10.02.2023   Category: Site news

A series of interviews with the best 2022 ‘virtual’ r/c racers in the world…

Hi Balint!
Congratulations with your 2022 VRC Worlds championship title winning the 1:8 electric RallyX class. A convincing victory at this spectacular class!
VRC: When and how did you get started in r/c and what class did you race in the beginning? And what was your very first r/c racing car?
Balint: I started when I was 9 years old in 2008 with 1:10 touring cars and 1:8 nitro Truggy. My first race was a club race in my home town in Debrecen.

VRC: Did you start racing all by yourself or was it a typical ‘father and son’ effort? And if so, was your dad involved in r/c racing before as a racer or mechanic for someone else?
Balint: Yes, it was a typical father and son hobby. My dad was only my mechanic.

VRC: How long did it take you to become an accomplished r/c racer? What classes do you race now, and what is your favorite class now?
Balint. I think 2 years after I started, I was the East Hungarian champion in the spec TC class. From 2012 I competed many Hungarian Nationals and in 2013 i managed the 2nd place in 1:8 E-Truggy class.
My favorite class is the 1:10 formula class and the 1:8 E-Truggy.

VRC: You race on club, national or international level? How many races a year on average?
Balint: I raced national and international level. My last real rc race was 2016. Unfortunately we have to stop because of the school and work. And in this area of hungary the rc racing is totally extinct. But there was 6 indoor carpet race with Tc stock and F1, and 6 outdoor off-road race with E-Truggy.

VRC: What is your home track or club now?
Balint: I don’t have home track or club. VRC Pro is my home.

VRC: Have you won any important championships, when, where and what classes?
Balint: In 2014 I managed to win the Rc Offroad Series E-Truggy class. This was an Austrian-Slovakian-Hungarian series. And in 2016 in my last year in real r/c racing I managed to win the hungarian nationals in F1 class. My favourite class was the F1 with rubber tyre on carpet.

VRC: Top racers often receive sponsorships from the main chassis manufacturers. Were you a sponsored racer?
Balint: My only and biggest sponsor was my dad...

VRC: So you stopped racing a few years ago. So no more real life r/c racing then?
Balint: Unfortunately zero race, zero practice, only the VRC Pro. But 2 years ago I visited a club race, and one of my friend managed to win the firs two F1 final, and he let me to drive his car in the third final. I managed to win the A3 final way faster than him with a track record.

VRC: Now turning to your ‘virtual’ r/c racing accomplishments, you are a VRC World Champion after all and that doesn’t come easy. What made you decide to start using VRC Pro? And since when?
Balint: I think I tried VRC in 2013 first. But when I stopped the real racing, I bought the full subscription and from 2016 I am an active VRC racer.

VRC: Can you give us an idea of your ‘virtual r/c racing’ hardware?
Balint: to be honest, I have a top-average PC, with GTX 1660, intel i7, and 16Gb of RAM. The monitor is 27” full hd LG, my adapter is an old orange VRC adapter, with my 11 years old Sanwa M12.

VRC: Did you upgrade your equipment to achieve better results in VRC, like faster PC or graphics card and monitor size?
Balint: No. I started with a 15” laptop and it was ok. But yes, with a 27” monitor and a faster PC the experience is better.

VRC: how much time do you spend on VRC? And how is this divided between practicing and participating in races?
Balint: Usually after work If I have some free time I practice a bit. But my focus is on the Worlds.

VRC: do you often challenge yourself by racing against opponents by using the Replay options? Or do you use the Event Replay option to study your own and other’s racing performance?
Balint: I rarely watch replays. Just when somebody is way faster than me, and I want to know, where I loose the time.

VRC: VRC competitions are ‘solo’ races so to say, you are alone on the track and then race against the clock to post a result. Do you use the option to race against other racers who are in the same semi or final, to challenge yourself even more, and to test your racing skills and nerves?
Balint: No. I always drive alone.

VRC: Do you use multiplayer to race against other racers real time? Have you ever raced multiplayer in ‘collision on’ mode? If so, does that present a new level of pressure?
Balint: I like to race in multiplayer mode. The collisions are make the game more realistic, so I like it.

VRC: I assume you used VRC Pro alongside your real r/c racing. What has VRC brought you for your real r/c racing in terms of setup knowledge, racing performance and handling racing pressure? In other words, has VRC Pro helped you to become a better, faster, and more stable r/c racer?
Balint: VRC is the best way to improve my rc skills. I don’t have any chance to drive in the real world now, but when I will start again, my skills will be higher than I stopped in 2016.

VRC: thanks for this interview and getting to know this new VRC World Champion a little better. Interesting to read about your background and that VRC is for you the only chance right now to stay actively involved in r/c racing. Anything else you want to say to the VRC followers?
Balint: Congrats to everyone who participated in the Worlds and I will try to help with the new tracks, as a Beta test driver (I have tested the new bashing, crashing and crawling class, great fun…!) I wanna say thank you, because without VRC Pro l would surely have lost all my skills in this hobby.

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