Red RC » R On Road

January 22, 2024

Double BRCA 1:12 winning weekend for Payne

The 2024 BRCA 1:12 British National Championship kicked off over the weekend with Schumacher Racing’s Ollie Payne taking the Round 1 & 2 victories at the Eastbourne Electric Car Club hosted races in East Sussex. With almost 50 entries, Saturday’s opening round saw World Championship finalist Payne secure the TQ honours from Adam Mackman after he topped all four qualifiers. In the single 8-minute A-Main he converted that into maximum championship points with a 6-second win over 4th place qualifier Michael Bolt after he got by Mackman who completed the podium. Round 2 of the 6 round championship on Sunday saw a repeat performance from Payne as he again secured the TQ this time from team-mate Andy Murray. In the final Payne managed to go even quicker than Saturday as the only driver to run 36-laps with 4th place qualifier Louis Parker coming through for second ahead of 1:12 Spec World Championship runner-up Mark Stiles who completed the Top 3.

Image: BRCA 1/12th Scale Nationals [Facebook]

January 21, 2024

Orlowski opens ’24 Touring Car season with GP3F win

The new season of international Electric Touring Car action kicked off this weekend with Schumacher Racing’s Michal Orlowski taking the first honours of 2024 with the victory at the annual GP3F race in France. The 19th edition of the MRC Longwy promoted race that has become the big season opener in recent years, newly crowned 1:12 World Champion would secure the overall TQ from defending champion Bruno Coelho after topping 3 of the four qualifiers. A small roll in Q3 on Saturday night, meant the Polish driver would have to wait til Sunday morning to be official declared Top Qualifier, Coelho having taken Q3. Behind it would be Mugen Seiki’s Ronald Volker who lined up third ahead of Xray’s Alexander Hagberg and the Awesomatix of leading French challenger Lucas Urbain. In the Mains, A1 would see Orlowski set the fastest lap en route to a winning margin of 1-second over Coelho. Coelho would try again in A2 but his challenge was short lived as he had a roll over at the end of the straight on his third lap. In the end Hagberg finished P2 almost a second back as Orlowski claimed the overall win. Victory in A3 would see Coelho finish runner-up with 2020 GP3F winner Volker completing the podium for the second year running ahead of Hagberg. In Pro-Stock, it was Tim Benson who took the TQ and win ahead of Adam Izsay and Jan Ratheisky.

Image: MRC Longwy [Facebook]

January 19, 2024

SIGP International Grand Prix registration opens

Sunpadow Batteries has announced that registration is now open for the return of the SIGP International RC Car Grand Prix Onroad with the event set to take place on March 20-24. Having established itself as one of the leading annual international RC events in China and attracted many of the sport’s top drivers, World Champion Bruno Coelho was the winner of the last onroad edition in 2019. The event takes place at the 2017 IFMAR Electric Offroad Championship venue in Xiamen where both an onroad and offroad track are built side by side next to Sunpadow’s production facility and overlooked by one of the World’s biggest driver stands. The SIGP will continue to offer one of the biggest prizes in the sport with total prize money of $20,000 on offer over the categories which include 1:8 GP onroad, 1:8 EP onroad, 1:10 Modified Touring Car and 1:10 Stock Touring Car. Having attended previous editions of the SIGP, Red RC will be travelling to Xiamen to cover the return of international competition on the Sunpadow Circuit.

Source: Sunpadow [sunpadow.com]

