This is rather long, so I made a summary section(at the bottom) for those that just want to skim through it 
Intro:
Hello all, after numerous hotlaps at Nurburgring for Kensei's leaderboard, I finally broke my left analogue stick. Knowing that I wasn't going to be as precise in controlling my vehicles with the D-pad, I decided to pursue another challenge until a new controller finds it's way to my PS2 One challenge that I had been waiting to do, was to use a Le Mans racer to win the F1 Championship. When GT 3 was released, there was an article in which Kaz stated he used a GT One to win the F1 Championship after a lot testing. I had attempted this in GT3 but my skills were lacking at the time so how would I fare in GT4? Well to answer my question, I began to experiment with my favorite Group C car, the Nissan R92CP. After a bit of time, I started to see this car's potential and my own as well and decided that it would be overkill to use this or any other stock Group C car in this championship.
For those that are wondering, using the R92 yielded 63 A spec points per race.
So I had to find some way of making this more challenging but at the same time, fun. I wanted to learn from this experience and emerge with better driving techniques. Looking at my garage, I noticed the brand new GT One(one of my favorites) and the Audi R 8. I drove them both through the first two quarters of Nurburgring. All my vehicles go through this test as it gives me a great feel for the their individual characteristics. I picked the GT One and obtained times of 0'35, and 1'00 with my driving. But the Audi had times of 0'34, and 0'59 even though it didn't handle as well as the GT One(in my opinion). It was tough to decide between the two, but looking at the tracks, I knew I would benefit from the power curve of the R8 over the top end of the GT One. So the R8 it was, with
Now, I set some rules for me to follow. One, I didn't want to modify the suspension at all(I'm not good at that anyhow
). Two, I could only use a stage 3 turbo if absolutely necessary, since my car was going to start losing power and some tracks had long straights. And finally, I could only use R3s or R2s. Oh, I also modified the gears according to the layout of each track. I apologize ahead of time for the omission of total times on these tracks, as I simply forgot to write this down. The information is includes each race, my qualification times, best lap times and how much I lead or lost by, settings(Tires, Gear Setting, Power Level and TC). Here it goes:
RACE 1: Tokyo A. Spec points: 148
Qualification: 1'19.021(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 4 seconds
Best Time: 1'18.670
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(23), Stock power(834hp), TC = 1
Ah Tokyo, this was my favorite track in GT3 and still remains in my top 5 tracks in GT4. Immediately after starting the race, I saw the A spec points
I hadn't seen this many points since the time I arrogantly placed my newly delivered Zhonda race car against the Group C cars in the GT World Championship. At the time, I got smoked to say the least. But now, it was going to be different, I had more experience; armed with the realization that my "rough" driving style in GT3 wouldn't work in GT4. My heart was racing, I knew that this was going to be intense 👍 The light turned green, and off we went. I started off well and didn't spin my tires, but that didn't stop the second place car from getting the jump on me and leading through the first turn. As we approached the S bend I knew that it was only a matter of time before I would pass him. On to the back straight, and the Audi R8 screamed past the F1 car to brake into the first corner and maintain the lead until the end of the race. I lead by 15 seconds at one point, but my early pits cut this down to 4seconds. All in all, a very fun race, I even saved the replay for it. For this race, it was imperative to keep a 15-20sec lead for those who may try this with R3/R3 combination.
RACE 2: Twin Motegi(Oval) A. Spec points: 97
Qualification: 0'27.015(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1 lap
Best Time: 0'26.966
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(23), Stock power(915hp), TC = 1
I didn't think that this race would be entertaining. I was pleasantly surprised however, these F1 cars have ridiculous top end and it proved to be quite a challlenge to stay ahead of them. With the stock power, ( and looking at the curves as well) I felt it was necessary to use the Stage 3 turbo. Thus, I drove to victory with a near 2lap lead on the second place car. Aside from staying consistent with my driving I also stayed out on the track on an average of two laps above the F1 cars. I was really surprised to see them pit as early as they did, but I wasn't gonna complain
RACE 3: New York A. Spec points: 152
Qualification: 1'21.121(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 3secs
Best Time: 1:20:020
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(16), Stock power(832hp), TC = 1
This was my most memorable race event in this championship. I had attempted this race a total of four times. Before I finally won, I was dead set on using R3s on both the front and back. This proved to be my biggest mistake and I finally resorted to the R3/R2 combo. This drastically improved my pit strategy, but I had to get the hang of these tires before I made siginificant progress. After extensive time in the practice session, the R2s turned out to fit my driving style and I could rotate my car in the numerous slow speed corners by using a slight drift, and with careful application of the analogue X button(thank you Sony, for that 👍 ) I found myself setting fast lap times.
