Atsushi Hara Doubles at Nitro Shock 2026 in Japan

Atsushi Hara still knows how to win. At Nitro Shock 2026 at RC Land Taki in Japan on October 17–18, Hara took a double, winning both Nitro Buggy Open and E-Buggy, according to his tire sponsor VP Pro.

The event

VP Pro's recap is titled "Nitro Shock 2026", and in the story VP Pro describes the race as the 1/8 Nitro Offroad Japan National Championship, hosted at RC Land Taki. VP Pro says more than 50 drivers entered and thanks Kotani Kosuke for organizing the event.

Control tire

The whole field ran the same tire. VP Pro says its VP-806 Hurricane Evo was the event's control tire, so everyone was on the same rubber.

The double

VP Pro says Hara won Nitro Buggy Open and E-Buggy, and Hara's own race report fills in how he did it. In E-Buggy, Team Kyosho's Itaru Kawamoto took TQ and the top four battled from the start of the final. When leader Kenji Tsuruta (Team Mugen) made a mistake, Hara took over with his Cayote-powered SWORKz S35-4E and went on to win.

In Nitro Buggy Open, Tsuruta took TQ, and the top six fought for the lead through the first half of the final. As drivers made mistakes one by one, Hara took the lead in the second half with his O.S.-powered HB D819RS, set a new fast lap, pulled away and won. He also credits Rickside Design as the race organizer.

Winning nitro and electric buggy at the same race is hard, and Hara pulled it off. Want a closer look at his gear? Check out our Under the Hood on Atsushi Hara's SWORKz S35-4E. If you want the backstory, check out our Story of a World Champion on Hara.

Should more big races run nitro and e-buggy together at one event? Let us know on the podcast!

Source: VP Pro, Atsushi Hara