What a great ETS debut for the new ARC A10MF`24 frontwheel drive car. Henrik Heitsch is running the car here at ETS RD3 and was able to grab the TQ spot for the A-Mains. Henrik has never driven the car before and he just got it built during his business trip in Mexico last week. He is using aluminum suspension mounts (R139006) in his car, as well as a Spiderdeck (139007). The rest is “bone stock” without any extras and hop-ups..
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Body Shell: Blitz YRS Speedo:Hobbywing ETS Motor: Hobbywing 17.5 ETS Battery: LRP Graphene 4.1 4100mAh Radio:Sanwa M17 Servo:MKS Tires:Ride ETS 26082 Sponsors and support: VW (Volkswagen), LMI Racing
Q3 – Michal Orlowski won the first and second qualifier, and he didn`t slow down in Q3 where he sealed the overall TQ here at ETS RD3 in Andernach, GER. This time, Mugen Seiki`s Ronald Völker came a little closer and finished in second again with half a second behind the Schumacher of Orlowski. Marc Rheinard scored another third place, and it seems like these top 3 positions are pretty much settled. But as Völker and Rheinard will not stop to hunt Orlowski down, we can expect some very thrilling finals after Q4 still has to happen on early Sunday morning.
Q4 – Another TQ run on Sunday morning once again confirmed that Orlowski seems to be untouchable here at Arena33 in Andernach. He outpaced second placed Marc Rheinard by 1.7 seconds which is kind of an infinity in RC racing. Ronald Völker, Yannic Prümper, and Eric Dankel finished in the top 5 again and everything is set for the triple A-Mains. Can Orlowski win it easy, or will Völker or Rheinard have something to throw at him?
Press Conference after Q3
After the third round of qualifying on Saturday evening, the top 3 drivers Michal Orlowski, Ronald Völker, and Marc Rheinard showed up for a press conference. The ETS will do this more often from now on and we already hope that you will like it!
Ellerbrock wins Q3 and Q4 and it top qualifier at Arena33
Q3 – Lukas Ellerbrock was the third different driver to TQ one round of Awesomatix Pro Stock qualifying. Lukas was on fire with his Awesomatix A800R and was able to hold off Enrico Jung (Yokomo) by one second over the 4-minute run. Jesper Rasmussen had an amazing run with his Reedy powered Awesomatix to third place, followed by Mattia Collina (Schumacher), and Stefan Schulz (Xray) who had great results coming from the second fastest group.
Q4 – The showdown for the overall pole position was on the line on early Sunday morning in Andernach. With 5 drivers having a chance for the pole position, the heat was ON. Lukas Ellerbrock showed strong nerves and got the perfect job done winning Q4 and taking TQ honours in front of Adam Izsay, Olivier Bultynck, and Jan Ratheisky. The Pro Stock class is as close as we haven`t seen for a long time and we are already looking forward to the upcoming triple A-Mains.
Q3 – Henrik Heitsch is the man to beat at ETS RD3 in Andernach so far. His performance is surprising many others in the pits as “Heitschi” has not practiced a lot in the last weeks due to his oversea work commitments. After winning the first two qualifiers, he was able to seal the TQ-Deal in Q3 ahead of a great driving Marwin Riedelbauch. Sebastian Meibörg, Adam Izsay, and Jacques Libar also made it into the top 5 and we can expect some great finals on Sunday.
Q4 – It was already pitch-black dark as FWD Q4 took place under the lights at Arena33. Roman Borschel had a blast on track and took the win ahead of Adam Iszay, Sebastian Meibörg, Marwin Riedelbauch, and Andy Murray. It had been very challenging conditions, but the drivers managed to keep their cars on track and it was the same for everybody. The triple A-Mains will be great to watch as always in the FWD class and Henrik Heitsch will have a lot of work to do with all the fast guys behind him on the grid!
Zierold takes Q3, Thalheimer to start on Sunday`s pole position
Q3 – Michel Zierold, the race winner from ETS RD2 in Austria, took the third round of 1up Racing 40+ Masters qualifying. Zierold had a clean run and his Awesomatix car was four tenths faster as Toni Mateo (Awesomatix) in second place and Torsten Baggendorf in third (ARC) spot.