As the race started, second place and third place cars both passed me(something I got used to at every race start) but after lap two, I reclaimed my position. Building a 6 secs lead by about lap 20, I lost it in the first hairpin, when I unexpectedly jumped the rumble strip. It took me awhile to recover, which gave the second place car an immediate 10 secs lead. At that time, his AI started to learn the track and his pace increased. I swear, he must've been running mid 1:20:XXX. My saving grace was my late pit strategy, which had me 5secs in reach of first place by lap 70. But he was still outpacing me, and I couldn't figure out where I was loosing time. I had to remain calm, even though I was 4 laps away from screaming obscenities at my TV screen. And then all of a sudden it "clicked". I was braking too early on the second turn and through the final chicane. It was like watching a good episode of Initial D, as my times went down to early 1:20:XXX. Within 4 laps I had reached him, and produced a 2secs lead by the final lap. I must've watched that replay for hours...... (New York has some great replay angles too)
RACE 4: HighSpeedRing A. Spec points: 153
Qualification: 0'55.333(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1lap
Best Time: 0'54.888
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(22), Stock power(830hp), TC = 1
A nice race and very relaxing after New York. There's not too much to say here, the main adavantage was that the F1 cars pitted 2 laps earlier than I did. I kept my lines as clean as possible and managed to obtain my fourth win.
RACE 5: Grand Valley A. Spec points: 154
Qualification: 0'55.333(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 21secs
Best Time: 0'54.888
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(22), Stock power(829hp), TC = 1
This one took a lot of practice. I have always been neutral towards Grand Valley, ever since GT 1, so it's not a track I feel confident at. I had trouble in finding a proper line entering the 3rd gear turns before the first tunnel. It turned out to be a key time eater. The F1 cars were especially slow on these turns as well, so it was best to utilize this weakness. I finished this race with a 21 sec lead. The best tire choice were the R3/R2.
RACE 6: Circuit La Sarthe I A. Spec points: 155
Qualification: 3'14.640(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1:10mins
Best Time: 3'13.002
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(23), Stock power(828hp), TC = 1
Well this one wasn't tough.The hardest thing was to get used to the bumps and blind turns. The rest went down easy. The F1 cars pitted on every 3rd or 4th lap while I was able to pit on every 6th lap. The key points where they would be very slow, and thankfully they're quite critical, were the chicanes in between the straights. By capitalizing on that I was able to maintain a 10 secs which, combined with their very early pit strategy, would generate a 1:10 secs lead.
RACE 7: Monaco(or Cote Azur ) A. Spec points: 156
Qualification: 1'21.234(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1 lap
Best Time: 1'20.240
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(13), Stock power(827hp), TC = 1
Wow, I didn't expect this race to come up so soon. This I thought, would be the end of my winning streak. The low end acceleration of the F1 cars combined with their low weight and their generally great downforce would have me in 6th place in no time. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Audi R8 proved to be more than a match for such odds. The key here, was not to let any wheel slipping occur(similar to New York ). The F1 cars had a tendency to do this at the exit of some corners, and would lose considerable time in doing so. And once again, I pitted 2 laps after the F1 cars resulting in a lap lead. This is now one of my favorite tracks, I hated it in F1( made by Bizzare for the PS1) though.
RACE 8: Seoul Central A. Spec points: 157
Qualification: 0'47.011(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 4 seconds
Best Time: 0'46.290
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(16), Stock power(825hp), TC= 1
Geez, this was one of the toughest races in the championship. I knew it wouldn't be easy after looking at the course map. The way GT 4 has the F1 AI setup, has these cars taking highspeed turns at amazing speeds. The only weakness I saw here, was the roundabout at the end of the back straight which crosses the finish line. My fastest times were done when I braked very late and took the outside line which merges to the inside by the exit of the turn. It was heated up to the very end, I only managed a 4sec lead.
