AOC: The fastest local racers in China

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By Aaron Waldron
LiveRC.com

Heading into just its third year, perhaps the biggest success of the Asian On-Road Championships has been giving racers in some of RC’s fastest growing regions of the world a chance to show their talents to a truly international audience. While some of the fastest drivers on the planet have made regular appearances at AOC races, including national and world champions from Europe and North America, the bigger story instead has been the sheer speed and competitive drive of some of the lesser known drivers from countries like China, Malaysia, and Thailand. Here are six household names from here in China and Hong Kong.

Name: Jackie Shum
Hometown: New Territories, Hong Kong
Best AOC finish: fifth in Modified Touring last year in Shanghai
Sponsors: Yokomo, Team Waigo, Speed Energy, Spec.R, WTF, Mr. Roche
Best part of racing in the AOC: “Making new friends and catching up with old ones.”

Name: Salton Dong
Hometown: Originally from Shanghai, China but now lives in Shenzhen, China
Best AOC finish: Super Stock Touring winner last year in Shanghai
Sponsors: Hobbywing (employee), MooreSpeed
Best part of racing in the AOC: “These are the best organized events in Asia, and we get media coverage!”

Name: Benny Fung, AKA “Stick King”
Hometown: Kowloon, Hong Kong
Best AOC finish: Formula 1 TQ and winner last year in Shanghai
Sponsors: Awesomatix, Zombie, Hobbywing, Speed Passion, Trinity, Team Powers, GQ Racing, WTF, Jet Hobby
Best part of racing in the AOC: “Seeing old friends and making new friends.”

Name: Ai Luo
Hometown: Shanghai, China
Best AOC finish: 1/12th Scale Modified runner-up last year in Shanghai
Sponsors: Rabbitech, HB/HPI Racing (employee), KO Propo, PROTOform, RCI V2
Best part of racing in the AOC: “Everything is always on schedule, unlike local Chinese races. It feels like a very professional environment.”

Name: Heng Lu
Hometown: Shanghai, China
Best AOC finish: 1/12th Scale Stock winner last year in Shanghai
Sponsors: None
Best part of racing in the AOC: “The whole environment is exciting, and I enjoy communicating with racers from around the world.”

Name: Rocket Zhang
Hometown: Shanghai, China
Best AOC finish: sixth in Modified Touring
Sponsors: HB/HPI Racing (Chinese team manager), Muchmore, PROTOform, Volante, Pardus
Best part of racing in the AOC: “I like racing against all the drivers from around the world. We have very few opportunities to travel to high-level races outside of China, so it’s nice when Scotty and Rick bring such a great race to China.”