17-year old Thomas Bitmatta from Melbourne emerged winner at the inaugural Australian Drone Nationals which concluded recently after three days of hard racing and drama at Country Paradise Parklands, Gold Coast.
Bitmatta dominated a field of over 60 participants representing some of the finest FPV pilots in Australia who battled it out over 5 qualifying rounds before the finals on August 21. Coming in second place was Ben Baided (Bingo) followed by Michael Webb (Webb FPV) and Evan Leipold (Shufty).
Bitmatta, who goes by the nickname BMSThomas, also took the crown for the Freestyle Category with 198 points. The Freestyle Category saw close competition among the top three winners with the first and third place winners separated by merely 5 points.
Thomas Bitmatta (center) wins the Australian Drone Nationals (Photo by Rise Above Custom Drone Solutions / Facebook).
Thomas Bitmatta (center) wins the Australian Drone Nationals.
12-year old Rudi Browning (Red Roo FPV) — the youngest competitor in the race, came in a close second place with 195 points while Lance Woolf (VEK) took third place with 193 points to round up the top three in the Freestyle Category.
Five of the best pilots at the event will receive full sponsorships to represent Australia at the upcoming World Drone Racing Championships to be held in Hawaii later this year. The five are Thomas Bitmatta, Ben Baided, Michael Webb, Evan Leipold and Rudi Browning.
For some time now, FPV racing has remained an underground sport in Australia and the event marks the first time it is being officially recognized as a sport in the country. The event was also sanctioned by the Model Aeronautical Association of Australia and the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority.