Russia accused of "using custom-made goods" at 2018 tank race
The spectacular acceleration of the tank controlled by the Russian crew was accused by other racing teams of "unfair play" by the host.
After the second day of competition of the 2018 Tank Biathlon international tank racing tournament, most of the strong teams took to the field and showed off all their skills, notably the two championship candidates Russia and China.
In their group, China with the Type 96B tank finished first with a time of only 21 minutes, temporarily leading the overall standings of the entire tournament, with the highest sprint speed reaching 71 km/h.
Meanwhile, in Vietnam's group, Armenia ranked first and fourth overall with a maximum speed of 67 km/h, time 28 minutes 01 seconds, Vietnam only reached 55 km/h, time 43 minutes 31 seconds.
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| Tanks controlled by Russian crews overcome water obstacles. |
However, the most notable performance was the Russian team's debut shortly after, the team that has held the championship title of all Tank Biathlon tournaments ever held.
The results showed a shocking index, although the shooting did not achieve a really satisfactory result when only destroying 2/3 of the targets, behind Iran, Russia still finished first with an unbelievable result of 20 minutes 28 seconds, sprint speed up to 77 km/h.
This parameter of the Russian tank crew surpasses other teams at a level so great that the 950 horsepower V92S2 engine equipped on the T-72B3 tank is considered unreachable.
It should be noted that the Chinese Type 96B, weighing 50 tons and "modified" with a 1,200 horsepower engine, can only reach a speed of 71 km/h.
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| The tank the Russian team was operating was accused of being the T-72B3M version. |
For the T-72B3 tank, with a weight of 46 tons and a 950 horsepower engine, in theory it can only accelerate up to 70 km, so it is understandable that the Russian team's performance is doubted.
Many opinions say that the T-72B3 that the Russian crew used is actually the T-72B3M version, also known as the T-72B4, which is equipped with an upgraded V92S2F turbocharged diesel engine with a capacity of up to 1,130 horsepower, which is much superior to the remaining T-72B3s of other racing teams.
Actually, this is not the first time this "allegation" has appeared, but similar whispers have been around since the first Tank Biathlon tournament. With the above situation, it is almost certain that this year the championship will remain in Russia once again.