Q4 – After making a bad mistake in Q3, Mirco Thalheimer (Xray) was right back to the point in the last one and took the win which earned him the overall TQ at ETS RD3 in Andernach. Toni Mateo (Awesomatix) will line up second on the grid, followed by Michel Zierold (Awesomatix), Werner Schmitzer (Yokomo), and Manuel Stankowitz (Iris).
Bergheim overall TQ at Arena33 while Siebert takes late evening Q4
Q3 – Tristan Bergheim has sealed the overall TQ of the Orca 21.5 Stock class at ETS RD3. A win in Q3 in front of Timo Siebert was enough for him to book the best place on the grid for Sunday`s triple A-Mains. Timo had another solid run to P2 while Karl-Heinz Moritz, Phil Langner, and Emely Ratheisky completed the top5.
Q4 – Timo Siebert took advantage of Tristan Bergheim`s DNF in the last round of Orca 21.5 Stock qualifying. With his TQ run, Siebert will line-up second on the grid in Sunday`s triple A-Mains with Phil Langner in third, and Karl-Heinz Moritz in fourth place. Can Bergheim drive away from Siebert and Langner, or will we see a thrilling fight between these talented and motivated racers? Let`s find out on Sunday.
Ehrbar steals TQ from Stiebler with great Q3 and Q4 performance
Q3 – David Ehrbar (Xray) was the winner of ToniSport Formula Q3 at ETS RD3 in Andernach. After arriving late to the event, Ehrbar was finally up to pace and took an impressive win ahead of Q1 and Q2 winner Andreas Stiebler. This result shifted the decision for the overall TQ into the last round of qualifying. Luka Joviciv, Robert Kampehl, and Herbert Weber completed the top 5 while a very fast Jan Ratheisky had technical issues at the end of the run.
Q4 – It was again David Ehrbar with the win in the last round of ToniSport Formula qualifying. After Andreas Stiebler was the man to beat in Q1 and Q2, Ehrbar was able to turn the game to his favour and will now start on pole position in front of Stiebler. Not a bad recovery from Ehrbar with his Xray car. Jan Ratheisky, Luka Jovicic, and Robert Kampehl will start behind them and will be right there if something will happen in the front.
After the third round of qualifying on Saturday evening, the top 3 drivers Michal Orlowski, Ronald Völker, and Marc Rheinard showed up for a press conference. The ETS will do this more often from now on and we already hope that you will like it!
Q1 – After being fastest in Thursday practice, Schumacher factory driver Michal Orlowski continued to run on top of the Matrix Modified class as he took the win in Q1 by 1.1 of a second from Mugen Seiki`s Ronald Völker. After Q1, Orlowski said on RC Racing TV :“I was able to pull a little gap to Ronald and managed it to the end. It was important to have the short round of practice in the morning to get back into the rhythm as the track feels very different after the rain. I think we can still improve the car for the next round, and I am very confident now after a perfect start into qualifying!” Behind Orlowski and Völker, Awesomatix driver Marc Rheinard took third place and was another second behind Völker. Yannic Prümper (Yokomo) and Eric Dankel (Mugen Seiki) completed the top 5.
Q2 – Michal Orlowski had another mega run in Q2 of the Matrix Modified class. His gap to second placed Ronald Völker was almost the same as in Q1, at about 1.2 of a second. The Schumacher driver made no single mistake, and his car looked a little sharper compared to the Mugen of Völker and the Awesomatix of third placed Marc Rheinard. In the after-race interviews on RC Racing TV, Rheinard and Völker both said that they tried some small stuff on their cars here and there, but it seems like nothing really helped (until now) them to challenge Orlowski even harder. Behind Orlowski, Völker, and Rheinard, we saw Yannic Prümper (Yokomo) and Eric Dankel (Mugen Seiki) in the top five as they finished in Q1 as well.
