Round 7 Is Over, But The Results Are Still In Limbo
Written by: Earth
5/21/2009
Round 7 had it's fair share of controversies. From the jumped starts in the OrangeR Cup, to the crashes in Clubman Cup.
However, one incident stands out above them all, as it is still not resolved. In Race 1 of Clubman Cup on lap 5 mkay and LinPark made contact entering turn 2. While mkay, who was trailing LinPark at the time, slowed down for LinPark, it appears that he did not give the position back to LinPark when they continued racing.
There is also video evidence of mkay coming into contact with a car at Fuji in Round 5 which caused it to crash, but the driver did not step there as well.
"What we see is a pattern," said a member of the court. "A pattern of contact, rough driving, and improper racing etiquette. It is our job to do something, if necessary, to stop this pattern to ensure a quality racing experience for the drivers."
Possible rulings could be exclusion from the results of Race 1 or probation for a set number of races. The court is expect to make a ruling no later then Saturday.
Rolling Starts For Daytona and High Speed Ring?
Written by: Earth
5/21/2009
The NTSC Championship series is testing the possibility of using rolling starts for Daytona (both configurations) and High Speed Ring. The push is being made for rolling starts because drivers have complained about the gaps created by single file starts. The proposed rolling starts would be double file, with about 3 car lengths between the rows, which would be a vast improvement over the current rolling starts which can leave drivers at the back of the lineup 10 seconds behind when they get the green flag.
The idea is to have the drivers run the first lap at 60% pace to allow the others to catch up, then at a certain part of the track the driver on pole will adhere to a preset speed to allow everyone to get into their proper starting position. When the driver on pole gets to a certain part of the track, he accelerates and the rest of the field follows.
However fears of the instability of the Ford GT on N3 tires made the race organizers opt out of using it for the final round. They have not given up on the idea, and expect it to used in Season 3 after thorough testing.
_______________________________________________________
EL_ZISSOU Clinches OrangeR Cup Driving Championship
Written by: Earth
5/22/2009
EL_ZISSOU was not intent on just sitting on his points lead in Round 7 of the OrangeR Cup Championship. He won both Round 7 races, including the controversial Race 1 after the other drivers who jumped the start were put behind him in the final race standings. Two nights after he clinched the Driving Championship of the NTSC Championship Series premier division I sat down with EL_ZISSOU and asked him questions about his dominating performance in Season 2 of the OrangeR Cup.
Q -
EL_ZISSOU, congratulations on becoming OrangeR Champion for Season 2. You have a massive 91 point lead, which is more then 2 rounds worth of points. Did you think it would be this easy to win the Driving Championship? Was it that easy?
EL_Z - Thank you, thank you very much. Well sir, I wouldn't go so far as to say winning the championship was easy, but having significantly more starts than most of the other racers kept it from being very intense. The individual races, however, were another story. I had many tough battles with Cuda, Carl, Hammer, and most notably Timeattack. There were a couple of rounds where I didn't get my tune sorted with our crew chief, or missed one or two of the practice sessions because a photo shoot went beyond schedule, and Timeattack pounded on me relentlessly all night, to let me know who was boss (no homo).
Q - What is your strategy for Round 8? With the Title all wrapped up will you be going all out for race wins?
EL_Z - Going all out for race wins is my middle name. If you're not first, YOU'RE LAST.
Q - Looking back at Round 7, what kept you from jumping the start like the others?
EL_Z - I was just about ready to follow the guys who took off, but I looked over at pit lane and saw Chuck Norris wrapping his hands in tape, and then chain mail, and then barbed wire, kryptonite, baby's breath, strychnyne, guacamole, and thumb tacks. I knew the jumpers were going to be in a world of pain once he rounded them up, so I stayed my throttle foot until the 20-second mark.
Q - Looking ahead to next season, are there any plans for Team BBR to expand to 3 cars? And what does BBR stand for?
EL_Z - Timeattack and I have contracted with a top scouting outfit to pull together some talent from various places. My agreement with BBR won't allow me to say more at this time, but be on the lookout for a release from our offices sometime during the offseason.
Click
here for a short informational film that documents the origins of our team.
_______________________________________________________
Power Rankings - After Round 7
Written by: Earth
5/22/2009
OrangeR Cup Power Rankings - Round 7
1. EL_ZISSOU (Last Round --)
Leads the OrangeR series in Wins (12), and podiums (23). Has finished on the podium in every race this season and swept both Round 7 races.
2. timeattack (Last Round --)
timeattack swept all 4 races at Fuji in Round 5, but for Round 7 he had nothing for EL_ZISSOU. Nobody did. timeattack vs EL_ZISSOU should be a great battle at Daytona Road.