RACE 9: Infineon A. Spec points: 157
Qualification: 1:16:560(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 4 secs
Best Time: 1'15.228
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(18), Stock power(823hp), TC= 1
This was tough, because I could feel the R8 wearing down. As this course was full of inclines and other road irregularities, it became very loose with the R3/R2 combo. So I opted for R3/R3 and learned to drive on worn tires. By this time, I was quite thankful of the New York, and the Monaco race events. Without this practice, I think I would have lost this race. The key points were the turns up hill, and the hairpin before the straight towards the finish line. It was all about late braking on this course.
RACE 10: Mazda Laguna Seca A. Spec points: 158
Qualification: 1'12.237(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1lap
Best Time: 1:11:656
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(18), Stock power(820hp), TC= 1
This is probably the easiest race in the series. The AI makes a lot of mistakes on this course and you'll see them off the track after passing the corkscrew. Needless to say, I drove fast for the first 8 laps and then I just chilled while laughing at the changing positions as each F1 car found it's way to the dirt at every other lap. This and Autumn Ring seem to be very problematic for the AI to navigate through.
RACE 11: Twin Motegi Road Course A. Spec points:---
Qualification: 1:33:457(Pole Position)
Results: 6th place
Best Time: 1'32.818
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(16), power(909hp), TC= 1
This is probably my least favorite track in the game
. I don't know what it is, but I just can't find my rhythm on the course. After numerous attempts, even with me leading, I just wasn't able to keep up the pace and the second place car rammed me off the track. So I let Guyver II take over(B-Spec), knowing that I would have my vengence soon......
RACE 12: Nurburgring A. Spec points: 186
Qualification: ------
Results: 1st place + 50secs
Best Time: 5'37.596
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(22), Stock power(780hp), TC= 1
Well, well, here we are. The track I hot lapped so much my controller's broken because of it . After a bit of time off from practicing on it, I immediately remembered my love/hate relationship with this track. The bumps sent my Audi R8 into the wall the on numerous occassions(this was also due to the high mileage and no chassis refresh) as I had forgotten my lines. Thus, I couldn't run as fast as usual (5:27) on this track. But vengence was mine, as I didn't even go for pole position and made my way through the pack by the 4th quarter of the first lap. And from there on, I finished with a 50secs lead. It was good to see and feel the wear and tear on my car as the championship progressed, I impressed by PD 👍 If you can run Nurburgring under 5:50 with a stock Le Mans car, then you will have no problem keeping ahead of the pack. Oh ,and the A spec points are as high as they are because I ,as you must've guessed, didn't change my oil.
RACE 13: El Capitan A. Spec points: 187
Qualification: 1:25:001(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 12secs
Best Time: 1'23.376
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(18), Stock power(779hp), TC= 1
Lots of fun here, I didn't really drive on this track before hand(Guyver II did in order to obtain the Minolta), but now it is one of my favorite tracks here. It has just the right amount of jumps, low speed corners, time saving rumble strips and beautiful scenery to make it an enjoyable drive. The race was somewhat close with a 12 secs gap from the second place car. As usual, when the F1 cars increase their pace I start experimenting with corners and find my ideal line to set even faster lap times. This too, makes for some great replay action.
RACE 14: Fuji Speedway 2005 A. Spec points: 160
Qualification: 1:25:001(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 22secs
Best Time: 1'23.376
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(18), Stock power(815hp), TC= 1
I should've done this race with filthy oil to obtain 188 A spec points, but I lacked patience. You see, I was running times of 1'26.XXX and thought that it was my lack of horse power which was the cause of my slow lap times. As the race progressed, I realized my mistake and used an old technique of mine to pull 1'23 lap times. Since, I use automatic transmission, I don't have control over my gears, but a couple of turns required careful shifting, so I double braked in order to simulate manual transmission. Ran it with clean oil and lead by a nice margin.
