Chassis – Xray XB8e ’25
ESC – Cayote Crest 8 Evo
Motor – Cayote 2200KV
Battery – Cayote 6500mAh Shorty
Tires – Hotrace Sahara
Radio/Servo – Sanwa M17S/Hitec DB951WP
Body – Xray Easy
David’s Xb8e is fitted with Xray’s optional centre dog bone drive train, soft front arms, aluminium hub uprights, and Xray Lexan rear wing.
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David Ronnefalk has delivered a TQ run at the Sunpadow International Grand Prix, the Xray driver ending Kouki Kato’s reign at the top pf the time sheets as he took the third round ahead of the Japanese driver and his Infinity team-mate Bruno Coelho. Setting the fastest lap of the round with a 32.725, Ronnefalk would eventually finish a massive 13-seconds up on Kato who, like Ronnefalk the previous round, needed to be marshalled only in Kato’s case he had double the mistakes on each opposite side of the track. With drivers reporting track conditions as even more difficult for Q3, Coelho also had two bad laps resulting in him failing to run 15-laps however overall the time still gave him a three for the round. 5-seconds behind the multiple class World Champion, promising future hope Jung Hyunkyu enjoyed his best round result with P4 for the Team Associated teenager ahead of Mayako’s Joseph Quagraine. Unfortunately for JQ’s lead driver Pekko Iivonen it was another throw away round as he lasted just over 2-minutes before his engine moved.
Reacting to his Round 3 TQ double, the 2024 eBuggy winner also going fastest in eBuggy for the first time, Ronnefalk said, ‘That was the first time I felt I could drive through some of the bumps out there. Working on the shock package is key on this track and I think we found something that was really good there because both cars were on the same set-up change and improved a lot. I was able to go mistake free pretty much in both nitro & eBuggy. Now it feels good again. I was kind of struggling a little bit with the feeling and not being able to drive the way I wanted to out but now I didn’t change much in my driving, the car was just absorbing the bumps out there a lot better.’ Asked about the changes he made to the shocks, the Swede explained, ‘mainly the piston and the amount of pack and how quick the rebound you want to have for the condition. I felt I had good grip and support in landings before but they were a little too sensitive over the bumps especially high speed and now I felt maybe I sacrificed a little bit in the landings but they work much better over the bumps and it’s so much more drivable.’ On track condition the former World Champion said, ‘It’s not easy out there, it is getting more & more dusty. I didn’t know they are not going to fix the holes. They re-glued the track yesterday and it looks like they are not going to fix the holes until the end of the race so it is definitely going to be tricky this afternoon and come tomorrow it is going to be even more tricky so I need to stay on top of things.’
Suffering his first rough round, Kato said, ‘My car got a little bit nervous in that one and was difficult to drive. The traction is getting lower so I needed to adjust (his driving) but I didn’t do it enough.’ On his two costly mistakes, the ABC Champion explained, ‘I hit a bump and had a mistake and I also had one on the left side on the back straight which was also a big mistake so it was a tough run.’ On his electric car, having said after Q2 he would change his diff oil, he said while it was a slight improvement he still needs to find more grip.
While a far from perfect run, Coelho was more positive about his nitro buggy this time saying, ‘the car was a bit better, I did some small mistakes, but I think we are on the correct direction now with the set-up details.’ Asked what they had discovered he replied, ‘we changed the wing to one that generates a little bit more stability on the car and we changed also a little the position of the shocks on the front to have more corner speed and less steering and it worked good so we will probably try to go more in that direction.’ Like Kato in nitro, Coelho was unable to seal the early overall eBuggy TQ explaining, ‘Electric was good but I got some traffic. I got one guy coming out from the infield into the track and I crashed into him and I lost 1 or 2 seconds and basically lost the TQ by 1 or 2-seconds. Without that it would have been OK.’
Asked how he was doing now, Hyunkyu replied, ‘Not good, I am struggling a lot.’ Despite recording his best run which sees him sitting P4 overall in the latest qualification ranking, the 14-year-old said, ‘It’s pretty terrible out there. My car was pretty difficult to drive, it is better than yesterday but still we are pretty off the pace to the Top 3 guys. The shock package is pretty important here so I will a different spring for the next one and see what happens.’ On his own driving he said, ‘I think my driving was so stupid. Q2 in electric was super nice and I was only 1-second behind Kouki but the nitro I was over excited so I just need to settle down out there. I need to be more smooth and calm.’
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Chassis – Team Associated RC8 B4.1
Engine – O.S. Speed B2105
Fuel – Rapicon
Tires – JConcepts Dirtweb 2.0
Radio – Sanwa M17
Servos – Sanwa PGS-XB II
Body – JConepts S15
Notes – Adrian is running ONG brand Shock Caps, Wing Button, and Power Switch.
