Disappointing doesn't even begin to describe tonight's races. Nor does frustrating. The only way to describe my feelings on tonight's races would require words that aren't allowed on this webiste. Full recap tomorrow...well, what I can recall from memory at least.
Ok, recap time!
Slot 1: This sadly ended up being my best result of the night. I qualified 5th in 2nd Split, so I was on for a great race. The race went even better than I thought, and I was in 4th, gaining on 3rd, when I forgot that slipstream and dirty air existed and slammed into the back of 3rd at T1. They were able to keep it on track, and I didn't gain a position from it, so I thought I was ok. The game for some reason thought I deserved a penalty, even though now you can completely punt people off track and only get a penalty half the time. That dropped me down to 7th, before I caught back up to 5th and 6th who were battling. I got around them both before 5th bumped into me in T1 and drove back by (why no penalty for
HIM, huh PD??
🤬). I still finished an ok 6th for 213 points, and if that had been the best I could do on pace, I would have been perfectly content with those results; but I could've had 3rd, and actually was quick enough to catch 2nd, but they decided to wall-ride their way to 2nd place (and they're a member of this forum, so I won't name names...hope you feel good about yourself...). So I decided I was going again, even though I knew I'd be in Top Split the rest of the night.
Slot 2: Qualified 17th, but worked my way up to near the Top 10, and could've probably finished inside the Top 10, but I hit the pit entry wall when trying to make a pit stop, THEN put on the same tires I'd just taken off. I just drove around aimlessly after that and got lapped a bunch of times before just quitting when the leaders finished.
Slot 3: Qualified 13th, but for some reason had no pace relative to those around me, and finished 14th.
Slot 4: Qualified 8th, but during the start, 3rd glitched and brought everyone behind them to a standstill while the front 2 drove away from us. Someone divebombed me into T4 on Lap 1, and I got the penalty for it. (Seriously, 🤬 you, PD.) I still recovered to run 6th near the end of the race when the same thing happened to me AGAIN on the penultimate lap, and I finished 14th again.
Slot 5: The win was only worth 206 points, 7 less than my 6th place in the first slot got me. I had to win or this night was a complete waste. Unfortunately I qualified "only" 4th. It was my best time of the night at a 39.55, which I could do plenty of times in practice, but never in the actual FIA events. Of course when I finally put together a perfect lap in qualifying it's in a literally pointless race
. Anyway, pole was taken by another Sauber wall-rider, who got absolutely reamed in chat prior to the race starting. I guess it got to him surprisingly, because as soon as we started he pulled over and let the field by and was the last car running at the end. I actually took the lead in the first stint, but I later found out that was because everyone else started on Mediums while I started on Softs. I eventually lost all the spots I gained in the first stint and finished 4th for 180 points. Night wasted. I can't even be happy with a Top 5 because the lack of competition in the final slot made it way too easy.
This would've been the first season where all my counted scores in BOTH championships were over 200 points. Now I'll only have 1 200+ score in Nation's, because I know for a fact I won't be able to score that well in the dirt race, and I'll inevitably screw up again in the finale at Laguna Seca. This happens literally every time the FIA picks a track/car combo that I REALLY enjoy. Unless it's something hard to screw up like a simple oval race, I can practice all week, then somehow lose all my talent and either end up too slow or make too many mind-blowingly stupid mistakes to get a good result (usually it's both).
. They really had it in for the Lexus this season, nerfing both the GR.3 and Gr.4!