TQ wide open after Bultynck and Benson both won a round
Q1 – In the Awesomatix Pro Stock class, Olivier Bultynck (Awesomatix) took the win in Q1 by a super-small margin of 0.017 seconds from Lukas Ellerbrock (Awesomatix) and Adam Izsay (Xray). It was a very close top heat as the field stayed close together on the timing board all the time. Enrico Jung took P4 for the round and Stefan Schulz posted the fifth fastest time coming out of the second fastest heat.
Q2 – Tim Benson was on top of the board for most of the time in Q2. He looked strong out there with his self-converted Jambo One car and crossed the line with a one second quicker time than second placed Jan Ratheisky (Xray). Enrico Jung, Adam Izsay, and Olivier Bultynck took positions 3, 4 and 5 and the overall TQ is still wide open after this result. Alvaro Fernandez from Gran Canaria posted the second fastest lap of the heat and finished sixth in Q2.
Q1 – The first Hobbywing Frontwheel qualifier was a close one on the tarmac at Arena33. With the sun shining directly onto the track, the FWD cars had plenty of traction and it was Henrik Heitsch (ARC)who snatched the win away from Adam Izsay (Xray) and Max Weffers (fastest lap of the heat – Mugen Seiki) in the last lap of the race by 0.4 of a second. Marwin Riedelbauch had a great return to the ETS after a 2-year break with taking fourth for the round while Roman Borschel finished in fifth place.
Q2 – Henrik Heitsch was also on a mission in Q2 where he once again battled it out with Roman Borschel (Awesomatix), Adam Izsay (Xray), Max Weffers (Mugen Seiki), and Sebastian Meibörg (Mugen Seiki). Heitsch just came back from a business trip in Mexico before the race and it seems that the long-range flight was like a booster for him. Heitsch had the fastest lap to his favor, as well as the gap of almost three tenths over Borschel. Can Heitsch claim the pole position here at Arena33, or will anybody able to deny him?
Mateo wins Q1 – Thalheimer strikes back in the second round of Masters qualifying
Q1 – Toni Mateo (Awesomatix) had a very close battle with Mirco Thalheimer (Xray) in the first round of 40+ Masters qualifying. They changed positions multiple times during the run and after four minutes it was Mateo having the advantage of 0.057 seconds over Thalheimer – what a close finish. Michel Zierold (Awesomatix), Manuel Stankowitz (Iris), and Frank Fuchs (Xray) took third, fourth, and fifth place and crossed the line only separated by 0.4 seconds showing again what the 1up Racing 40+ Masters class is all about.
Q2 – After coming short to Q1 winner Toni Mateo, Mirco Thalheimer got the job done in the second round of 1up Racing 40+ Masters qualifying. He showed a great speed and could take the win even with making a small mistake in the penultimate lap of the race. Manuel Stankowitz (Iris) finished in second place behind Thalheimer which is a good result for the reigning champion after his fourth place from the first round. Werner Schmitzer (Yokomo) took the points for P3 while Toni Mateo (Awesomatix) and Torsten Baggendorf (ARC) rounded out the top 5.
Bergheim arrives late to the race and controls Q1 and Q2 in style
Q1 – Tristan Bergheim took the opening round of qualifying with his Awesomatix A800R after missing out all the practice on Thursday. He was fastest on track and had a gap of 2.7 seconds to second placed Mugen Seiki driver Timo Siebert. Third place in Q1 went to Lenny Kieffer followed by Karl-Heinz Moritz and Emely Ratheisky. Q1 was a great start into the event for Bergheim who won the season opener in Apeldoorn and is leading the championship.
Q2 – The second Orca 21.5 Stock qualifier was another dominant show from Tristan Bergheim. With two out of two, he has almost sealed the overall TQ here in Andernach and is only in need of one more win to earn the top spot on the grid. Phil Langner (Awesomatix) was Bergheim`s hardest contender in Q2 and took second ahead of Mugen Seiki racer Timo Siebert, Lenny Kiefer, and Karl-Heinz Moritz.
