Starter box. Nice high torque servo with some decent speed for steering, something pretty quick on throttle/brake. Run the tires that seem to hook up on your track, see what the locals are running. Experiment with set up, ask how the other 8ight owners are setting up their rigs and with some of your cash, mimic their set up and fine tune it to your liking.

Starter box
Servo's
Batts.

SETUP:
Springs
Oil (diffs and shocks)

See what the local guys are breaking and invest in the upgraded part for that, don't install it, just wait till the original parts brake.

Also, practice, practice, practice.