RACE 15: Fuji Speedway A. Spec points: -----
Qualification: 1'39.873(Pole position)
Results: DNF
Best Time: 1'39.488
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(17), Stock power(815hp), TC= 1
I had this race won, until an F1 car rammed me on the first right hander after crossing the finish line. My tires were worn at the time, so my 6sec lead diminished before I reached the pits. It's too bad, because I really like this track but to continue would've had me replacing a broken PS2 I really wish they improve the AI next time........So I just left this race and grabbed my prize.
I admit, I was pretty impatient at this point, and the thought of the Sauber C9 was too much for me to resist
. On a side note, you need to be running low 1'40.XXX in order to stay ahead in this race.
Final Results:
1. Audi R8 131 points
2. Formula Gran Turismo 61
3. Formula Gran Turismo 56
4. Formula Gran Turismo 43
5. Formula Gran Turismo 51
6. Formula Gran Turismo ? (sorry guys, I didn't pick up his total )
Sauber C9 preliminary impressions:
I had heard many good things about this car, but had never it driven until now. After it's oil change and wash, I took it around Nurburgring.This was a quick run, so I didn't test everything, but at this time, all I can say is "Nice !" on a relaxed lap, riddled with mistakes, I was able to run a 5'23.412 stock with R3/R3 which translates into an estimated 5'18 with no mistakes and driving at the limit. I admit that I had improved after all that practice, but the car handled like none other. Even the Minolta and R92Cp aren't as composed as this car is at high speeds. It's true that it becomes shaky at 225+ mph but I found it easier to control with it's near neutral handling. It's slightly faster than the R92CP in terms of accleration, but it is in my opinion, the better corner curver of the great Group C cars. This car was worth winning the championship for. 👍
Summary:
In order to make the F1 championship a fun challenge ,as well as a good learning experience, I chose to use an Audi R8 for this series. The only modifications allowed were tires, gearing changes, and no more than a Stage 3 turbo. As a result, 13 of the 15 races were won, one of which was done with the aid of the turbo. Two races were won with filthy oil. The A spec points increased because the R8 had passed the magic 900miles barrier, thus, power was going down with each race. The F1 cars were great adversaries, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself throughout this series(mostly my defeats will have to be rectified at a later date).
The key to winning is to take full adavantage of the practice/qualification sessions and race until your tires wear out. You will be able to determine two things: when the F1 cars pit, and how fast they run. Next, substract 1 to 2 seconds from their qualifications times and you will have their true race times
If you can't run that fast, then practice even more until you do. Another important advice is to run as fast as you can when the F1 cars emerge from the pits with fresh tires. You will have a two lap window to add more time to your lead as they take it easy so their tires can warm up within this small period of time. This is very critical for tracks like Seoul in which they have a natural advantage. Figure out where the F1 cars slow down too much and capitalize upon that, there aren't many places where they are slow, but the few they upon which they are significant enough to give you an edge on each lap. As long as you stay consistent, you will pull away. And lastly, make sure to pay attention to the license tests and the driving missions. They are a tremendous help and there will be situations in which you will feel like you are participating in a one lap magic mission. Well, I hope this long post helped any who may want to attempt this in the near future. I may try the GT One after doing some more hot laps with other cars. But I know that it can be done, and that all races can be won, with no more than a stage 3 turbo. Well, thanks for the read and hopefully it wasn't too boring
Intro:
Hello all, after numerous hotlaps at Nurburgring for Kensei's leaderboard, I finally broke my left analogue stick. Knowing that I wasn't going to be as precise in controlling my vehicles with the D-pad, I decided to pursue another challenge until a new controller finds it's way to my PS2
One challenge that I had been waiting to do, was to use a Le Mans racer to win the F1 Championship. When GT 3 was released, there was an article in which Kaz stated he used a GT One to win the F1 Championship after a lot testing. I had attempted this in GT3 but my skills were lacking at the time so how would I fare in GT4? Well to answer my question, I began to experiment with my favorite Group C car, the Nissan R92CP. After a bit of time, I started to see this car's potential and my own as well and decided that it would be overkill to use this or any other stock Group C car in this championship.For those that are wondering, using the R92 yielded 63 A spec points per race.