Stiebler in a class of his own as he wins Q1 and Q2 of the Formula class
Q1 – Andreas Stiebler took the win in Q1 of the ToniSport Formula class with his Schumacher Icon2. Andreas had a clean run and won with 1,7 seconds ahead of Jan Ratheisky (Xray). David Ehrbar (Xray) was another 2.8 seconds behind Ratheisky and took third place for the round. Herbert Weber and Robert Kampehl completed the top 5 and everything looked like we will see a thrilling fight on top between Ratheisky and Stiebler, and Ehrbar.
Q2 – The second round of qualifying saw Andreas Stiebler running at the top of the field again. Jan Ratheisky and David Ehrbar pushed hard to close up to Andreas, but the Schumacher driver simply was too fast again. Stiebler posted the fastest lap of the race as well with a 20.193 and it seems that he has some kind of an advantage over his competitors right now. The upcoming third round will tell us more about his chance to win the race here in Andernach.
Schumacher`s onroad car designer Andy Murray is running the actual FTR8 frontwheel drive car here at ETS RD3 in Andernach, GER. After finishing strong at both of this seasons races, Murray is aiming for another top 3 result at Arena33. His Schumacher FT8 is equipped with alloy hub carriers from Schumacher, as well as 1-dot link mounts and a prototype rear chassis brace.
During the rain interupted Friday, we had a talk with Awesomatix factory driver, and multiple IFMAR World Champion Marc Rheinard. Enjoy our conversation with one of the most famous and iconic RC racers of all time!
During the rain interupted Friday, we had a talk with Mugen Seiki driver, and 2016 IFMAR World Champion Ronald Völker. Enjoy our conversation with one of the most succesful onroad RC racers of all time!
During the rain interupted Friday, we had a talk with Michal Orlowski about his current form, his incredible year 2023 of RC racing, and his early days in our sport. Sit back and enjoy our conversation with one of the best drivers on the planet!
What should be the day for seeding practice and round one of qualifying ended in a day without any racing action at Arena33. With rain circulating arond the track area for the whole day, there was never a serious chance to start racing on dry asphalt. Some drivers used the free time to run their rain cars on the track for just having some fun.
The ETS orga team around Uwe Rheinard and time keeper Hartmut Wenzel will work out a good time schedule for Saturday and Sunday to give everybody the most possible track time.
Day one at Arena33 was dominated by clouds in the sky most of the time. The sun only found it`s way through a several times and all the racers tried to find a good setup for these (also windy) weather conditions. At the TOS race two weeks ago, it was around 15 degrees warmer, so everything changed a lot now on the tarmac of Arena33. The weather forecast for Friday is mixed as a huge front of rain will cross Germany – let`s hope for the best. But now we take a closer look onto the Thursday action at ETS RD3 in Germany!
Matrix Modified
Orlowski leads from Völker and Rheinard
Schumacher factory driver Michal Orlowski had a solid first day at Arena33 and topped the time sheets after six rounds of free practice. After being very dominant at the TOS race two weeks ago, he is still in a great shape and his Schumacher car is flying here in Andernach. However, the gap to reigning ETS champion Ronald Völker (Mugen Seiki) was smaller than many people had expected. Ronald also showed a great pace with his MTC-2R and was only 0.078 of a second slower over three consecutive laps. It seems that the Mugen team found something to keep up with the pace of Orlowsk.
Awesomatix lead driver Marc Rheinard finished third for the day, another 0.153 behind Völker. Yannic Prümper found a good setup for the Yokomo BD12 and is sitting fourth overnight while Lucas Urbain (Awesomatix) completed the top 5 at the first practice day of ETS RD3 in Andernach, GER.The Matrix Modified class is locked and loaded and everybody is looking forward to a great battle for the win here at Arena33. The only thing which we have to wait for it the weather which still looks not very good for Friday.
