We love the IFMAR Worlds, particularly the Nitro Buggy category. Here’s our full coverage, including daily wrap-ups (be warned…it’s an epic!. We were watching on from the couch, like most fans from around the world, so it’s based on the information we can glean from various media sources and the live stream. We hope to be trackside for IFMAR Worlds events in the future.
DAY 1: IT’S JUST PRACTICE
After all the talk, all the hard work, all the preparation and all the wondering…the IFMAR World Championships for IC Buggy is underway at RC-Redován. The hosts look to have done a phenomenal job to prepare for event even with just a few months notice.
Full coverage from RC Racing TV and the likes of Red RC doesn’t kick in until seeding practice on Tuesday, but there’s plenty of insights from teams like JConcepts Inc, the The No Name Rc Podcast crew, photos from Circus RC News and of course from the drivers themselves.
Here’s our thoughts from the Couch, on the other side of the World, after Day 1.
CANAS
Of course it’s only early practice, and going fastest on Day 1 does not crown you a World Champion….but….the event could hardly have started any better for Juan Carlos Canas Carrasco and his SWorkz/JConcepts ride. Fastest out of the gate, and in each of the three rounds using the standard 3-consecutive laps metric, Canas looks immediately comfortable on the new Redovan layout. Car, tyres, driver….from a distance and a few short clips….look in ominous form.
EUROPEANS
It’s a fresh layout, but most of the leading European drivers are very familiar with Redovan – with the style of track layout, with the size of the track itself and even with the elevation changes that dominate the lap and are not common on race tracks around the world. Dakotah Phend is the only non-European driver in the top 10, and you have to go all the way back to 19th-placed Mason Fuller to find the next one. Ongaro, Coelho, Ronnefalk, Boots etc all look strong early.
TYRE WEAR?
There’s not loads of info about tyres being made public yet, but Ryan Lutz shared an image and a post suggesting wear rates are pretty high. That won’t matter in qualifying…but it will make tyre choice for next Saturday’s 60-minute final critical. Perhaps wear rates will evolve across the week as more and more rubber lays down.
KEY TRACK FEATURES
There’s a lot to like about the track (from the safety of my couch, and not having to try and drive it myself), and already some early signs of key features to watch for. The concrete rhythm section in the centre remains from the 2022 Worlds and is an easy place to lose time. I’m also looking at the two downhill doubles – one right over the back and one in front of the driver’s stand. Landing the car on those steep downhill landers, and still pulling the car up to make the following turn looks to be tricky. I wonder if those two spots might be overtaking opportunities later in the week. What track feature caught your eye?
DOTD: DRIVERS OF THE DAY
It’s hard to go past Canas for our DOTD award, but it was also an eye-catching performance from Renaud Savoya, the veteran looking immediately comfortable. And if time of day is a factor, Bruno Coelho looked particularly strong in P3 – at the same time of day as the Final will run later in the week. With such limited 8th track time compared to many of his rivals, it’s good early signs for the Portugese XRAY driver.
IT’S ONLY PRACTICE
It’s a long week, a marathon even, and the first day of open practice gives clues but no real answers. While the expected European runners have dominated proceedings today, there are hints in the underlying times that the anticipated challenge from the likes of Phend and Maifield will start to build.
At last, the race is (kind of) underway!
DAY 2: IT’S STILL PRACTICE!
The Worlds continued today from RC-Redován, and while it’s still only practice, things got pretty interesting. It’s still snippets of news and clips, with more coverage due to kick in sometime on Day 3 and then full live coverage at RC Racing TV from Day 4. That’s when “Couch Time” will really take hold for those of us not in Spain!
For those that haven’t tracked down the timing system for the Worlds, head over to everlaps.com. There’s also a brilliant event page at House of RC – we’ll include the link below.
STILL CANAS?
For much of Day 2, the sharp end of the field looked a little different than Day 1, missing the SWorkz driver who had so dominated the first day’s running. Ongaro found more pace overnight, taking lap times into new territory with a 2:27 headline pace in the morning (P4) round. He’d go faster again in P5, Ronnefalk and Boots joining him in the 27′ realm over three laps. And then Canas put things back on schedule, going fastest of the round, the day and the event in P6, by less than a tenth from Ongaro’s P5 time. Those two, as expected, are superb, and super-close.
HERE COMES PHEND
Perhaps of more interest in P6 than Canas’ time was Dakotah Phend demonstrating his first truly front-running pace. It’s been an impressive practice session from the American TLR driver, he and his team going faster just about every time they’ve hit the track as they continue dialling into unfamiliar conditions. That’s smart practice, and demonstrates the kind of commitment and determination that already mark him as one to watch come Saturday. There was no doubt he’d get there, but that 2.27 time late on Day 2 confirmed to his rivals: You have to beat Phend to win the Worlds.
LOOK PAST THE THREE CONSECUTIVE LAPS
Three consecutive laps has been the measure thus far, but we all know come Wednesday’s qualifying we start looking at 10-minute pace. So what are the clues in qualifying so far as to how that longer-run speed sits? Canas and Ongaro, as you’d expect, are fine. Bruno Coelho and David Ronnefalk look particularly good when taking more laps into account, Boots was eye-catching in P5, Polito and Berkan Kilic both impressive over longer runs at different stages of the day.
