October 1, 2016

Chassis Focus – Ryan Cavalieri

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Chassis – Associated RC8B3
Engine – MX B2R
Tyres – AKA Grid Iron 2 Super Soft
Fuel – MX
Radio/Servos – Sanwa / Savox
Body – JConcepts Prototype

Remarks – 2014 World Championship runner up Ryan Cavalieri is running the Associated RC8B3 with a setup collected from multiple tests at the track in Vegas in the build up to this race. Confident before the first run that the setup should be good from the start, it differs from their standard 1/8th setup in that it features different wishbone angles as well as universals in the front to help free up the front end, the car normally feeling slower in the corners on this surface. Cavalieri is also running a prototype bodyshell from JConcepts, but more on that later.

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October 1, 2016

Track Focus – RC Tracks of Las Vegas

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Track Name – RC Tracks of Las Vegas
Host –  Chris Tocco
Country – United States
Location – Las Vegas
Direction – Clockwise
Surface – Dirt with paved section

Two years ago, during an IFMAR meeting at the 2014 1:8 Offroad World Championships in Italy, when Paul King confirmed that ROAR had from 3 applications selected Las Vegas to host the next World Championship, the father of 2010 World Champion Cody King backed up the announcement with ‘Chris will do a great job’.  Roll on 2-years and a great job is exactly what Chris Tocco has done presenting a facility that reflects that status of what is the sport’s most important race.  Situated directly across from the main runway of Las Vegas’ busy McCarran International Airport, RC Tracks of Las Vegas was only in the early stages of being built when it was announced as the host of the 16th running of the World Championships but former Motocrosser Tocco said this was part of the planning as it allowed him to put in place the right infrastructure for a Worlds from the start allowing the time closer to the event to be used to plan the finer details and make the race ‘a show’.

Originally from SoCal, Chris’ background is motocross.  Starting out on bikes at the age of 4, he would ride professionally in a career that lasted 19-years.  Eventually forced to retire from bikes through injuries, he would make the transition from riding to building training tracks for pro riders.  Away from that he would discover RC as a new way to get his racing fix and in that time developed a friendship with none other than Jared Tebo.   Losing touch a little with RC, a move to Las Vegas would re-ignite his interest initially as he raced some 1:10 Offroad Indoor, but because of his similarity to Motocross he really wanted to be racing 1:8 Nitro and as ‘a nitro guy’ this lead him to seek out a location on which to build a track.  Looking for a site, he was to come across a 2 & a half acre plot of land which he said at the time was disused and completely covered in trash.  Part of a 144 acre site that also houses an outdoor kart track and outdoor baseball batting cages, he took on a lease on the plot of land with the goal from Day 1 to bring his motocross knowledge to RC.  Having built AMA National Motocross tracks that could cater for 40,000 race fans, he said while RC budgets are a lot smaller he still wanted to bring the same kind of experience of a motocross track not just for racers but for those who come to watch the racing.  He said ‘racers are here focused on the serious business of trying to become World Champion but I want fans to come and go, this is awesome I have to get a car’.

In terms of the track build, Chris said he has taken elements from previous track builds but the rhythm five pack is something new which he as always wanted to try, with the paved section also a first for him as a track builder.  Built in an area 175 feet wide by 139 feet deep, the track has been described by many as ‘easy’,  a criticism he said he will take.   He said, ‘I could have made double jumps but then when the track roughs up no one will be able to make them.  I want drivers to race each other.  Good racing is better than just who can jump it the best’.  Spending $30,000 on bringing in the dirt for the track, he said initially they tried to glue the surface but he quickly went back to ROAR/IFMAR and said if thats what you want then give the event to someone else adding, ‘I’m a motocross guy, racing should be on dirt not a sealed flat surface’.  In order to help make the track last the 8-days of racing his track team will water the track between each and every heat, something they managed to achieve successfully in yesterday’s ‘Race In’ event when he said they had the track watering finished before the marshal’s got to their posts.  Chris said, ‘the track crew are doing an awesome job and want to thank anyone who picked up a hose, a brush, zip tie for that help’.

One driver with experience of the the track already is Mike Truhe.  Although he had qualified for a Team USA Worlds entry, an admin error meant he missed the closing date for receipt of the actual entry and so he had to book his place in the Worlds through the ‘Race In’ yesterday which was won by Lee Martin.  Describing the track as ‘simple’, he said ‘I think it will get better as it gets bumpier’.  The Mugen driver added, ‘If you’re late in one corner your going to be late in the next three’.  On the paving section he said ‘I expected more of difference but it didn’t grip or change how I needed to drive it’.  Feeling more bumps will give tyres more to grip off, tyre wear expected to be low, the former Vice-Champion added, the track is not finished being built up until Saturday so its going to get more character each day’.

