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August 21, 2017

Coelho back on top with Aigen win

After his DNF in Germany, Bruno Coelho has moved back to the top of the Euro Nitro Series standings with a dominant 1:10 win at Round 3 of the championship in Austria. Taking his third TQ start of the season at Aigen, the Xray driver controlled the race from start to finish, even with his rivals getting a second chance after the first attempt at running the 45-minute encounter was stopped by a rain shower. In the first running, second place qualifier Leo Arnold would suffer a flame out while Thilo Tödtmann would lose drive due to a loose set screw. With cars struggling to make it around the track due to the passing shower, the race was stopped but having just failed to reach 25% distance it meant a complete rerun, luckily for Arnold and Tödtmann. After a wait to allow the track to dry, Coelho led the field away again and never looked back while behind Tödtmann made good use of his second life to secure second with Marco Kaufmann completing the podium as Arnold again had engine issues.

Continue reading this report here or view our complete event coverage here.

August 18, 2017

Pietsch & Coelho post TQ runs in Austria

With the first official day of the Euro Nitro Series third round in Austria starting out looking like a Simon Kurzbuch affair, the second part of the day’s qualifying changed things up as Robert Pietsch and Bruno Coelho posted TQ runs to set the stage for a TQ shoot out tomorrow should the weather permit. Having taken Q1 and Q2, top seed Kurzbuch would make a rare driver error in the third round and Coelho would hit trouble also suffering a big crash while working his way through traffic. This left a much improved Pietsch to TQ ahead of Kurzbuch, Silvio Hächler and Dominic Greiner, Coelho ending up 10th. Suffering a bent chassis in the impact, Coelho would surprise nobody more than himself when due to a lack of time to fit a new one he would take his damaged car to a TQ run in the fastest time of the day. Finishing just 4/100ths of a second ahead of Kurzbuch, to deny him claiming an early TQ championship point, the result sets up a three way battle tomorrow to decide the Top Qualifier. With rain forecast for overnight and the morning, both the organisers and drivers are confident that the remaining two qualifiers can be run.

Continue reading this report here or view our complete event coverage here.

August 18, 2017

Kurzbuch in control at ENS Austria as he takes Q1 & 2

Simon Kurzbuch remains in control at ENS Austria with the Shepherd driver taking the opening two rounds of qualifying. Having set the pace in practice at Aigen, the reigning champion would take both qualifier’s ahead of title rival Bruno Coelho, the Xray driver just 2/10ths of a second off in Q1 after hitting traffic late in the run. After a crash with Toni Gruber in Q1, Silvio Hächler completing the Top 3 of the opening qualifier, Robert Pietsch would have a better second attempt setting the third fastest time in Q2 ahead of Gruber, Hächler and Jilles Groskamp.

Continue reading this report here or view our complete event coverage here.

August 18, 2017

Hobbico to end Team Durango brand

Ongoing speculation about the destiny of the formerly very popular Team Durango brand has ended following a somewhat hidden statement on social media this week. In the past month Team Durango drivers had to cope with parts shortages and diminishing support, something that sort of found its beginning with the cancellation of all team activities for the 2015 season. Hobbico states that their ARRMA RTR brand, whose 1/8th electric buggies and trucks were the platform for Team Durango’s last generation of competition kits, is still alive and kicking with more to await from the proactive brand. Hobbico’s “official” statements reads like this:

Due to market conditions, the Team Durango product line has been discontinued and we will receive no further product shipments. (We do have some parts inventory remaining and available for a limited time.) We thank all Team Durango customers and team members for their dedication to Team Durango.

Source: Track13News [facebook.com]

August 17, 2017

Miikka Luhta takes FinTrack 21.5T Stock title

The FinTrack Tour 2017 recently concluded and in the Touring 21.5T Stock class it was Destiny driver Miikka Luhta who brought home the title. A total of 31 drivers took part in the championship series that consisted of six rounds – four run on carpet and two on asphalt. With the win Miikka also became the 2017 Junior Champion.

Image: Vesa Yli

August 17, 2017

Coelho & Kurzbuch ready to resume title battle on all new Aigen surface

The Euro Nitro Series enters into the second half of the season this weekend as Aigen in Austria hosts Round 3 of the championship with the main focus of the weekend set to be on the 1:8 title battle between reigning champion Simon Kurzbuch and a surprise 1:8 contender Bruno Coelho. Located high in the Austrian mountains near the German border, this is Aigen’s fourth year on the ENS calendar and since last year’s visit when a new pit area greeted competitors, MAV Aigen have not let up on their commitment to providing racers with a top class facility. This year’s improvement is set to have a far greater direct effect on the racing than previous work with the track having just recently been completely resurfaced with new asphalt. This should make for a more level playing field with the previous surface presenting drivers with the challenge of high tyre wear. For Kurzbuch the track has been a happy hunting ground with the Shepherd driver the winner on the last two visits and second on the inaugural visit behind John Ermen. For Coelho, this will be only his second outing at the track, the Xray driver’s previous 2015 visit netting him fourth in the 1:10 A-Main.

Continue reading this announcement here

August 17, 2017

Jeremiah Ward doubles at Triple Crown Series Rd3

The third and final round of the Triple Crown Series was recently held at Leisure Hours Raceway. The day started out under cool cloudy threatening skies but the weather would however hold out and the organiers were able to get the event started. Despite some tire issues in the qualifiers of the 17.5T Touring class, Jeremiah Ward would secure himself the top spot in Touring and also in USGT and after the mains he would also walk away with the wins in both classes.

View the USGT podium here

August 17, 2017

RRR Summer Challenge – Report

The RRR Summer Challenge was recently held in Richmond, British Columbia. The race format was a single day trophy race with three qualifiers and single mains, followed by 3-hour Nitro and Electric Enduros on Sunday. Touring Modified was full of close battles throughout the day with Logan Ruck ultimately holding TQ going into the main. Luke Pittman had been able to challenge Logan throughout the day along with Alex Pate and Keith Yu, however none of the three could best his TQ setting run of 19 laps in 5:11. Going into the main Ruck and Pittman pulled out from the field and began battling for the top spot, but Ruck was able to run a flawless race and never gave Pittman the opportunity to make a pass.

Continue reading the report here