TYRES?
We’ll ask the question: Could this be the last 8th Buggy Worlds to be open tyre? That’s one that won’t be answered for a while – but there’s no doubt tyre choice is a critical talking point already at this race. JConcepts, Matrix, HotRace and others have speed, but wear, compound choice and outright performance are still up for debate as we work through practice. Track evolution continues, and (from a distance) it looks like compound choice will be king as that continues.
MAIFIELD AND TEKNO?
It’s been a quiet start to the week for one of the giants of IC Buggy, Ryan Maifield. The pace is slowly building, but at the end of controlled practice he’s still the thick end of a second a lap back from the front runners. Tekno too are yet to display the kind of outright speed that makes headlines with any of their drivers. Not quite cracked the setup yet? Playing their cards close to their chest? Working on long-run A final pace rather than qualifying? It’ll be a complete surprise if Maifield and Tekno don’t unlock the speed needed to compete – so like everyone we’ll keep watching his times as qualifying gets closer.
DOTD
From where we sit, while Canas, Ongaro, Coelho, Ronnefalk and Boots were fast, it’s Dakotah Phend’s trajectory that makes him our Driver of the Day. Who were you most impressed with on Day 2?
AT LAST IT MATTERS (A LITTLE)
So to Day 3, and at last the practice will (kind of) matter. Two seeding rounds plus the official opening ceremony are on the agenda. The seeding rounds do matter, but on such a big track, not really for much more than bragging rights. We can expect all of the fastest guys to be in heats that will give them a fair run at qualifying. Seeding perhaps matters more if there’s a bigger field spread (in terms of speed), and a shorter track where traffic and disparate speeds come into play. That said, it’s the Worlds and we all want something to talk about, so we’ll be back tomorrow to see what we notice!
Here’s the excellent House of RC page where you can find all the news and info:
https://houseofrc.com/wc24/start
DAY 3: A LITTLE MORE PRACTICE
Day three saw the pressure, and intensity of the IFMAR Worlds ramp up just a little more as two rounds of seeding practice preceded the official opening ceremony for the 2024 IC Buggy event.
Coverage ramped up today too. The always excellent Red RC are now on site, with Oisin’s stories and interviews giving unique insights after each round. The The No Name Rc Podcast guys are pumping out short form video and interviews, and today I got into interviews from Brent at @Wheel & Trigger (on their YouTube channel).
THE SLEEPING GIANT AWAKENS?
It’s been a curious couple of years for XRAY’s David Ronnefalk. He’s always there or thereabouts, but without too many times demonstrating the kind of unstoppable form that brought him to a World Championship win in Las Vegas 8 years ago, and the following period of dominance. There looks to be growing confidence in his race program now, and today he was lights-out fast, dragging the field with him to new heights in terms of lap times. There were some bobbles still, and he’s got to string a 10-minute run together, but just maybe we’re going to see the Ronnefalk of old this week.
3 LAPS…HOW MUCH DOES IT MATTER?
Three consecutive laps is the metric so far this week. And today Ronnefalk was king by the huge margin of 4 one-hundredths of a second (!) over Canas. But does that really matter? Is it actually a good indicator? We’ve heard drivers speak about taking several minutes for tyres to come in before banging in three quick laps at the end of the run. In a ten-minute qualifying run, that won’t cut it. We’ve seen others do three fast laps, then make a mistake. Again, over a ten-minute run, that won’t cut it. Tomorrow we’ll see those who’ve concentrated on long-run pace come to the fore. Ongaro, Coehlo and Canas, for example, didn’t top the SP1 sheets, but were the fastest three over the longer run.
THE AMERICANS?
After Phend’s late afternoon P6 run on Monday, it seemed he’d likely kick on towards the front of the field. For seeding practice today, that didn’t happen. From the other side of the world, it’s impossible to say why, but it was definitely a surprise to see him wrap today back in 27th (but more importantly, the thick end of a second a lap off Ronnefalk’s headline pace). Maifield too is still yet to settle – though at least with Figueirado and Pariente now in the top 10, Tekno have car speed to work with. Ryan Lutz was the fastest US driver today, just ahead of Kyosho teammate Phi Long Nguyen (also the fastest Junior today) in a seeding result that will buoy both drivers.
THE TRACK
The struggles of the US drivers to find genuine front-running pace (and to be clear, I’m confident they will be there by Saturday) maybe points to just how difficult the challenge of the Redovan track is. Really clean 10-minute runs are going to be hard to come by. Tyre choice looks like it’s still a real puzzle. Setups, based on what drivers are willing to say publically, are extreme.
THE PILLOW?
Friend of the channel Chris pointed out to me last night that the sharp end of the timing charts has been pretty much dominated by pillow ball cars – SWorkz, AE, WIRX and XRAY. We noted above that Tekno have finally got close now – so perhaps that story will change over tomorrow’s three qualifying rounds.
DOTD
It has to be Ronnefalk that’s our Driver of the Day, at least in part because of the insane speed he showed in SP1 – almost a second ahead of Ongaro over three laps. Honourable mention to Elliot Boots, the Brit so perfectly poised after a strong practice run. He’s gotten close before…could this be the week?