So I had to find some way of making this more challenging but at the same time, fun. I wanted to learn from this experience and emerge with better driving techniques. Looking at my garage, I noticed the brand new GT One(one of my favorites) and the Audi R 8. I drove them both through the first two quarters of Nurburgring. All my vehicles go through this test as it gives me a great feel for the their individual characteristics. I picked the GT One and obtained times of 0'35, and 1'00 with my driving. But the Audi had times of 0'34, and 0'59 even though it didn't handle as well as the GT One(in my opinion). It was tough to decide between the two, but looking at the tracks, I knew I would benefit from the power curve of the R8 over the top end of the GT One. So the R8 it was, with
Now, I set some rules for me to follow. One, I didn't want to modify the suspension at all(I'm not good at that anyhow
). Two, I could only use a stage 3 turbo if absolutely necessary, since my car was going to start losing power and some tracks had long straights. And finally, I could only use R3s or R2s. Oh, I also modified the gears according to the layout of each track. I apologize ahead of time for the omission of total times on these tracks, as I simply forgot to write this down. The information is includes each race, my qualification times, best lap times and how much I lead or lost by, settings(Tires, Gear Setting, Power Level and TC). Here it goes: RACE 1: Tokyo A. Spec points: 148
Qualification: 1'19.021(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 4 seconds
Best Time: 1'18.670
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(23), Stock power(834hp), TC = 1
Ah Tokyo, this was my favorite track in GT3 and still remains in my top 5 tracks in GT4. Immediately after starting the race, I saw the A spec points
I hadn't seen this many points since the time I arrogantly placed my newly delivered Zhonda race car against the Group C cars in the GT World Championship. At the time, I got smoked to say the least. But now, it was going to be different, I had more experience; armed with the realization that my "rough" driving style in GT3 wouldn't work in GT4. My heart was racing, I knew that this was going to be intense 👍 The light turned green, and off we went. I started off well and didn't spin my tires, but that didn't stop the second place car from getting the jump on me and leading through the first turn. As we approached the S bend I knew that it was only a matter of time before I would pass him. On to the back straight, and the Audi R8 screamed past the F1 car to brake into the first corner and maintain the lead until the end of the race. I lead by 15 seconds at one point, but my early pits cut this down to 4seconds. All in all, a very fun race, I even saved the replay for it. For this race, it was imperative to keep a 15-20sec lead for those who may try this with R3/R3 combination.RACE 2: Twin Motegi(Oval) A. Spec points: 97
Qualification: 0'27.015(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1 lap
Best Time: 0'26.966
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(23), Stock power(915hp), TC = 1
I didn't think that this race would be entertaining. I was pleasantly surprised however, these F1 cars have ridiculous top end and it proved to be quite a challlenge to stay ahead of them. With the stock power, ( and looking at the curves as well) I felt it was necessary to use the Stage 3 turbo. Thus, I drove to victory with a near 2lap lead on the second place car. Aside from staying consistent with my driving I also stayed out on the track on an average of two laps above the F1 cars. I was really surprised to see them pit as early as they did, but I wasn't gonna complain
RACE 3: New York A. Spec points: 152
Qualification: 1'21.121(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 3secs
Best Time: 1:20:020
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(16), Stock power(832hp), TC = 1
This was my most memorable race event in this championship. I had attempted this race a total of four times. Before I finally won, I was dead set on using R3s on both the front and back. This proved to be my biggest mistake and I finally resorted to the R3/R2 combo. This drastically improved my pit strategy, but I had to get the hang of these tires before I made siginificant progress. After extensive time in the practice session, the R2s turned out to fit my driving style and I could rotate my car in the numerous slow speed corners by using a slight drift, and with careful application of the analogue X button(thank you Sony, for that 👍 ) I found myself setting fast lap times.
As the race started, second place and third place cars both passed me(something I got used to at every race start) but after lap two, I reclaimed my position. Building a 6 secs lead by about lap 20, I lost it in the first hairpin, when I unexpectedly jumped the rumble strip. It took me awhile to recover, which gave the second place car an immediate 10 secs lead. At that time, his AI started to learn the track and his pace increased. I swear, he must've been running mid 1:20:XXX. My saving grace was my late pit strategy, which had me 5secs in reach of first place by lap 70. But he was still outpacing me, and I couldn't figure out where I was loosing time. I had to remain calm, even though I was 4 laps away from screaming obscenities at my TV screen. And then all of a sudden it "clicked". I was braking too early on the second turn and through the final chicane. It was like watching a good episode of Initial D, as my times went down to early 1:20:XXX. Within 4 laps I had reached him, and produced a 2secs lead by the final lap. I must've watched that replay for hours......
