4-6th, where the category that has been enjoying huge interest saw two legends of racing, Masami Hirosaka and Atsushi Hara, travel from Japan to join the action. While Red RC has covered many of latest car and product releases from the category’s growing number of manufacturers, we have yet to cover any of the racing in person but thanks to specialist 1:28 body shell producer Radbody we are excited to share a special Chassis Focus on the Team Associated RC28R raced by Masami in the 3500 Lipo class at the event. With Radbody owner Joe Chen wrenching on Masami’s car, he has put together a Chassis Focus, with Team Associated providing the photos, to give an insight into the car and the set-up used by Masami. Radbody is the official kit body supplier to Team Associated with the Mako X2 included with each RC28R kit.

View full Chassis Focus here

September 16, 2026

Dialed In – 1:8 Onroad Racing Book by Joachim Bruneau

US 1:8 Nitro Onroad racer and winner of the 50th anniversary Florida WinterNats earlier this year, Joachim Bruneau has written a book to share some of his knowledge from racing in what is widely regarded as the F1 category of RC racing. Available as a paperback on Amazon, the book is not intended as a setup bible or a claim that he has the secret to being fast but rather a simple method for thinking about the car, the track and the driver in order to become faster and, more importantly, more consistent. The Serpent team driver says the book for anyone who enjoys 1:8 Onroad and ‘it is meant to be a Practical Guide to getting, and staying, fast’. Inside the book covers his 3-step method for finding speed and keeping it, Clutch, Engine & Pipe, Shocks, Body and Tyres, Set-up fundamentals, Handling considerations and driving-feel notes for every adjustment, plus practical suggestions for common issues and inside you will

Source: Joachim Bruneau [Amazon.com]

September 15, 2026

Fernandez crowned Spanish 1:8 Onroad Champion

Alvaro Fernandez Calvo has secured the AECAR Spanish 1:8 Onroad National Championship title, the Serpent driver doing so in style with his third consecutive win of the season. Opening his 2026 campaign with victory at Round 1 at the AUTET track in Almussafes, and backing that up with a repeat win at Round 2, he would execute the perfect season at the CAVI track in Vigo in the northwest of the country. With the race attracting a healthy 48 entries, in qualifying Fernandez would secure the TQ ahead of the Mugen Seiki of Sergi Franch Codina, both drivers setting their fastest run in the 5th round of qualifying. In the final 22-year-old Fernandez would take his Ielasi Tuned powered 990R to the win ahead of Víctor Peláez and Jorge Martínez.

Image: Alvaro Fernandez Calvo [Facebook]

September 14, 2026

Yanagisawa crowned new All-Japan National Touring Car Champion

RC Xpress team driver Yoshiyasu Yanagisawa is the new JMRCA All-Japan National Touring Car Champion after going one better than a year earlier at the same track. Racing at Tsukuba RC Park in Yatabe, Yanagisawa TQ’d 2 of the three qualifiers to secure the Top Qualifier honours ahead of the Axon of defending back to back Champion Akio Sobue with Infinity’s Ryosuke Yamamoto completing the Top 3. In the triple finals, Yanagisawa secured the title in A2 wining again from Sobue just as he done in the opening final. While Sobue won A3 ahead of Yamamoto, it was the later who completed the podium. Qualifying 5th, Yanagisawa’s RC Xpress team-mate Yugo Nagashima would make up a position in the finals to finish 4th.

Image: Yoshiyasu Yanagisawa [Facebook]