After two years of waiting, and three days of practice…we’re at last ready to get properly on the clock as we move into Wednesday’s three rounds (of six total) of qualifying. There’s not been anything yet to really change our pre-race predictions (save the slower than anticipated start for Maifield), but in about 12 hours time (as we write) there will be no more hiding. I can’t help but wonder if tomorrow’s story might contain a few surprises.
DAY 4: ON THE CLOCK AT LAST!
And just like that, we’re not only on the clock, but half-way through qualifying. With three heats down and three to go, the qualifying battle is all to play for – Canas and Ongaro holding the aces in the fight for TQ.
Full streaming coverage from RC Racing TV kicked in today, meaning that racers across the world were glued to laptops, phones and smart TVs…or maybe that was just in my lounge room.
The two-time and defending World Champ got his defence off to the best possible start with a clean Q1 win. He saw off an early challenge running in the same heat as seeding pace-setter David Ronnefalk (a pit in-lap error dropped Ronnefalk back) and was then rock solid through the back half of the run. Juan Carlos Canas had run in the previous heat, the only other driver to complete 13 laps but some three seconds back from Ongaro. Hard luck story of the round for Bruno Coelho, who after an early error fought back to lead Canas, only to pull up early after being confused about whether he had already finished. The Portuguese driver likely would have finished second to Ongaro, so dropped only one spot to be third for the round ahead of Ronnefalk. At this early stage those four look to have a margin on the rest of the field. Other notable top-10 results included Jonny Skidmore (p7), Dakotah Phend (p8 and bouncing back after a rough seeding day) and Marcus Kaerup (p9, his best performance of the week so far). Elliott Boots would be disappointed to be p15, while Maifield, Lutz, Cavalieri and Rivkin all struggled, falling outside the top 30. Multi-time World Champ Naoto Matsukura had an opener to forget in his first nitro buggy race since the 2018 worlds – back in 98th.
Q2: CANAS STRIKES BACK
Coming into this Worlds as arguably the form driver of the year, Canas cut a swathe through the field in open practice, and in Q2 today once again went to the top of the charts, 0.3 secs ahead of Q1 pace-setter Davide Ongaro. Watching the stream, Ongaro’s car looks very strong, behaving beautifully and already looks in good shape for the long 60-minute final. We didn’t get to see a lot of Canas on camera – but in the bits I did catch his car looked very fast, dynamic even – perhaps a little better than Ongaro in the tighter corners. Behind those two, Coelho (well in the mix with Canas until an untidy last couple of minutes) and then Ronnefalk. Then it’s a big gap back to Phend – continuing to improve relative to the rest of the field, but needing the best part of a second-a-lap on average to get on terms with the front-runners. Elsewhere, Boots got his campaign going with a safe 7th, Batlle likewise in 10th, and an impressive p12 for US junior Phi Long Nguyen. Maifield, Lutz and Rivkin continued to struggle a little – outside the top 30 again.
Q3: PHEND KEEPS COMING
Dakotah Phend made the front four a fast five, finding the bulk of that missing lap speed to put himself right in the mix in Q3. It wasn’t enough to pick off Canas and Ongaro – and there’s still a few tenths more he’ll need – but third for the round and a beautifully consistent run means he’ll sleep well tonight. Canas and Ongaro both made errors, though Canas’ last half was outstanding. He takes a pair of round wins into the second half of qualifying – putting him in the box seat for TQ. The rest of the fast-five also had errors, Ronnefalk still fourth, Coelho back in 6th with Joao Figueirado banging in his second top five. Batlle, Berken Kilic, Jonny Skidmore and Marcus Kaerup stayed with the program, delivering top 12 results.
A RACE IN FIVE?
It’s still early, there’s another whole day of qualifying and long finals are a whole new world. That said, it looks right now like a race in five. On pure pace, Canas, Ongaro, Coelho, Ronnefalk and now Phend have a margin. There’s not much between the five of them in terms of speed – Canas and Ongaro maybe have a tiny edge – but Phend’s Q3 run (and it’s pure consistency) marked him as a very real threat for Saturday’s finals.
LOCKED IN?
Speaking of finals, three strong results means that Canas, Ongaro, Coelho, Ronnefalk and Phend are locked in already for semi-final starting spots – just the start order to be resolved. Jonny Skidmore, Berken Kilic and Elliott Boots are just about there as well, everybody else looking for at least one more strong result from Thursday’s Q4,5 and 6. That really opens up the possibility of Canas and Ongaro in particular taking some tyre choice risks on Thursday, looking for long-run comfort and consistency ahead of the finals – if they’re prepared to let the TQ battle slide.
THE UNKNOWNS?
Getting a couple of ten-minute qualifiers out of tyres is one thing – the 60 minute final looms as a test of a whole different order. There’s been talk all week about the track developing enough to go to clay compound tyres, but not yet confirmed (that I’ve heard…I slept through P3!) anybody has made that shift. With the final likely to run in afternoon hot conditions, tyre life might still be a question, and if that move to clay compounds happens, the balance of power in terms of tyre brand might well shift as well – 6Mik for example reckoned to have an edge in those conditions.
I did gather that weather conditions for Thursday might be a little cooler – and that might play out in differing car performance than we’ve seen the last few days.