(New York has some great replay angles too)RACE 4: HighSpeedRing A. Spec points: 153
Qualification: 0'55.333(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1lap
Best Time: 0'54.888
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(22), Stock power(830hp), TC = 1
A nice race and very relaxing after New York. There's not too much to say here, the main adavantage was that the F1 cars pitted 2 laps earlier than I did. I kept my lines as clean as possible and managed to obtain my fourth win.
RACE 5: Grand Valley A. Spec points: 154
Qualification: 0'55.333(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 21secs
Best Time: 0'54.888
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(22), Stock power(829hp), TC = 1
This one took a lot of practice. I have always been neutral towards Grand Valley, ever since GT 1, so it's not a track I feel confident at. I had trouble in finding a proper line entering the 3rd gear turns before the first tunnel. It turned out to be a key time eater. The F1 cars were especially slow on these turns as well, so it was best to utilize this weakness. I finished this race with a 21 sec lead. The best tire choice were the R3/R2.
RACE 6: Circuit La Sarthe I A. Spec points: 155
Qualification: 3'14.640(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1:10mins
Best Time: 3'13.002
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(23), Stock power(828hp), TC = 1
Well this one wasn't tough.The hardest thing was to get used to the bumps and blind turns. The rest went down easy. The F1 cars pitted on every 3rd or 4th lap while I was able to pit on every 6th lap. The key points where they would be very slow, and thankfully they're quite critical, were the chicanes in between the straights. By capitalizing on that I was able to maintain a 10 secs which, combined with their very early pit strategy, would generate a 1:10 secs lead.
RACE 7: Monaco(or Cote Azur
) A. Spec points: 156 Qualification: 1'21.234(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1 lap
Best Time: 1'20.240
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(13), Stock power(827hp), TC = 1
Wow, I didn't expect this race to come up so soon. This I thought, would be the end of my winning streak. The low end acceleration of the F1 cars combined with their low weight and their generally great downforce would have me in 6th place in no time. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Audi R8 proved to be more than a match for such odds. The key here, was not to let any wheel slipping occur(similar to New York ). The F1 cars had a tendency to do this at the exit of some corners, and would lose considerable time in doing so. And once again, I pitted 2 laps after the F1 cars resulting in a lap lead. This is now one of my favorite tracks, I hated it in F1( made by Bizzare for the PS1) though.
RACE 8: Seoul Central A. Spec points: 157
Qualification: 0'47.011(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 4 seconds
Best Time: 0'46.290
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(16), Stock power(825hp), TC= 1
Geez, this was one of the toughest races in the championship. I knew it wouldn't be easy after looking at the course map. The way GT 4 has the F1 AI setup, has these cars taking highspeed turns at amazing speeds. The only weakness I saw here, was the roundabout at the end of the back straight which crosses the finish line. My fastest times were done when I braked very late and took the outside line which merges to the inside by the exit of the turn. It was heated up to the very end, I only managed a 4sec lead.
RACE 9: Infineon A. Spec points: 157
Qualification: 1:16:560(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 4 secs
Best Time: 1'15.228
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(18), Stock power(823hp), TC= 1
This was tough, because I could feel the R8 wearing down. As this course was full of inclines and other road irregularities, it became very loose with the R3/R2 combo. So I opted for R3/R3 and learned to drive on worn tires. By this time, I was quite thankful of the New York, and the Monaco race events. Without this practice, I think I would have lost this race. The key points were the turns up hill, and the hairpin before the straight towards the finish line. It was all about late braking on this course.
RACE 10: Mazda Laguna Seca A. Spec points: 158
Qualification: 1'12.237(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 1lap
Best Time: 1:11:656
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(18), Stock power(820hp), TC= 1
This is probably the easiest race in the series. The AI makes a lot of mistakes on this course and you'll see them off the track after passing the corkscrew. Needless to say, I drove fast for the first 8 laps and then I just chilled while laughing at the changing positions as each F1 car found it's way to the dirt at every other lap. This and Autumn Ring seem to be very problematic for the AI to navigate through.