January 18, 2024

MIBO Champions Volker & Mugen back to defend title

With the electric touring car season about to kick off in France this weekend with GP3F, Mugen Seiki has confirmed their lead driver Ronald Volker is to defend his MIBO International title next month. Taking place this year on February 16-18, the former World Champion won the inaugural running of the new international event in 2023 and will return to the popular Sports V Hotel race location in Hrotovice aiming for 2 from 2. The German faces strong opposition with newly crowned 1:12 World Champion Michal Orlowski confirmed to head Schumacher’s official team debut in the event with Yokomo’s Christopher Krapp returning after a tough 2023 encounter. Organised by former international touring car racer Michal Bok, the race brings together both electric onroad and offroad racing on two tracks build side by side by the team from Mibosport. With everything from the track, restaurant, bowling alley and hotel rooms all under one roof, the venue was a hit with racers who travelled from 13 different countries last year. With a capped entry limit the relaxed schedule also means plenty of time in the evening to wind down and socialise over dinner after each day’s racing. With the onroad track catering for Modified, Stock & FWD Touring cars plus Formula, the Offroad track will see action for 2WD and 4WD Buggy as well an open class of ‘Offroad Kids’ that gives the future stars of racing an opportunity to be a part of this international event. Red RC is looking forward to making the return trip to Czech to kick off our 2024 season of race coverage.

Source: MIBO [mibosport.com]

January 18, 2024

Historic Crystal Palace track needs your help

Having been around since the 1970 and witnessed decades of racing to become one of the UK’s most historic RC track, the Crystal Palace Model Car track in South London is now in need of the RC Communities help to ensure its future existence. Proposed regeneration plans threaten to replace the track with a football pitch but the BRCA, the British Governing body for radio control car racing, are looking for your support in signing a petition to try and have the track saved within the regeneration plans. European body EFRA has also got behind supporting the petition in the knowledge that local tracks at a vital future lifeline for RC Racing. Our own journey here at Red RC into RC racing came about when with our father we accidentally came across an RC track and immediately told him ‘we want one of the them’. One less track is one less opportunity for people to go racing so show your support for the track by signing the petition here.

Source: BRCA [brca.org]

January 16, 2024

Dankel and Greiner join Hobbywing

In a busy week of driver announcements from Hobbywing, the World Champion ESC and motor manufacturer has added German duo Eric Dankel and Dominic Greiner to its 2024 Modified Touring Car team line-up. Both drivers come from successful nitro onroad backgrounds with Dankel having made a successful transition to electric touring in recent years while 2024 will see former 1:10 Nitro World Champion Greiner start his first competitive season in electric racing. Having used Hobbywing last season in his Mugen Seiki, 2024 sees Dankel move to Awesomatix as well as become an official Hobbywing team driver. Returning to Serpent for his electric debut, having announced he would be using Nosram batteries the Hobbywing deal completes Greiner’s race package for this new chapter in his racing career.

Source: Hobbywing [hobbywing.com]

January 16, 2024

Yokomo returns for MIBO International

Having raced at the inaugural MIBO International, Yokomo has confirmed its return for the 2nd edition of the race where it will once again be represented by ISTC World Championship podium finisher Christopher Krapp along with Enrico Jung who will contest the 17.5T Stock Touring Car class. The Japanese manufacturer’s lead international driver, it was a character building race in the Czech Republic last year for Krapp when he finished fifth behind Eric Dankel and this time round the German will be aiming for a much more competitive showing on Feb 16-18th. A unique event, MIBO International brings together both electric touring car and electric offroad racers on the same weekend with the building of two indoor carpet tracks side by side at the Sports V Hotel in the town of Hrotovice. Last week Schumacher’s Michal Orlowski confirmed he would be taking on both tracks as he prepares to race both touring car and buggy at the two & a half day event.

Source: MIBO [mibosport.com]

January 15, 2024

Eldridge wins EWS third round

The popular UK based EWS reach the mid stage of the 2023/24 Championship over the weekend with Xray’s Harley Eldridge becoming the third different winner in as many races. In qualifying it was the Schumacher of Elliot Harper who took the TQ topping 3 of the four rounds. Fastest in Q3, Eldridge would secure 2nd on the grid ahead of team-mate & defending champion Kyle Branson. In the single A-Main, 1-minute in and Eldridge had the lead from Harper and Branson but Harper, winner of Round 2 just before Christmas, was out on lap 7. Branson would follow him in registering a DNF a few laps later, leaving Eldridge to take a comfortable win over the Schumacher of Matthieu Dambrine and Yokomo’s Alex Thurston. In Pro Stock the Xray of Tony Broad had the perfect race taking the TQ and the win ahead of Billy Fletcher and Sam Nicholls.

Image: EWS [ewsevents.co.uk]