Brandon Rose and Mason Fuller look like they’re both in the fight for a semi-final birth, but other US drivers are much further back than anticipated. Maifield, for example, is in deep trouble, and at this stage outside even the ¼ final cutoff. With Canas leading on JConcepts rubber, and Figueirado blazing away in a Tekno, the ingredients are there for Ryan – but somehow it isn’t coming together. I caught a chat with Spencer Rivkin saying he had only just today put a setup on the car from his European team-mates – an admission that surprised me a little.
DOTD
Canas and Ongaro have cleaned up the round wins, but I’m giving Driver of the Day to Dakota Phend. After confusing things with a difficult seeding day, the TLR pilot is now back on the trajectory he’d shown through open practice – constantly improving and buying his seat at the big table. There’s still a little more – but he’s the coming man at the end of day 4.
DAY 5: DOMINATION, EXPERIMENTATION, DESPERATION AND REGULATION
Qualifying is in the books at the 2024 IFMAR IC Buggy World Champs – and of course you know by now that Juan Carlos Canas has driven his SWorkz buggy to the TQ position. That simple statement barely scratches the surface on a pretty interesting day that featured extraordinary speed, last-chance desperation and an end-of-day rules drama that has the potential to change everything. Let’s dive in:
Bruno Coelho has been threatening all week to lay down an absolute heater. For 12 ½ laps in Q4, he did exactly that…until a last-lap roll dropped him out of a near-certain round win and gifted Canas his third TQ for the event. That gift-wrapped present put Canas in the box seat for the overall TQ – leaving only Ongaro able to match him (but needing to win the last two qualifiers and set the fastest time to do so). David Ronnefalk was super quick in Q4 as well, particularly over the last few minutes to finish less than half-a-second back from Canas, Coelho third and Ongaro fourth. Of note: Berkan Kilic, Elliot Boots and Joao Figueirado also dropped into 13 lap territory – the front seven split by just seven seconds in the closest round of qualifying to date. Signs of life over in the Maifield camp too – Ryan going p13 for the round just behind a slightly off-song Dakotah Phend. Maifield still has a mountain to climb.
Q5: COELHO GOES BALLISTIC, CANAS SECURES TQ
After threatening it in Q4, Bruno Coelho drove his XRAY to an outstanding win in Q5,not only the fastest run of the week so far, but the biggest winning margin to boot. It’s a run that made the whole field sit up and take notice as the multi-talented Portuguese driver finally put it all together. One side effect of his win…Juan Carlos Canas is locked in as the Top Qualifier at this World Championship event. It’s richly deserved too, and he’ll now start his semi-final on Saturday from the best possible position: #1. Ongaro was third again, Boots his best run to be fourth and Ronnefalk fifth – just slightly off the boil this morning. Yesterday we talked about there being a “fast five” some way clear of the field – but the efforts of Boots, the Kilic brothers and Figueirado have mown down that gap – suddenly it looks like 9 drivers have the speed to threaten….if anybody can catch Coelho. Elsewhere Seth Vandalen is having a happier Thursday, Brandon Rose continues to be consistent, and US junior Phi Long Nguyen is on the bubble for a direct semi-final spot. The likes of Mattia Polito Dal Bello, Jonny Skidmore, Marcus Kaerup and Robert Batlle have all-but secured those sought-after semi-final positions along with the top 9 we mentioned earlier. Ryan Maifield fell back in Q5, the Q4 recovery short-lived as the two-time 1/10th World Champ continues to try and find a sweet spot on this difficult track.
Q6: CANAS LAYS DOWN THE FINAL MARKER
He’s been the man all week, as he has all season, and Q6 saw Canas lay down a final marker, putting everything together for the fastest run of qualifying, showing exactly why he’s the TQ man and emphatically answering Coelho’s Q5 challenge. Ongaro was close, but not quite able to run the same lap times – and then delayed on exiting pit lane in someone else’s accident. Such is racing at times. Coelho was nearby, Boots again fast, and Ronnefalk fifth – the Swede just a little off in the last part of qualifying. Could it be that he was running tyre experiments ahead of Saturday? Mason Fuller continued his surge toward the front, US countryman Phi Long Nguyen consistently quick as well – securing himself a direct semi-final birth. Phend was a little off-song again, not rising to the heroics of yesterday afternoon, while Ryan Maifield ground out a determined rearguard action to at least ensure he’ll start at the back of the quarter-finals. It will take something special from Maifield to transfer to the semi and again to the final – but the whole event got turned on its head after qualifying concluded and its hard to know just who will be impacted the most.
RULES, TYRES, CONTROVERSY
All week tyres have been a talking point – mainly centred around when track conditions would allow for the anticipated switch to clay compound tyres. Now that particular tyre conversation has been overcome by something much, much bigger.
If you’ve been following the event closely you know the basic outline of what has happened late on day five. After high tyre wear all week, IFMAR met with tyre manufacturers and then an international jury to consider the ramifications. The issue? Many tyres are going to go below the IFMAR-mandated minimum tyre diameter with anticipated wear rates in longer mains. You can catch the full story at the The No Name Rc Podcast’s daily wrap-up or over at Red RC, but the outcome of those meetings is that IFMAR took the extraordinary step of confirming it will indeed apply its own rules, and will use both pre- and post-race scrutineering to confirm tyre legality. Tyres will be marked pre-race and measured post-race – tyres fall below the minimum diameter and you’re out.