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Day 2 of qualifying at the SIGP in China has opened with Infinity’s Kouki Kato laying down another TQ run, the Japanese driver carrying the form that saw him top seeding and Q1 yesterday into another very hot day in Xiamen. Managing to better his Q1 time by 3.5 seconds, Kato would lead an Infinity 1-2 as Bruno Coelho set the second fastest time 2.5-seconds adrift of his team-mate. Having opened qualifying with a P2 yesterday evening, David Ronnefalk looked to be close to challenging Kato this morning but on his fuel stop in lap his edgy looking Xray crashed and needing to be marshalled he lost over 7-seconds to drop back to record the third fastest time. After his P4 in Q1, round 2 would end up being a throw away for Pekko Iivonen, the Mayako driver entering the pits with caution after yesterday’s timing issues but finding a new bump that caused him to crash which he then followed up with a far more spectacular crash exiting the pits. This allowed Indonesian Infinity driver Jason Nugroho to record the fourth fastest time ahead of Team Associated’s young Korean talent Jung Hyunkyu with Mr. Mayako Joseph Quagraine completing the Top 6.
Summing up his second TQ run, Kato said, ‘My car was very easy to drive for the 8-minutes and we had a good pit stop with my dad and Ricardo (Monteiro). They did a super job. I just had one little mistake but the run was still OK.’ Looking to Q3, when he could potential lock up the overall TQ, 3 of 5 to count, the 19-year-old said, ‘I think I will leave the car the same.’ Asked about his eBuggy, he replied, ‘It is a little bit loose on the rear so maybe I will change the diff oil for the next one.’ Regarding tyre choice plans to still stick with the Sahara from Hotrace for now.
Reacting to his P2, Coelho said, ‘It was again tough, we still haven’t found out what is making the rear to be loose during the run.’ Last year’s SIGP podium finisher continued, ‘The electric is pretty stable and the set-up is the same so we need try find out what is wrong to make it a little bit easier for the mind. I need to be super careful driving, the rear is always catchy and basically the car is driving me and not me driving the car. I have no confidence and its is difficult to keep the pace for the 8-minutes.’ Asked about the comparison between his and Kato’s set-up he replied, ;we have very similar set-ups so I think there is something wrong on the car. The electric and the nitro have exactly the same set-up and for some reason the nitro just has some weird stuff so we need to find.’ Making it two TQ’s from 2 rounds in eBuggy qualifying asked about that he said, ‘All good. It was another clean run and the car is working pretty good so just keep it like that.’
Suffering a costly mistake in Q2, giving his thoughts on the run Ronnefalk said, ‘The grip seemed a little higher today so the car was a little more sensitive in the bumps for me and I had just one bad moment up there on the top right where I bounced and I wasn’t able to save it. So landed on the roof and it cost me quite some time.’ He added, ‘I was pretty close at the time with Kouki on the overall run so I would have been right there without that one. They didn’t do any mistakes and that’s what matters at the end so I need to improve a little bit the feeling of the package.’ Asked about changes to his buggy and running Hotrace’s Sahara tyre, he said, ‘I tried a softer tyre but it wasn’t working as good I thought cause the grip was higher and I didn’t expect that. That was what happened to me in eBuggy as well because it was very hard to drive and I traction rolled twice on the back straight and lost a load of time.’
A regular of the Philippine Masters and Asian Buggy Championships, qualifying third for his home race in 2024, this is Nugroho’s first race outside of his country in 2025 but the former National Champion has been keeping himself race sharp at home finishing runner-up in the 3 round National Championship. Asked about his P4 run this morning he said, ‘It went well. I tried to keep it safe. I made a few mistakes last night so I figured I had to play it safer. The car felt good but it might need it might need a little bit more off throttle cornering. Overall the shocks are good so maybe some geometry set-up and diff set-up change and all is good I suppose. Just play it safe and make no mistakes. It is very bumpy and hard to predict where the car will land after a bump.’ His first time to the 3 Circles track, asked if he is enjoying the bumps he replied with a diplomat answer calling it ‘a new experience for sure.’
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Chassis – Infinity IFB8
Engine – O.S. Speed B2105
Fuel – Maxima 25%
Tires – HotRace Sahara
Radio – Sanwa M17S
Servos – Sanwa PGS-XR II
Body – Infinity
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Infinity’s Kouki Kato has opened qualifying at the Sunpadow International Grand Prix with a TQ run, the top seed fastest over the 8-minute heat ahead of Xray’s David Ronnefalk and Infinity’s Bruno Coelho. While Kato TQ run was never in doubt there would be some issues with timing in the top heat as a result of the qualifiers being extended from the traditional 5-minutes to 8-minutes. With drivers forced to stop for fuel in the qualifier, a number of drivers would not have their laps counted as the came in to pit lane, Coelho, David Ronnefalk, and Jason Nugroho all effected by a problem with the loop under the paved pit lane entry. While there was some deliberations following the completion of qualifying with buggies being push back & forth over the loop on the main straight and in pit lane, it was finally decided to credit drivers with the missed laps meaning Ronnefalk got his second 3.162 seconds off Kato’s pace with Coelho joining them on 15-lap runs a further 1-second back. Showing P2 on the timing screen’s at the end of the run, Mayako’s Pekko Iivonen would end up 4th after the corrections with Adrian Wicaksono from Indonesia completing the Top 5.