3. CudaDude2 (Last Round --)
Despite accumulating just 1 race win compared to timeattack's 9, CudaDude trails timeattack by just 3 points with just 3 more starts then timeattack. Was CudaDude's battle with timeattack at Suzuka in Round 7 a sign that the OrangeR Cup is not just EL_ZISSOU vs timeattack? Only time will tell.
4. cpp214 (Last Round --)
OrangeR, at least for the majority of the season, seems to be two seperate races each round. EL_ZISSOU vs timeattack and Cudadude vs cpp214. CudaDude has 1 win and cpp214 has 0, but the determining factor for putting CudaDude ahead of cpp214 was CudaDude's strong performance in Round 7.
5. L_Hamilton (Last Round --)
Budget problems have caused Hamilton to miss out on Rounds 6 and 7. Not too long ago he was second in points, but if you can't race, you lose out big time. Hamilton hopes to return for the final round.
6. OrangeR (Last Round --)
Season 1 Driving Champion OrangeR has faced many adversities this season, with the most serious being the swine flu epidemic that is facing his country. Hopefully he stays safe, the flu passes and he is able to return to the OrangeR Cup next season.
7. FLASH_48 (Last Round --)
4 races, 2 wins. But that happened about 2 months ago. Flash_48 hopes to return to the NTSC Championship next season.
8. rofajole (Last Round --)
rofajole decided to quit racing and return to school. Maybe when he is done with school he can return to automobile racing.
Clubman Cup Power Rankings - Round 7
1. LinPark (Last Round --)
After missing a long stretch of races LinPark has returned to win 3 of the last 4 races. He is the hottest driver on the circuit so he is #1.
2. Heli-Eric (Last Round --)
His last four finishes are 2nd, 3rd, 1st, and 6th. The 6th place finish really hurt Heli-Eric. He went from 1 point below the cutoff to 7 points below after Round 7.
3. MajorMilou (Last Round --)
MajorMilou struggled in Round 6 with a pair of 4th place finishes, but rebounded with a strong Round 7, with finishes of 1st and 2nd. He is now solidly above the cutoff.
4. Earth (Last Round --)
Another round, another solid performance by Earth. 2nd in Race 1, 4th in Race 2, finishing right on the bumper of mkay.
5. mkay (Last Round --)
After a disastrous Round 6 that saw mkay almost completely throw away his Title hopes mkay improved in Round 7, with finishes of 4th and 3rd, but he still lost 2 more points to Earth in the Driving Championship.
6. B-Ras (Last Round --)
B-Ras' story is pretty much the same as mkay's. Disastrous Round 6, but a better Round 7. But just like mkay he still lost 2 points to Earth in Round 7, growing Earth's Driving Championship Points Lead from 7 points to 9 points.
7. Chadwicksracing (Last Round --)
Chadwicksracing had the fastest practice times for Round 6 but only followed it up with a 3rd and 6th place finish. For Round 7 the team decided not to ship the car half way across the world for the race in Suzuka. They decided to stay in Florida and focus on the Ford GT and Daytona Road.
Chadwicksracing was the hottest driver earlier in the season, accumulating 6 quick wins, but has done very little lately.
8. snake/gt (Last Round --)
Mr. Consistent hasn't completed 1 lap in 2 rounds. Maybe like Chadwicksracing he is focusing on Round 8?
9. Mr. Grandorifto (Last Round --)
Has not raced in 3 rounds. Is he preparing for next season?
10. Lyvan (Last Round --)
One race, one 4th place finish and 5 points. Maybe funding is the problem, and that's why Lyvan stopped racing?
11. Drama-Kyd (Last Round --)
One race, one DQ. Not a pretty record. Word has it that DK is doing alot of racing across the pond with drivers from the old world. Maybe he will come back stateside for season 2?
Who's HOT
EL_ZISSOU
timeattack
CudaDude
Heli-Eric
LinPark
Who's NOT
Chadwicksracing
snake/gt
_______________________________________________________
Clubman Cup Driving Championship Battle Down To Three
Written by: Earth
5/22/2009
With one Round remaining just 14 points separate the top three drivers in Clubman Cup.
I sat down with two of the drivers who have a great shot of winning it all, mkay and B-Ras to get their thoughts on what is going to be an incredibly tight finish.
First up was B-Ras. Like the other two drivers competing for the Championship, B-Ras has just 2 wins. It was quiet consistency that got him to this point. After Chadwicksracing voiced his displeasure wtih B-Ras' driving in Round 5 he threatened to quit the series. He soon had a change of heart and now finds himself a mere 9 points behind Earth for the Driving Championship. He's raced and beaten Earth at Daytona Road before. The confidence has to be there, but you wonder how much did the less then stellar showings the last couple of rounds hurt his confidence?