That effectively throws the whole tyre situation up in the air, and with it, leaving racers no more opportunity to test before going into the finals series. Some will be forced to choose a physically bigger tyre (switching from a bar to a pin-type tyre for example), others may have to go to the lengths of a mid-race tyre stop. It’s hard to over-estimate just how much this situation throws the final result up in the air.
Where you land on this depends on how you see the importance of rules. For some, the response will be “that’s ridiculous, just let them race”. For others: “if this rule was going to be the enforced, it should have been announced pre-qualifying, not now”. And yet for others “those are the rules, they should be enforced, deal with it.” There will be a host of other (more nuanced) positions in between those over-simplifications too!
Motorsport – even scale motorsport – is one of those sports where technical regulations are always tricky. There are always advantages to be gained by bending the rules – and so rules matter a huge amount. This isn’t a club race, it’s the World Championship – and the rules of the organisation matter. In our niche sport, this is as big as it gets and, speaking personally, I have no issue with a World Champs running strictly to the organisation’s rules. Where it does get murky is if this has been a known issue throughout qualifying but let slide – only to have this announcement made at this point of the event. Presumably at least one tyre manufacturer is pushing for this enforcement because they perceive an advantage – and to be honest I’m ok with that too.
One thing it does do is brings a whole lot of jeopardy to an already interesting race – and mean that tyre manufacturers and leading drivers will be paying a whole lot of attention to the lower mains tomorrow – watching how the track develops, what tyre options seem to work (and stay legal) and making plans and more plans and contingency plans for Saturday’s main finals.
It all reminds those of us who’ve been around a while of the 1989 1/10th Worlds where Yokomo brought a tyre to the event that conformed to the letter of the law, exploiting a difference between IFMAR and other sanctioning body’s tyre/wheel size rules. They dominated the race and ultimately opened up the tyre conversation that took 10th off-road down the spec tyre route for sanctioned international races. There’s long been mumblings about the absence of controlled tyre in 8th off-road and this situation has brought those voices to the fore. We’ll say again what we said several days back: Could this be the last open-tyre IFMAR Worlds for 8th Off-road?
TIME TO RACE
It’s now time to go into the business end of the event. The bump-up finals start tomorrow before Saturday picks things up with the 1/8th finals. We’ll take a full look at Saturday’s lineup in our story tomorrow, see how the tyre situation has shaken out and make some (baseless) predictions. For Friday’s action there are still some pretty big names in action that haven’t had the event they’d have hoped for: Naoto Matsukura, Jared Wiggins, Ryan Cavalieri, Cole Ogden, Kaden Fuller, Spencer Heckert to name just a few.
Day 6: THE BUILDUP
Quali is done, and proper racing is now underway, the two-day build to Saturday afternoon’s 60-minute World Championship final.
Life is a little full here in the Action RC lounge room with a big local race to get to, so I’ve had to opt for an early story with a few snippets from early on day 6, and a full, overly detailed, long and drawn-out preview of World Championship Day. Special prize for anybody who makes it to the end!
Lower finals day is an opportunity for those qualifying for the higher finals to get a little relaxing, plus prepare cars for the rigours of at least all that lies ahead. Anybody qualifying direct to the semi-final, then making the main will have to build a car to handle 90 minutes of full-throttle driving. If you’re trying to bump from the ¼ or 1/8 finals all the way to the main, make that 120 or 150 minutes of action. It’s a big ask for a car, and it makes today’s preparation time vital.
But it’s also when the bulk of the field – the guys for whom an A final appearance is not realistic – get to go head-to-head racing, to measure themselves against others who’ve qualified at a similar pace. There are almost always some stories too of a driver having qualified out of place and finding a way to bump multiple times. We saw a few drivers do just that, maximising track time and performing brilliantly. Patrick Boillat bumped twice as did Yamen Necdet, Zak Edwards, Ryan Daze, Riccardio Simionato, Dani Vega, Tom Robin and Kaden Fuller before we hit “publish” on this story and headed for bed. Nice work to all of them!
Also great to see RC superstar Naoto Matsukura make it through his 1/16th final to ensure he will race Saturday, Jared Wiggins and Cole Ogden doing likewise.
TYRES
(Edit: After this story was first published an IFMAR international jury clarified that post-race inspection for tyre size would not be undertaken. Pre-race tech will continue to include tyre size. For completeness we will leave our published story intact.)
There are photos around (Circus RC News, The No Name Rc Podcast) of the measuring jig that IFMAR is using to check tyre sizes. The procedure that has been settled seems to be that IFMAR officials pickup cars directly from the pit lane at the end of each final, taking them straight to tech where tyres are tested – first on the car, and then removed for more detailed checking for any tyres that are close to failing. In early finals the story seems to be that nobody has failed tech – but these races are only 20 minutes, and drivers are less likely to be pushing the car and tyre to the edge of its performance. You get the sense that there’s more to come from this story – including wild rumours about the track owner closing the venue on Finals day in protest at the whole affair, and just as we hit publish, that post-race tyre tech will be abandoned completely.
FINALS DAY PREVIEW
Look the truth is, I love writing and I love RC – so it’s impossible to resist the idea of an extended preview of Saturday’s action. With a lot to look forward to, I figure a race-by-race preview, picking out the big questions for each race – and then a final look at the main contenders (with the caveat that the tyre situation might change everything, and we also might lose some big names at the semi-final stage if mechanical issues intervene). Here then, is the highly unscientific Action RC main day preview, in which we’ll go out on a limb and name names. Join us in the comments – who are your picks?