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Michal Orlowski (PL) 52.094 Schumacher | Hobbywing 2. Ronald Völker (DE) 52.172 Mugen Seiki|LRP 3. Marc Rheinard (DE) 52.325 Awesomatix |Orca 4. Yannic Prümper (DE) 52.409 Yokomo|Orca 5. Lucas Urbain (FR) 52.631 Awesomatix |Orca
From another galaxy – Ellerbrock tops free Pro Stock practice
In the Awesomatix Pro Stock class, Lukas Ellerbrock was driving in a class of his own during the six rounds of free practice. At the end of the day, his gap (over three laps) to the rest of the field was at almost eight (!) tenths of a second – which is a whole galaxy in the world of Pro Stock racing at the ETS. Xray`s Adam Izsay was second fastest, while Jasmin Donath had a real strong day laying down the third fastest time at Arena33. Mugen Seiki`s Jonas Völker and Yokomo`s Enrico Jung completed the top 5 here on Thursday evening. Can Ellerbrock continue to shine on Friday?
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
ETS Austria winner Adam Izsay was again the man to beat in the Hobbywing Frontwheel class. His advantage over second placed Roman Borschel (Awesomatix) was at 0.051 of a second only, and Izsay will need to show his best driving again this weekend if he likes to copy his result from Aigen-Schlägl. Behind the leaders Izsay and Borschel, Schumacher`s Andy Murray was running third fastest for the day followed by Henrik Heitsch (ARC) and Marc Valent (Xray).
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Adam Izsay (HU) 1:09.038 Xray 2. Roman Borschel (DE) 1:09.089 Awesomatix 3. Andy Murray (DE) 1:09.329 Schumacher 4. Henrik Heitsch (DE) 1:09.504 ARC 5. Mark Valent (HU) 1:09.579 Xray
Strong pace from Thalheimer at first day in Andernach
Xray racer Mirco Thalheimer had a perfect first day at ETS RD3 in Andernach. He drove his fastest three consecutive laps in the third practice round of the day while most of the other drivers improved their times in the sixth and last round of the day. Behind Thalheimer, it was Iris driver Manuel Stankowitz who posted the second fastest time, half a second off Thalheimer`s pace. René Kölbel (Xray), Torsten Baggendorf (ARC), and Joachim Altenhof (Awesomatix) completed the top 5 at day at Arena33.
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Mirco Thalheimer (DE) 1:02.196 Xray 2. Manuel Stankowitz (DE) 1:02.687 Iris 3. René Kölbel (AT) 1:03.087 Xray 4. Torsten Baggendorf (DE) 1:03.417 ARC 5. Joachim Altenhof (DE) 1:03.469 Awesomatix
It was young Phil Langner who posted the fastest three laps of the day in the Orca 21.5 Stock class with his Awesomatix car. Phil continued to show an impressive pace, the same as he did during ETS RD2 in Austria. Right behind Langner, we saw Timo Siebert (Mugen Seiki) with the second fastest time ahead of fellow Mugen racer Karl-Heinz Moritz. Emely Ratheisky (the daughter of Jan Ratheisky) had an incredible day as well and drove to P4 with her Xray ride with Lenny Kiefer following in fifth place.
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
Finally, Jan Ratheisky (Xray) found his way back to the top of the ToniSport Formula rankings at the ETS. After coming short to Stiebler in the last races, Ratheisky had a decent start into the event and had the fastest three laps to his favour at the end of the day. For sure, practice is only practice, but Ratheisky had a great pace and a win here will only go over Ratheisky`s table. David Ehrbar will enter the event tomorrow after arriving late in Andernach due to work commitment – let`s see how quick he will find up to speed. Championship leader Andreas Stiebler (Schumacher), Michael Lipperheide (Xray), and Luka Jovicic (Xray) rounded out the top five on Thursday evening.
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Jan Ratheisky (AT) 1:00.781 Xray 2. René Kölbel (AT) 1:00.966 Xray 3. Andreas Stiebler (AT) 1:01.088 Schumacher 4. Michael Lipperheide 1:01.150 (DE) Xray 5. Luka Jovicic (LU) 1:01.152 Xray
We are looking forward to all the Friday action here at ETS RD3 in Germany. Stay tuned, follow us during the whole weekend, and check out the livestream “produced by RC Racing TV“.
