‘There is no extra pressure’ – Rivkin
Spencer Rivkin will defend his 2WD Buggy World Championship title over the coming week. It’s something the Team Associated driver has successfully done before but this time the offroad star gets the opportunity to do it right at home – literally. HobbyAction in Chandler is the venue for the return of the 1:10 Offroad World Championships following its forced Covid break and it has been the home track of the offroad star who has just recently bought himself a house in Chandler. Speak to anyone with an ounce of knowledge about RC racing and few would bet against Rivkin delivering a third title. For many that weight could be overwhelming but not Rivkin, excited for track owner Larry Tom to get to host the World Championship, he says the 19th IFMAR Worlds presents ‘no extra pressure’ for him as a racer.
Rivkin’s rise to World Champion was pretty rapid, first meeting him while in Arizona covering the legendary Cactus Classic, we would start spending a lot more time in his company over the 2013/14 seasons as fellow Arizona driver Ryan Maifield took him under his wing. Aware of his outright natural speed & talent, Maifield was keen to harness that talent in the right direction both on & off the track and soon Rivkin was a regular at JConcepts Races around the country learning his craft under Maifield’s watch. A runner-up at the ROAR 2015 National, Rivkin would then travel to his first World Championship going to Yatabe Arena in Japan. At the conclusion of the 2WD Championship our headline read ‘Dreams do come true’ because this young kid from Arizona was the new World Champion. Talking to him about that result, Rivkin admits he had ‘no great expectations’ for his first Worlds.
Two years later in China he wouldn’t defend his title but instead would celebrate defeat being the first to congratulate Maifield for taking the title away from him, a moment in itself that was one of the greatest memories we’ve witnessed in our World Championship travels. Two years later Rivkin had his title back winning at the Hudy Arena in Slovakia, a feat many said wouldn’t be possible given it was Xray’s test track.
With the 4WD title still eluding him asked if this made him more driven for 4WD, the back to back 4WD ROAR National Champion replied, ‘Not matter what I race on the day I want to win, it doesn’t matter if that is a Short Course truck. For sure it would make it special to check mark the title but hopefully whoever is the best on the day will come away with the win’.
Asked if he feels any extra pressure with this being his home race and many believing his Hobby Action track knowledge is superior to his rivals, he said, ‘There is no extra pressure. For me I just treat it like another race. I just bought a house a couple of minutes away from the track but haven’t moved in yet and I spend about 25 weekends away travelling to races. 3 races are at Hobby Action but it’s a public track so anyone can go there. Hudy Arena was a private track, it wasn’t accessible all the time. Yes I think the US guys have an advantage as they race there a few times a year but I’m not thinking it will be easy for US guys. Schumacher, Xray and Sworkz have been there (Hobby Action) and had the the same opportunity to run on it. I think it’s even. Michal (Orlowski), Bruno (Coelho), Lee (Martin), Joern (Neumann), we all respect each other’.
Having to wait a few extra days to begin his title defence with a change in the schedule seeing 2WD run in the second part of the week long event, Rivkin believes the change is good in the long run and a good tweak as 4WD will be better in the low traction. On his 4WD buggy he said ‘a lot of effort has gone into our 4WD car’. As if he had preference he said they present to very different challenges, ‘2WD hardest class you can race in offroad. 4WD craziest class cause you have huge amounts of power. I am looking forward to racing them both’.
2023 IFMAR 1:10 Offroad World Championship coverage presented by Ruddog
The first of four World Championships Red RC will attend this year, our coverage from 1:10 Offroad in Arizona is being supported by Ruddog. Founded in 2006 by Sven Rudig, himself an avid offroad racer, Ruddog is steeped in offroad racing history being a distributor for 31 times World Champion manufacturer Team Associated and iconic offroad tyre brand JConcepts to name but a few. In addition, they have developed their own product ranges such as Ruddog Racing, a new line of electronics offered by the German company that already has a European Championship title to its credit in touring car. Revolution Design Racing Products has established itself as a designer & producer of high-quality tuning parts and are popular upgrades among offroad racers. Red RC’s trackside coverage of the 1:10 Offroad World Championship will kick off on September 10th with the start of the 4WD action and conclude on September 16th when the 2WD Champion is decided.
World Championship Schedule
4WD Buggy
September 9 – Check-in, Pit Setup, Tyre purchase and tyre tech
September 10 – Open Practice and 2 rounds of controlled practice
September 11 – 1 round of controlled practice and 4 rounds of qualifying
September 12 – 1 round of controlled practice, 1 round of quali and Mains2WD Buggy
September 13 – Track Closed, 2WD Buggy Tyre purchase and tyre tech
September 14 – Open Practice and 2 rounds of controlled practice
September 15 – 1 round of controlled practice and 4 rounds of qualifying
September 16 – 1 round of controlled practice, 1 round of qualifying and