1/8A: PALSSON/TODD/RIVKIN
This is a race packed with talent (not the last time we could say that) and with some interesting stories. Can Jessica Palsson – the world’s fastest female nitro buggy racer – bump to the ¼ finals? What about Spencer Rivkin – a multi-time 10th Offroad World Champ? Can he overcome a horror week and find his groove in the longer 30-minute final? Or David Todd – a junior driver fresh from a big win at the recent Euro B event? Or uber-experienced Joe Bornhorst? Or Camden Lime – one of the coming men of the US scene? Or current 2wd Mod 10th World Champ Tater Sontag? Or just maybe Naoto Matsukura or Ryan Cavalieri who might bump into this race from the 1/16 final. Tough field! Our picks to bump: Lime, Palsson, Rivkin, Todd
1/8B: BODA/DRAKE/KATO
It might not have quite the star-power names of the 1/8A, but this is a tough final. Adam Drake has decades of experience to draw on, and the capacity to run long – will he get through on two stops and steal a march on his rivals? French stars Clement Boda and Remy Bermudez will be out to put a stop to Drake while globe-trotting Japanese driver Kouki Kato is also a big threat. Keep an eye out for Jared Wiggins and Cole Ogden – who might both bump through from the 1/16 finals for this one. Our picks: Boda, Drake, Kato, Bermudez
1/4A: THE RISE OF THE US?
There are three US drivers in this one (not counting the likes of Rivkin, Sontag or Lime who might bump from the 1/8 final) who’ve all been searching for and finding pace in what has been a well-documented and steep learning curve for the state-side guys. Seth Vandalen, Brandon Rose and Ryan Lutz each have everything it takes to bump from the ¼, but they’ve got to overcome both Pariente brothers, Jorn Neumann and Pekko Iivonen to do it. And Alex Zanchettin – so much experience and so much speed. Our picks: Zanchettin, Rose, Lutz, D Pariente
1/4B: THE MAIFIELD STORY
There are huge names in this final – Savoya, Baldo, Haatenen, Barufallo, Widmaier – but one stands above all of them: Ryan Maifield. Considered among the leading contenders for the World Championship just a few days ago, it’s been a rough week for Ryan. There were signs of life yesterday, p13 and p20 quali results evidence that Maifield is starting to find a way. If he’s to pull off the near impossible, we’ll get to see early in this final whether he’s cracked the code of Redovan. Elsewhere, Savoya has looked so good lately that it’s hard to think he won’t be tough to chase down with a clean start, and I like the speed of 10th specialist Juna Haatanen. Our picks: Savoya, Maifield, Haatanen, B Baldo
1/2A: CANAS V COELHO
30 minutes of awesome – that’s what this one promises as Canas and Coelho go head-to-head, with Dakotah Phend keen to stick with them early and build into finals day. At this stage, I understand it’s the first six to bump, with a 13th starter coming from the high-pressure LCQ. With Canas, Coelho and Phend likely on pure pace to take the first three spots, that leaves just three more spots. I’ve loved seeing Marcus Kaerup go at it this week – and I reckon he might sneak one of them, and under-the-radar UK racer Jonny Skidmore who just keeps getting it done. The trouble for both of them is that Joao Figueiredo has been dynamite this week. And some ¼ final talent to come. Our picks: Canas, Coelho, Phend, Figueirado, Kaerup, Skidmore.
1/2B: ONGARO ON TRACK?
Is the three-peat possible? This semi will give us a great look at Ongaro’s long-run pace, and David Ronnefalk’s ability to put aside the small errors that have popped up through qualifying. Elliott Boots has been quietly doing what he needs, both Kilic brothers are in this one, Mason Fuller has been building, Robert Batlle always gets it done, and then there’s the kid – Phi Long. What about a Worlds final for him? And looming large – who comes in from the ¼ final – R Maifield? Our picks: Ongaro, Ronnefalk, Boots, Fuller, Battle, Berkan Kilic.
LCQ
Anyone in the semi-final that doesn’t make the main goes head-to-head in arguably the highest-pressure race of the week. It is, quite literally, the last chance to qualify. It’s must-watch viewing, and every chance that we’ll see a big name in this one having not had the semi-final go their way (or a mechanical) just as was the case for Dakotah Phend in 2022.
THE CONTENDERS
Here we are, 24 hours from crowning a World Champ. At the end of a long week of practice and qualifying, and an overly long race preview let’s cast one final eye over the main contenders for the win. No matter who wins, it’ll be a great story. Imagine the headlines: a three-peat for Ongaro, a first-time winner in Canas or Boots or Phend, Coelho writing his name into yet another WC category, return to the top for Ronnefalk, a swansong win for Batlle, the fight-back of the millennium for Maifield…and so on.
JUAN CARLOS CANAS: Favourite for many leading into this one and we’ve seen why. Almost always in the top 2, a deserved TQ and looking very comfortable on track. I think it’s still Canas who is in the box seat – though the last 15 minutes could get pretty interesting tyre-wise. There’s also the question about the pressure of a Worlds final – a whole different experience than even a European Championship.