Q - You are just 9 points behind Earth going into the final Round. What is your strategy for the 4 races?
B-ras - First and foremost, my strategy is to keep it on the track. That's been a problem for me all season, and this combo poses a particular challenge.
Q - You are not on a team, do you think that that will hurt your chances for the last Round?
B-ras - Only as far as team points are concerned. Unless Ross Brawn is running one of the other teams, I anticipate each driver will be going for the win.
Q - Looking back at the season, is there anything you regret or would have done differently?
B-ras - I only wish I had more time to devote. Family and other obligations have limited my practice time, and often I have to rush just to make the grid!
Q - How confident are you that you make up the 9 points on Earth and win the championship?
B-ras - That's an awfully tough margin to make up against such a good racer, but I'll give it my best shot.
Q - If you lose the championship, do you consider the season to be a loss?
B-ras - Not at all! I'm a new driver to this type of racing, and we're still running holdover equipment we bought for the old GT3 series years ago. Nobody expected us to be competitive this season. Looking at our results, it's obvious that showing up each week was the key to our success.
___________________________
Next up was mkay. There is alot of attention surrounding mkay these days, and sadly some of it is negative. His skills as a racecar driver should not be overlooked. Keeping the car on track appears to be the weak point of his driving, as he has already proven to Clubman Cup drivers he has great pace, even passing LinPark in Round 7. He lies 14 points behind Earth going into the Final Round. 14 points is a considerable gap, but with the unpredictable nature of the next Round anything could happen. It's obvious he hasn't let the drama from Round 7 bother him. He is a driver and is focusing on racing. The other things can take care of themselves.
Q - You are 14 points behind Earth going into the final Round. What do you have to do to make up the gap?
mkay - Beat him fair and square on the track, aiming for the victory and hoping he makes mistakes.
Q - Will there be team orders for your teammate to pull over and let you by at the finish if he is about to finish ahead of you?
mkay - I have not thought about this, to be honest. It's a tough one; one on side, I'd agree with having team orders because it is for the win (aka Ferrari 2008). On the other hand, it is not a real championship, so it is too "calculated" for what it's worth.
Q - Looking back at the season, is there anything you regret or would have done differently?
mkay - Registering earlier. Preparing myself better for races (having better setups, knowing the track a little bit more, where to pass, where NOT to pass (especially that one), knowing the braking zones perfectly.... you know, going around the track like a robot), practice more online instead of only doing time trial runs (practice with some traffic is better) and maybe buy a wheel.
Q - How confident are you that you make up the 14 points on Earth and win the championship?
mkay - I love Daytona. I love the car but hate the tyres. Furthermore, I cannot gauge correctly the throttle input so I'll be sliding a LOT. Therefore, chances are good if I can defend my position at the front. Moreover, if Earth encounters difficulties and crashes, it will be hard for him to come back, as we all have a similar pace (+/- 1 second). This sentence also applies to me, and I've been involved in more race incident than him, so there's a higher likelihood of it happening to me.
Q - If you lose the championship, do you consider the season to be a loss?
mkay - Not at all! This championship was a thrilling experience, and I love having the opportunity to race in a well structured and organized championship with great and passionate drivers, who take it as seriously (in a way) as me. I am competitive and don't like to lose but in this case, a 2nd, 3rd or 4th place isn't a loss; it's still a win, for all the reasons I've mentioned. To conclude, I can't wait to race in the 3rd season of the championship, may it be in the OrangeR Cup or the Clubman Cup.
________________________________________________
Accusations Against mkay Dropped
Written by: Earth
5/23/2009
The NTSC Championship Series had decided to no longer investigate the incident between mkay and LinPark in the First Race of Clubman Cup Round 7. It was found that there simply was no rule in the rule book that asked a driver to give back the position of another driver he may have caused to crash.
GTPlanet has their rules on online racing, The NTSC Championship has it's own. It does not use the GTPlanet rule book as it does not agree with all it's rules.
There are plans to add more rules to the rulebook, but that may not happen until next season, when the rule book is expected to get alot thicker.
________________________________________________
If You Want To Submit An Article About Anything Pertaining to The NTSC Championship Series or Online Racing In General send me a PM with the article and a subject
Reserved for Results & News.
Also notice drivers can be put on probation now, whether it be for jumping starts or rough driving. If a driver repeats the same offense while on probation he may suffer loss of points or banishment for a round depending on the severity.
PLEASE DECLARE YOUR CAR COLOR. thank you
Thanks for the support! But, a man's gotta know his limitations. 
(Gone for 2 weeks to Cali.)
) in free run (replay saved) and just ran a 9'54.xx race...maybe I'm not gonna'
💡