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August 13, 2016

2016 200mm Worlds Winning Car

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Dominic Greiner

Serpent 748 Natrix – Novarossi – Hotrace (handout) – Runner Time – SRC – Sanwa

August 13, 2016

Greiner deserving World Champion after faultless race

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Dominic Greiner is the new Nitro Touring Car World Champion.  Widely regarding one of the world’s fastest 200mm drivers the German finally took the sport’s biggest prize heading a Serpent 1-2 in Gubbio, Italy.  Starting 3rd on the grid, he quickly made the race his own with a faultless drive eventually crossing the line one lap up on his rivals for a much deserved win. With Top Qualifier Dario Balestri’s race lasting just 9 laps due to diff failure,  Super Pole winner Alessio Mazzeo would briefly take over the lead when the problem sent his fellow countryman’s Capricorn on the grass with only 2-minutes on the clock. Staying out front for 2-laps, Alessio couldn’t match the pace of his team-mate and once Greiner went to the front the attention of the race was on who would fill the podium. With less than 10-minutes to go, that would be decided in an epic three way battle between crowd favourite Mazzeo, Simon Kurzbuch and Bruno Coelho. On the last lap it looked like Mazzeo would throw away 2nd but while Kurzbuch would get him into the corner the Italian had better traction to the line snatching the runner-up spot by 6/100ths of a second and sending the large attendance into a frenzy.  Covering a race distance of 209 laps of the fast Miniautodromo Internazionale M.Rosati track, a bad last lap would result in Coelho missing the podium by 1.7-seconds. The best non-European finisher Takaaki Shimo would complete the Top 5 with only one car failing to finish the race.

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A driver who has strived so hard to be No.1 and always regarded anything else as a failure by his own standards, Greiner’s raw emotion of becoming World Champion showed just how much he wanted it.  Roaring with the joy & relief as he crossed the finish line, the 2014 Top Qualifier and podium finisher was overcome by the win.  Commenting on the race having no time to let the fact settle in as a stream of people looked to get a selfie with the new World Champion, he said, ‘What should I say, everything was perfect’.  He continued, ‘we trained so hard the last few months for this.  We practiced hundreds of tyre changes and fuel stops to make sure we had it right’.  Giving an overview of the event, he said, ‘the week started very good but then we struggled a bit in the heat but in the end we found the perfect set-up’.  In the race he said ‘after the first tyre stop at that point I could drive just 90% to make it safe’.  Opting to run less camber for the final he said while making the car slightly slower it was ‘better for the long run’ as it meant less tyre wear.  With mechanic Thomas Günsel seen by many as the key to turning Greiner from being one of the fastest drivers into also a race winner, Greiner himself acknowledging his input over the last two years. He said, ‘Thomas is the best help I can have.  This is not only my thing its a team win’.  Also thanking Daniele Ielasi for his help in the pits and also with his Novarossi engines, Greiner said the 1-2 for the 748 today was down to ‘good team work all round’.

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‘An amazing race. Today maybe 700 people cheer for me, what an amazing sensation’, was Mazzeo’s reaction to finishing on the podium on his World Championship final debut. Asked about his final lap which had the Italian crowd biting the nails, the popular 24-year-old said, ‘my heart, I just did my best and I’m so happy with second’.  Asked for an overview of the final, he started by saying, ‘I’m sorry for Dario, he is one of the best’.  He continued, ‘For my car they were not good conditions, it was hard to drive because of the temperature.  The strategy for the race was good but I made a mistake by myself and lost time. Dominic got first and I got second so I’m happy’.

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Kurzbuch summed up his podium finish with, ‘It was a super good race.  What Bruno, Mazzeo and me showed here was amazing’.  The reigning 1:8 World Champion felt time lost during the first of his two tyres stops cost him a chance at the win – all the front runners stopped on 20 and 40-minutes for a complete four tyres change.  ‘We lost a bit of time in the pits when we dropped a wheel nut’.  Failing to stay in the nut spinner, the Shepherd driver added, ‘you win together & you lose together but we never gave up’.  He continued, ‘my brother was shouting at me to push as hard as I can and we were able to come back in the race and we won third place’.  Team Shepherd’s sole representative in the final, he concluded, ‘we showed the car is good and put on a great race so I’m happy’.

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‘For sure an amazing final. After 1-hour three drivers are still fighting for second’, was Coelho’s summary of the race.  The Xray driver continued, ‘OK we did not win but it was still amazing, I don’t see this like a fourth place’.  Offering his congratulating to Greiner he said the new World Champion ‘was stronger than us and could pull away at the beginning’.  Commenting on the performance of his Max powered NT1, the Portuguese driver who goes to China next week as one of the favourites for the Electric Touring Car World title said, ‘Everything was perfect, the car, the engine, tyre stops’.