DAVIDE ONGARO: What a statement win it would be to go back-to-back-to-back. He has been, without question, the best nitro buggy racer in the world over the last 6 years and three straight wins would mark him as perhaps the best ever. We know for sure that Ongaro can deal with the pressure, and can put together metronomic consistency. He won’t go away.
BRUNO COELHO: He’s already a multi-time World Champion across multiple disciplines, and a Euro Champs win in Nitro Buggy. A win here vaults him into the very highest echelon of RC races and into the “best of all time” conversation. Insanely fast-paced at times during qualifying. With limited 8th track time, will he have the match fitness to keep that pace up for a full hour?
DAVID RONNEFALK: At times this week the fastest on the track, but still a few small mistakes have crept in through qualifying. Still, David has looked better in recent times than he has in years, and you get the feeling that he could very much put together an outstanding hour.
DAKOTAH PHEND: It’s really hard to read Phend’s status going into Saturday. He’s been up and down this week – at times building to near front-running pace, and at other times dropping just back from the leading group. Phend is too good a driver to go through his career without winning a Worlds – but will it be this week, on unfamiliar territory…that’s the question. It is possible, but will take an extraordinary drive. It’s an early call, but you’d have to think Phend will start favourite in 2026.
ELLIOT BOOTS: Twice before he has Top Qualified at a World Championships. While he hasn’t quite had that same front-running pace this week, what I have liked is that he’s improved all the way through the six rounds of qualifying – ending up in the top group in both Q5 and Q6. Boots, like drivers like Maifield and Batlle, is arguably better in rough, unpredictable conditions – but he is quietly building for a run at a first WC win tomorrow.
THE OTHERS: A win from outside that group will be a little surprise (to me at least). That’s not to say there isn’t talent, and a surprise win (Kilic? Figueirado? Fuller?) would be an awesome story – but those guys above have had the edge on the field in both pace and consistency. We’re not really going out on a limb to say it’s that top 6 who start heavily favoured.
THE TYRES: We’re not saying anything else about tyre size…but remember this is a high-wear track and a 60-minute final. Watch for some to fade hard in the last 10 minutes, and even for the possibility of tyre failure. Canas, for example, struggled a tiny bit for pace late in the 45-minute Euros final. It really won’t be over until the final lap.
That’s enough, if you made it this far, kudos to you! It’s a big weekend of RC and of full-scale motorsport. We’re here for it all – wearing a backside-shaped hollow in the couch at Action RC HQ. We hope you enjoy as much as we think we will!
Day 7: CHAMPIONSHIP DAY
It’s two years since the last IC Buggy World Champs, it’s months since we found out the race would be back at RC Redovan, it’s 7 days since racers flew in from around the world – and at last it’s Championship Day. If you haven’t seen it – head to RC Racing TV to watch the race on the live stream – and be warned…below we’ll talk about all the results and action. Photo from our friends at Red RC.
1/8 FINALS: RIVKIN & SANCHEZ
Spencer Rivkin is a multi-time World Champ. It’s been one of the puzzling features of this Worlds that a driver of his quality hasn’t come to grips with the track and the particular driving style it requires. At last this morning that seemed to be changing, Rivkin starting from P8 but finding his way to the lead mid-race and going on to bump to the ¼ final along with Jessica Palsson, Andrea Trevisan and Hampus Berg. Over in the other 1/8th final, Josemi Sanchez held off first Clement Boda, then popular US driver Cole Ogden – those three joined by Daniel Bernabe to move forward. That meant farewell to the likes of Lime, Wiggins, Kato, Sontag, Matuskura, Bornhorst and Todd.
1/4 FINALS: ROSE, HAATANEN, MAIFIELD & RIVKIN
Brandon Rose drove a brilliant ¼ final to take the win and progress, Daniel Pariente, Spencer Rivkin (a second bump) and Alex Zanchettin joining him. That scarcely does justice to a crazy 1/4 A – one in which the action kicked off with an early collision between Rivkin and countryman Ryan Lutz. That put Lutz in trouble and he yo-yo’d in and out of the top four, in the end coming up just 0.7 secs shy at the line. In the 1/4 B it was all about Joona Haatanen, better known for his 1/10th off-road exploits but on fire in this one. He lead Oscar Navaro, Ryan Maifield and Renauld Savoya through to the next round. Savoya got the spot after a last lap lunge from Josemi Sanchez was ruled illegal and Savoya promoted. Maifield did what he needed to do, but it was a mistake-filled run from the American, looking like he still had a lot of work to do in order to get on terms in the Semi-final.
SEMI A: CANAS IMPERIOUS
Juan Carlos Canas dominated Semi A – the top qualifier driving away from the field to a big 24 second win and fast enough to secure Pole Position for the one-hour Championship main. We’ve talked all week about how Semi-finals can be a risk, and there was a chance we’d lose a big favourite at this stage. For an age it seemed like it might be Bruno Coelho, the Portuguese driver racking up mistakes and putting himself well in harm’s way….right up until the moment Dakatah Phend flamed out from P2 – sending him to the Last Chance Qualifier, and putting Coelho back into a transfer spot. Joao Figueiredo and Marcus Kaerup fought an entertaining battle for second, Coelho getting to fourth ahead of Riccardo Berton, and leaving Mattia Polito and Brandon Rose to sweat on times from Semi B to see if they’d transfer as the fastest two drivers outside the automatic first five qualifiers.
