Today, in part 1, we’re starting at the top – the drivers in the field that have previous World Championship wins (in any category), and will bring that past experience to bear in Sydney in just a couple of weeks. Most (if not all) of these guys are among the favourites to win. Let’s dive in - and don’t forget to let us know what you think in the comments.

Davide Ongaro RC (Current 4wd Champ, 8th 2018, 2022, 2024)
Davide Ongaro has a fair claim on the title of best driver in the world right now. If a stunning three World Championships running in the blue ribbon 8th Nitro Buggy category wasn’t enough, Ongaro showed up at Hobby Action for the 2023 Worlds, built a car in his hotel room, and proceeded to dominate 4wd in a style of racing (US indoor clay) he’d barely tackled before. It was an astonishing performance from the Team Associated pilot, and even if he’s done limited 10th since then, there’s no reason he won’t be an outright threat in Sydney – particularly in 4wd. His most recent start at the European Champs, indoors at Hudy Arena netted a couple of A final positions.

Tater Sontag RC (Current 2wd Champ)
The IFMAR World Championships has a long history of unearthing first-time winners that weren’t necessarily favourites at the time. Some go on to stellar careers, others not so much. And the thing is, we never know at the time. When Hirosaka won in 1987, he’d barely been heard of outside Japan. When Cavalieri won for the first time in 2003, he wasn’t necessarily among the big favourites that time around. Both went on to be among the all-time greats. On the flip side, Steven Hartson’s incredible 2013 win (from P6 on the grid!) represented the high water mark of his career. Having arguably been a slightly surprising winner in 2023, there’s plenty of evidence to suggest Sontag has all the skills to be a world level threat for a long time to come. That said, it might just be that having not made the trip down under to practice, he’ll be on the back foot early this time around in very unfamiliar conditions. XRAY will have the setup dialled with a strong local contingent feeding intel, but look for a stronger 4wd showing for Sontag (over 2wd) as he comes to grips with the track surface.

Spencer Rivkin (2wd 2015, 2wd 2019)
If being twice World Champion in the category wasn’t enough, Spencer Rivkin is also the best-prepared international driver coming into this event. He’s twice travelled to Australia to practice (the Warmup event, plus the 2024 Australian Championships where he took the 2wd win). He also sat out the recent eBuggy World Champs in order to be fully focussed on 1/10th. He comes in spearheading the powerhouse AE team, and will be fast out of the gate. We consider Rivkin an absolute favourite in both classes. There’s a huge distance between favouritism and a World Championship win though, something Rivkin knows only too well from 2023. We get the feeling he’s leaving nothing to chance. 2wd might be (just) Rivkin’s strongest chance, but it’s a tiny difference and he’ll be up-front in 4wd as well.

David Ronnefalk (8th, 2016)
The lead European driver for the strong XRAY squad, David Ronnefalk made the trip to Sydney in July to get his first taste of the Hills track. That gives him more recent experience than those who travelled for the Worlds Warmup in April, but everybody starts fresh with an all-new layout, and a newly re-laid surface. Along with his 2016 8th Buggy win, Ronnefalk has finished as high as 2nd in 1/10th offroad (2017, China 4wd) and comes into this one on a hot streak, having won 4wd at the European Championships, plus the Nitro Buggy Euros in recent months. Taking a WC win in a second category would cement Ronnefalk’s legacy in the top echelon of drivers, and we’d not bet against it. Is he another who maybe the tiniest bit stronger in 4wd?

Michal Orlowski (1/12th, 2024)
Michal Orlowski has been one of the best all-round drivers in the world of RC for a few years now – dominant in touring car, winning big in 10th offroad, and also a threat in 8th offroad on his rare appearances (a past Euros win plus 2025 Worlds Podium in eBuggy, for example). That said, dirt offroad is probably the context he has the least regular exposure to, so there is a learning curve there. Orlowski made the trip to Sydney for the Worlds Warmup with the Schumacher R/C Racing factory squad, finishing on the podium in 2wd and looking strong in 4wd with a prototype version of the company’s new chassis. With a further 6 months development, look for Orlowski to be upfront in both classes. Like Ronnefalk, a win here would cement a legacy.

Marcus Kærup RC Driver (eBuggy, 2025)
The newest offroad IFMAR World Championship winner, taking the inaugural 8th eBuggy win just a few weeks ago in Portugal, Marcus Kaerup will arrive in Australia chock-full of confidence, and rightly so. In April he was the biggest threat to dominant local Lachlan Donnelly (who we’ll look at in our next preview story), and will only be stronger for that experience. We’ve said elsewhere that learning how to win at World Championship level is an important tool in the kit, and there’s absolutely no reason Kaerup can’t add to his IFMAR tally next fortnight. With an uber-strong AE team drawing on a tonne of local knowledge, Kaerup is an outright favourite.

Of the past World Champion entrants, who do you like for the win at Hills? We’d hoped to see Jorn Neumann (8th GT 2020) and Ryan Cavalieri (2003, 2005, 2011x2) on the list as well, but have heard both are late withdrawals from the event.

Catch all the action live on RC Race Media from September 30th. And if you like these kind of written stories, let us know and give it a share.

Next time: Contenders for a First-Time Win!

📷RC Race Media