Reacting to his TQ run Kato said, ‘I was able to make a good run. I ran a good pace and was consistent. I think it was a clean race and I had no issues with traffic.’ With the run bringing Friday’s action to a close, the reigning Japanese National Champion, that title defence coming up very soon, said he struggled a little with the fading light adding it was not easy to see in the distance. In terms of the track conditions, he felt Q1 traction was ‘a little low’. Heading into Day 2 of qualifying, 4 rounds on the schedule, Kato feels tyres are going to be his focus saying, ‘maybe we need to find a good tyre. Now I am using the (Hotrace) Sahara but sometimes the Bangkok is better so tomorrow I need to choose the right tyre for the time.’ Asked about eBuggy, him setting the second fastest time behind his team-mate Coelho, the 19-year-old said, ‘I made some mistakes, 3 mistakes for me. On the last lap I also lost 2-second. The car is ok so hopefully I will be better tomorrow.’
Pleased his corrected result, Ronnefalk said, ‘Nitro was good. I had a mistake in pit lane and also some traffic on the first laps and then of course the issue with the loop.’ With his pitman here in Xiamen, Adam Izsay, having given more details on his ‘mistake in pit lane’, highlighting the Swede crashed on the way in and then again on the way out, Ronnefalk laughed and replied, ‘You can mention that’. Overall the 2016 World Champion said, ‘the speed was very good but I had the mistake with a lapped car on the second lap and the shit in the pit lane, which I need to solve myself for tomorrow.’ On how the track is evolving he said, ‘I think it was better than the first day I was here cause it didn’t get as rough in the end of the day. They put a lot of glue, like they are doing again this evening, so I think it is holding up pretty well compared to what we expected.’ P3 in the first eBuggy qualifier, which was held just as the sun began to set, last year’s winner said, ‘Electric was interesting because Bruno and I were adjusting the sun blind because he needed it down but if it was down I couldn’t really see the track so we came to a compromise were I pushed his loose part up but then after three laps that part came back down and I couldn’t see the track. I had to stand tilted sideways which made it difficult for a few laps and I had a mistake because I was not focusing on what I should have been focusing on.’
Summing up his qualifier, at the end of which he said he was shocked to hear over his headset from his pit man that he was showing in last place, Coelho said, ‘In total I missed 5-laps. I only had a small bobble and the run was pretty good. The lap time was there, I had the fastest lap time of the qualifier.’ He continued, ‘The car was a bit difficult to drive but was very fast, it was a pity the laps were not counting. Luckily there was more people having a problem which means there was some problem with the loop which the organisation is trying to fix for tomorrow.’ Back on his Buggy he said, ‘We didn’t find a little more stability on the nitro but it was fast so I was happy.’ Asked how far apart his Nitro and eBuggy are in terms of set-up, his eBuggy taking the Round 1 TQ, he replied, ‘they are very close. Weight distribution is different but we need to find out why the nitro is more difficult to drive than the electric because the nitro has the pace but is not amazing the pace, I mean I am little bit faster but nothing almost, so there is no reason for it to be so difficult to drive because sometimes when you are a second faster it is ok to be difficult but if it is only zero something there is something we can still work on. The electric one is very easy to drive and fast so I am pretty happy with it.’
‘Nothing special to really say’ was Iivonen’s thoughts after Q1. The Finn continued, ‘The car felt the best it has actually been. I have been the whole day with Bangkok (tyres) and I think Sahara would have been faster so tomorrow I will test that and see if it will be the case. If that’s the case then my car is actually quite good and should be on pace.’ With his car standing out on track as the darkness fell, he explained, ‘It was actually getting quite dark already and it was good that I had the Glow Stick RC antenna on my car and that was the only thing I saw when I was driving, it was good.’ On eBuggy, in which he also got a P4, he said, ‘I made a small mistake on the back and got the worst out of it and lost a third place there otherwise it was quite good. The pace was better and also that car is much better than before.’
Another first timer to the 2017 1:10 Offroad Worlds track along with Kato, Iivonen, young Korean talent Jung Hyunkyu, and fellow countryman Nugroho, Asian Buggy Championships podium finish Wicaksono was pleased with his Top 5 opening effort. Describing the track as ‘challenging’, the Team Associated driver said ‘it has been a while since I drive on a track like this but I think it not only requires speed but also requires consistency & patience on top of set-up of course.’ Happy with his run, he said he had only one bobble in which his car turned over itself so he didn’t need to be marshalled and he didn’t lose much time.’ Owner of the West Side Raceway offroad track in Jakarta, asked if he was happy with where he was on car set-up, he replied, ‘No, no, still many thinks to work on but I think the last few days I worked mainly on shocks but I think I need to work on the diffs a little bit. Although it is bumpy and dusty on the outside, I think the racing line is starting to groove so I think I need a little bit thicker oil in my car.’
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