Long time no see, everyone! Interlagos and SSRX were complete disasters for me, dropping me out of A rank. I ended up staying off the forum to deal with the disappointment.
Manufacturers - Gardens Reverse Gr.3
Strategy: 6H-7M-7S
Qualifying was as bad as I expected, having to start from 15th. I elected to run a two-stop, starting on Hards to get them out of the way. The first two stints were spent minding my own business and captialising on mistakes and penalties. Incidents ranged from a Lexus running wide out of the final corner on lap 4, a Ferrari and Porsche dying to the chicane on lap 6 and an Audi losing it on the second hairpin's exit, gifting the unfortunate AMG behind a 4 second penalty.
On lap 14, I came across a Lexus and Atenza squabbling through the chicane. Their fighting allowed me to find the faster exit out of the chicane and the inside line into the final corner to seal the double overtake.
I managed to climb into the top 10, but I got hit with a dumb 1 second penalty for running into a glacially slow AMG into the first hairpin on lap 18, dropping me to 13th. I managed to re-overtake the slow AMG the following lap and jump two cars pitting on the penultimate lap to take 10th for 88 points. That unfair penalty definitely costed me 8th or 9th, but I did not want to risk another run. One and done.
Me making an overly aggressive divebomb after re-passing the slow AMG in the back.
Nations - Mini VGT spec race
I was out having a haircut and came back too late for Race 1, followed by getting DCed in the loading screen for Race 2.
Race 3 would have me encounter a very annoying rival in a Racing Point livery.
On my out lap on lap 7, I tried the inside into Slope Hairpin, but I thought there was no room for an inside pass....
...so I switched to the outside to take the racing line.
He proceeds to take the racing line too, and we collide, with me taking the SR hit.
I was really incensed with his move to the point that I nearly forgot to take the chicane before CoD, inadvertently holding up the Thai behind me. I let him past on the following lap after smacking the CoD's exit wall. We both caught up to the Racing Point and started a fight for 4th that dragged on so long that 8th had caught up to us on the penultimate lap.
On the final lap, I got dropped from 6th to 8th after my fellow countryman made an optimistic dive into the first chicane and collided with me, followed by the Racing Point shoving me wide on exit. My countryman got a 1 second penalty for the dive and I retook 6th from the Racing Point at the final hairpin, just barely edging him out in the drag race to the line. I got 107 points, but my next best result was 106 from the Integra race, so I went again.
Strategy: 6S-7S without refuel
Race 4 would see me start 6th ahead of my nemesis in pink, despite a different compatriot ruining my first flying lap by braking too late into the first chicane and putting me in the wall. Fortunately, I had enough time to reset to the pits and run another out lap.
The start was mayhem, with the Malaysian in 3rd jumping the start and one other idiot starting the race in Reverse both causing pileups off the line. The first chicane was not much better, with one guy going straight into the barriers and taking an unfortunate soul with him.
Meanwhile at the front, I was still in 6th despite the Malaysian's jump start due to my nemesis getting a better start than me, much to my chagrin. I took 5th midway through the first chicane as mayhem unfolded behind me:
By the end of the first sector, the top 5 including me had broken away from the pack, leaving me free to hunt down my nemesis. I spent a few laps passing him in the corners, only for him to re-overtake me down the straights. Eventually I realised that he was not fuel saving like I was, and I settled in behind him.
On my in lap on lap 6, my nemesis botches CoD and I run straight into his rear, costing me 5th to the Malaysian that had started 20th. My nemesis got away without a penalty, but had to refuel in the pits, allowing me to get away from him out of the pits...and straight into heavy traffic into the first chicane. In the ensuring carnage, one guy ate gravel and another took a 1 second penalty for cutting me off into the braking zone. I survived that chaos and climbed back up to 5th behind the Malaysian that passed me on the in lap.
Thanks to
@Mistah_MCA and some practice races, I knew that I could do 11 laps short-shifting when the bar reached the current gear number, and 2 laps revving the car to redline. On laps 9 and 10, I used my two fast laps to mug the Malaysian for 4th and immediately pull a gap on him. He apparently did not know about that he could do 2 fast laps too, as he was short-shifting the entire race.
The Malaysian was able to close the distance somewhat in the dying moments of the race, but he was still 1.5 seconds behind me at the checkered flag. I claimed a comfortable 4th for 115 points. To add the icing on the cake, my nemesis finished 8th after holding 6th for most of the second stint, getting 93 points instead of the 102 he had in Race 3.
I have a bad feeling for the Green Hell tomorrow....
only 3rd for area in Nations though, but I can pass one of them. Maybe
Then again the Route X races were even shorter, but yeah should be 4 or 5 laps