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Commenting on his retirement, having made the final for the first time since 2008 in Portugal, Balestri said, ‘the first time after 3-years’ a reference to his rear diff failure adding ‘and today it broke after 7 laps’.  Having fitted a new diff to his Tesla powered LAB CO3 in preparation for the 60-minute final, the Italian said, ‘After four laps I knew I had a problem as the car was strange’, it shooting out of the lead and onto the grass 4-laps later.

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Elsewhere 2010 Top Qualifier Robert Pietsch said his ‘race was done after 3-minutes’.  The factory Mugen/Picco driver would suffer with his engine going lean and while he would pit for tuning the ‘plug was already broken’.  Rejoining the race to finish 8th, the 2011 1:8 World Champion said ‘I’m really disappointed as my lap times were really competitive’, only Kurzbuch setting a faster lap time in the race.  For 2012 World Champion Meen Vejrak, who had been battling with Kurzbuch early on, a flame out as his Capricorn was released from it’s first refuelling would end the Thai driver’s challenge, him eventually classified 9th.

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August 13, 2016

Grid set for 7th Nitro Touring WC decider

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The 10 drivers that will battle it out for the honours of becoming the Nitro Touring Car World Champion is decided with the line-up including one former champion in Meen Vejrak, the 2012 Champion coming through the second of the two 30-minute Semi finals.  The seventh running of the World Championship, where for the first time two drivers directly qualified for the final, joining Top Qualifier Dario Balestri and Super Pole winner Alessio Mazzeo are only two 2014 Finalists in Vejrak and Dominic Greiner.  The 2014 Top Qualifier, Greiner would book his place in the 1-hour final with a win over Bruno Coelho and Carmine Riola in the first encounter.  In the second, Simon Kurzbuch controlled the race throughout to book the 1:8 World Champions first 1:10 Final start.  The Shepherd driver would take a comfortable win over 2010 Top Qualifier Robert Pietsch with Vejrak seeing off a last lap charge from Takaaki Shimo to complete the Top 3. Shimo would still make the final, together with Semi B fourth place finisher Kyle Branson, the British driver surviving a last lap spin to claim the last spot with the second fastest time of the non Top 3 finishers.  Dramas for those that didn’t progress include a flame-out during his tyre stop for Team Infinity’s Jilles Groskamp. The 2012 Electric Touring Car World Champion said afterwards, ‘unbelievable, the bad luck continues.  I felt I was driving a controlled race’.  Team-mate and 2012 Top Qualifier Teemu Leino would crash out of his Semi while battling for second spot.

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Summing up booking a place in the Main, having been the only direct qualifier in 2014, Geiner said, ‘everything was perfect’.  The German continued ‘I made a good start and could pull a gap and then after the first stop I could drive to save the tyres’.  Pitting one lap later than his rivals giving him a clear pitlane, he said this was intentional for that reason.  The only one of the Top 3 to change all four tyres, the stop came just after the half way mark with former World Champion Daniele Ielasi on hand to assist his regular pitman Thomas Günsel for ‘a perfect stop’.  Looking to the final, the Bangkok podium finisher said in terms of the car he would change nothing but planned to check over his Novarossi engine describing it as feeling a ‘bit strange’ during the Semi.

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‘Finally no bad luck for Xray’, a reference to team-mate & reigning champion Alexander Hagberg being crashed into while leading his 1/8 final which ended his campaign, was Coelho’s first reaction to the race.  The Portuguese driver, who changed only his outside tyres during his second fuel stop said, ‘my car was a little difficult after 10-minutes’.  Asked if only changing 2 tyres was the right decision, he said ‘it got the job done’.  Taking the lead of the race after Greiner came for his longer 4-tyre stop, the reigning European Champion said, ‘at 5-minutes to go I opened for Greiner.  It made no sense to block, we were both bumping up and its a long race so the starting position is not important’. Asked about tyres for the final, he replied ‘I can’t say’.

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Set to start 5th on the grid, Kurzbuch said, ‘we reached our first goal, and now that we are in the final we will go all in’.  Commenting on his Semi, which he started from pole having qualified second overall,  he said, ‘my pit crew did a fantastic job and that meant I just drove my own race’.  Stopping for just a fresh set of outside tyres on his Velox V10, he said ‘the car was maybe a bit too loose so we will change it for the final so I can push harder’.

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Having missed out on the Worlds final the last two times, 2010 Top Qualifier Pietsch said, ‘the car was super good but I made mistakes which dropped me back from Simon’.  Going for the same strategy as his 1:8 rival in changing just his outside tyres, the Mugen designer felt he had a quicker car than Kurzbuch saying ‘I’m happy I was able to close again to him’ after the earlier mistakes.   Describing his Picco powered MTX6 as ‘super comfortable’, for the final he said ‘it is now up to me to drive it’.

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