SEMI B: ONGARO JOINS CANAS
It’s been the prediction all year long – Canas v Ongaro, and Semi B did nothing to change that expectation – Ongaro almost as dominant as Canas save for an early-race mistake that cost him some time and a couple of laps behind fast-starting David Ronnefalk. Ongaro regained the lead a lap or two later, a solid 30 minutes putting him just 3 seconds back from Canas’ time to lock up second on the Championship Final grid. Ronnefalk, like his stable-mate Coelho, made mistakes and looked a little uncomfortable, ceding the chasing spot to a battle pack of both Kilic brothers and Elliott Boots. Berkan would grab second, Boots third, Coelho recovering to fourth from Burak Kilic. That left Robert Batlle and Mason Fuller sweating on times – both going through to the main final as the next two fastest semi-final finishers.
45+ SENIOR FINAL
Adam Drake made all of his experience and speed pay with a big win in the 45+ Final. A non-Championship demonstration race, the 45+ Final is still a hard-fought and highly prized race. Legendary ex-European Champ Dani Vega (winning the EFRA Title in 1999) and UK’s Kevin Brunsden rounded out the podium.
JUNIOR FINAL
The Junior Final is so often one of the best races of the event and this one was no different. You could forgive Phi Long Nguyen for being a little pumped up on adrenaline after a Semi-final and LCQ, but it looked from the outside anything but. He was calm under immense early pressure from Ike Tellez, before stretching away through the middle part of the race to a comfortable lead. It perhaps got a little too much for the young American, late race errors promoting an ever-present Oscar Berg to a lead he would not give up, Nguyen second, Erik Lykke coming from the clouds to grab third late.
LCQ: THE MIRACLE OF REDOVAN!
The Last Chance Qualifier lived up to its reputation as the most pressure-filled 15 minutes of the week. Adrenaline and chaos reigned early, before Joona Haatanen got in the groove and made his pace pay off. The whole race was shaped by Joona blazing away out front, Spencer Rivkin pursuing and fellow US superstar Dakotah Phend fighting his way through from the rear of the grid. Phend went long on his first stint, clearing mid-field traffic and then continued stalking Haatanen and Rivkin. Joona rolled at 11 minutes, putting him in the clutches of Rivkin as Phend continued to close.
You could not write the script – Rivkin rolling with two laps to go, Haatanen likewise a lap later, giving Phend the chance for a perfect last-lap pass through the stutter bumps, and making it two World Champs in a row he’d bump from the LCQ to a Championship final. It was, as Nick Damon called it on RC Racing TV’s coverage, “The Miracle of Redovan”.
THE CHAMPIONSHIP
Some races are great because they are super close, head-to-head racing from start to finish, with multiple lead changes. Some are great because they feature a truly dominant performance from a driver at the top of their game. Some are great because they’re a moving chess match, a strategic challenge to manage car, tyres and driver in difficult conditions. And some are great for their historic significance. The 2024 World Championship final, while not delivering on the wheel-to-wheel promise that a close qualifying battle suggested, instead served as something of a coronation for Italy’s Davide Ongaro. Three straight World Championship wins, in arguably the most competitive class of RC, marks him as unquestionably one of RC’s all-time greats, and without doubt the best ever in 8th Off-road. Only the legendary Lamberto Collari (8th IC Onroad) won more consecutive IFMAR titles. Arise Sir Davide, if we had an RC Hall of Fame, you were just made a member.
The race itself was effectively shaped on lap two when Juan Carlos Canas rolled away a lead, gifting it to Ongaro and burying himself in traffic. Britain’s Elliott Boots set out in pursuit while Canas mounted a recovery drive. That drive brought him back into the race until coming up just a few metres short at his third fuel stop – running dry just as he cross the finish line. That, as far as the win is concerned, was that. Ongaro had a comfortable lead over the pursuing Boots, Canas the better part of half-a-minute down.
Canas continued showing great pace, retaking second place from Boots as his SWorkz team-mate faded late. All that was left was for Davide Ongaro to cross the line and claim his crown, one last bit of drama within sight of the finish as a tyre failure for Canas handed second place back to Elliott Boots
Elsewhere, Ronnefalk and Coelho ran well to fill out the top 5 (without ever really threatening the front-runners), with Burak Kilic 6th from 2012 World Champ Robert Batlle. For most of the rest of the field a range of challenges delayed them – including the luckless Berkan Kilic who crashed out of the final less than half-a-lap in.
Results are provisional pending tech inspection and IFMAR confirmation.
WHAT’S NEXT?
We’ll be back in the next day or two with some final thoughts on a fascinating IFMAR World Championships. The clock starts ticking on the 2026 edition of this race, due to be hosted in the US.
For Action RC, our attention turns to the final round of the Asian Buggy Championships late September, followed by the Australian 10th Off-Road Championships – to be held early October at Hills Off Road RC, the host venue for the 2025 World Championships. We’ll cover both those events with the amazing team at RC Race Media.
We’ll also return later in the year for another IFMAR Worlds from the Couch, when the ISTC Worlds takes place in the US.
Thanks to everybody for joining in on our “couch-side” fun and story-telling this week – it’s been a blast!
Action RC 
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