CACTUS: Horizon Hobby/TLR/JConcepts driver Ryan Maifield joins TKO R/C Specialities

ADVERTISEMENT | ADVERTISE WITH US

By Aaron Waldron
LiveRC.com

Friday morning at the 29th annual Cactus Classic, TKO RC Specialties founder Peter Martin found me in the pit area and asked when I’d have some time to sit down with him for a new announcement. I asked if it was something that I could revisit after the first round was over and he agreed, but just minutes after the start of round two Martin burst into the trailer with a giddy sense of urgency that just couldn’t wait.

“Ryan Maifield is going to run for us,” he said.

Martin explained that he and Maifield have a bit of history with Ryan running his bearings and other accessories in the past, and the Arizona native reached out via email about a month ago. “He said he was interested in representing our company, but that if we didn’t have room on the team he’d continue being a customer anyway,” said Martin. “Of course we could find room for a driver like that!” he continued.

When Martin and I walked over to the TLR pit area for a photo, Maifield sounded just as excited about the chance to join Martin on upcoming projects. “I’m really looking forward to working with Peter and TKO,” said the four-time defending 4WD Modified champion, who has won nine Cactus Classic titles in the last four years. He added, “I think we can come up with and build some really cool new products together."

Martin has sponsored some of the top drivers in the U.S. over the last several years, when TKO focused on making some of the best bearings on the market. Now that he’s got the freedom to expand a bit, signing a driver like Maifield could help him take the company to the next level. “It’s a great opportunity to work with a multi-time national champion on developing some of the new technology we’ve been working on,” he said.