September 13, 2026

Orlowski wins ETS Andernach

Concluding with racing under the lights, Schumacher’s Michal Orlowski made it back to back ETS wins with Round 3 victory at Andernach in Germany. With rain forecast for Sunday, the results would be decided over two A-Mains held on Saturday, the first in daylight and the second on a floodlit track. At the end of four rounds of qualifying it was Orlowski who secured the TQ, the reigning Champion fastest in 3 rounds. Making his debut for RC Maker, car designer Ryan Maker making the trip from Australia to Germany to support their new star driver, Ronald Volker secured second on the grid having set the fastest time in Q2. Simon Lauter would line up P3 for Awesomatix with Infinity’s Bruno Coelho making it four different manufacturers at the front of the grid. Winning the first final from Volker by 1.1 seconds, it was that win that would give Orlowski the victory ahead of Volker. Switching to as fluorescent yellow body for A2, Orlowski would win that convincingly as a number of battles were fought out behind. In the end Lauter took second ahead of Erik Dankel and Marc Rheinard, and counting this P2 result Lauter completed the podium ahead of Dankel, Coelho and Rheinard. In Pro Stock it was Xray’s Adam Izsay who took the TQ and win with the Awesomatix of Phil Langer and Xray of Jaroslav Kříž joining him on the podium.

Image: Michal Orlowski [Facebook]

September 13, 2026

Title No.7 as Matsukura reclaims Nitro Touring Worlds in Italy

18-years after he took his first IFMAR World title as a 15-year-old in 1:12, Naoto Matsukura has added a 7th World Championship victory by reclaiming the 1:10 Nitro Touring Car crown in Italy. The 11th running of the championships, the Infinity driver, who turns 33 on Monday, would take a convincing win in Gubbio, 8-years on from winning the same title in the United Stated. Starting from 3rd on the grid, Matsukura would go to P2 on the opening lap and closely pursue team-mate & Top Qualifier Dario Balestri as they pulled clear of the field. Unfortunately for Balestri, just like in 2016 when he TQ’d the same championships at the same track, the final wasn’t to go his way. While finishing on this occasion, albeit in P6, the Italian would hit an issue during his tyre stop with the rear right wheel change delaying him by a lap & a half, effectively ending his quest to finally add a 1:10 title to the two he has achieved in 1:8. The only driver to manage a 15-second lap of the Miniautodromo Internazionale Mario Rosati track in the Main, later in the race Balestri would also run out of fuel. With his main rival out of contention, Matsukura could manage the race even adjusting his tyre stop strategy to just a single stop having started out planning two stops. While he was on cruise control, with a 2-lap buffer, to becoming the first driver to win the categories biggest prize twice, the battle for second brought life to the final minutes of the 1-hour encounter as Capricorn’s Toni Gruber, having turned around a disappointing start to the week, tried to hunt down a very impressive Filippo Domanin. This race marking his World Championship debut, the talented Italian teenager kept the highly experienced German at bay taking a crowd pleasing 2nd by one tenth of second. Just off the podium, Kyle Branson claimed P4 on his World Championship return ahead Serpent’s Andrea Catanzani.

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September 12, 2026

New World Champion to be crowned in Italy, Groskamp just misses out in LCF

Nitro Touring Car will get a new IFMAR World Champion in Italy as reigning champion Jilles Groskamp RC failed to make the Main Final, the Infinity driver’s quest coming to an end in the Last Chance Final in Gubbio when he was denied the win by France’s Quentin Leroux by just 0.071. of a second. Winner of the title 2-years ago in Bangkok, Groskamp found himself in the Semi final after qualifying P5, just missing out on the Top 4 directing qualifying spots to British racer Kyle Branson. Starting the second of the Semi Finals on pole, the 30-minute final would produce a thrilling & intense multi car battle for the lead. While Groskamp held the lead early on it was Melvin Diekmann who took a late win ahead of Milan Holthuis as Serpent’s Andrea Catanzani, having led, dropped to third. 1.9-seconds back Groskamp finished fourth, the Top 3 progressing to the final. With 15-minutes to try and put himself into the Main via the Last Chance Final, starting on pole Groskamp led for the opening laps but a very fast Leroux quickly got himself to the front. Following each other for the rest of the race, gapping 3rd place, a moment as the race entered the final 2-minutes looked to be the end of Groskamp’s challenge but an impressive charge over the final laps saw the Dutch veteran right back on the rear bumper of the leader’s Capricorn setting up a dash to the loop. But it wasn’t to be, the experienced Leroux holding his nerve and progressing to the final as the 11th car on the grid. In the first of the Semi final, Capricorn’s Toni Gruber took the win ahead of Jakub Rozycki and pole sitter Alex Thurston to secure their places in the decider for the 11th running of these World Championships.