RACE 11: Twin Motegi Road Course A. Spec points:---
Qualification: 1:33:457(Pole Position)
Results: 6th place
Best Time: 1'32.818
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(16), power(909hp), TC= 1
This is probably my least favorite track in the game
. I don't know what it is, but I just can't find my rhythm on the course. After numerous attempts, even with me leading, I just wasn't able to keep up the pace and the second place car rammed me off the track. So I let Guyver II take over(B-Spec), knowing that I would have my vengence soon...... RACE 12: Nurburgring
A. Spec points: 186 Qualification: ------
Results: 1st place + 50secs
Best Time: 5'37.596
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(22), Stock power(780hp), TC= 1
Well, well, here we are. The track I hot lapped so much my controller's broken because of it
. After a bit of time off from practicing on it, I immediately remembered my love/hate relationship with this track. The bumps sent my Audi R8 into the wall the on numerous occassions(this was also due to the high mileage and no chassis refresh) as I had forgotten my lines. Thus, I couldn't run as fast as usual (5:27) on this track. But vengence was mine, as I didn't even go for pole position and made my way through the pack by the 4th quarter of the first lap. And from there on, I finished with a 50secs lead. It was good to see and feel the wear and tear on my car as the championship progressed, I impressed by PD 👍 If you can run Nurburgring under 5:50 with a stock Le Mans car, then you will have no problem keeping ahead of the pack. Oh ,and the A spec points are as high as they are because I ,as you must've guessed, didn't change my oil.RACE 13: El Capitan A. Spec points: 187
Qualification: 1:25:001(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 12secs
Best Time: 1'23.376
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(18), Stock power(779hp), TC= 1
Lots of fun here, I didn't really drive on this track before hand(Guyver II did in order to obtain the Minolta), but now it is one of my favorite tracks here. It has just the right amount of jumps, low speed corners, time saving rumble strips and beautiful scenery to make it an enjoyable drive. The race was somewhat close with a 12 secs gap from the second place car. As usual, when the F1 cars increase their pace I start experimenting with corners and find my ideal line to set even faster lap times. This too, makes for some great replay action.
RACE 14: Fuji Speedway 2005 A. Spec points: 160
Qualification: 1:25:001(Pole Position)
Results: 1st place + 22secs
Best Time: 1'23.376
Setup: R3/R3, Auto(18), Stock power(815hp), TC= 1
I should've done this race with filthy oil to obtain 188 A spec points, but I lacked patience. You see, I was running times of 1'26.XXX and thought that it was my lack of horse power which was the cause of my slow lap times. As the race progressed, I realized my mistake and used an old technique of mine to pull 1'23 lap times. Since, I use automatic transmission, I don't have control over my gears, but a couple of turns required careful shifting, so I double braked in order to simulate manual transmission. Ran it with clean oil and lead by a nice margin.
RACE 15: Fuji Speedway A. Spec points: -----
Qualification: 1'39.873(Pole position)
Results: DNF
Best Time: 1'39.488
Setup: R3/R2, Auto(17), Stock power(815hp), TC= 1
I had this race won, until an F1 car rammed me on the first right hander after crossing the finish line. My tires were worn at the time, so my 6sec lead diminished before I reached the pits. It's too bad, because I really like this track but to continue would've had me replacing a broken PS2
I really wish they improve the AI next time........So I just left this race and grabbed my prize. I admit, I was pretty impatient at this point, and the thought of the Sauber C9 was too much for me to resist
. On a side note, you need to be running low 1'40.XXX in order to stay ahead in this race.Final Results:
1. Audi R8 131 points
2. Formula Gran Turismo 61
3. Formula Gran Turismo 56
4. Formula Gran Turismo 43
5. Formula Gran Turismo 51
6. Formula Gran Turismo ? (sorry guys, I didn't pick up his total )
Sauber C9 preliminary impressions:
I had heard many good things about this car, but had never it driven until now. After it's oil change and wash, I took it around Nurburgring.This was a quick run, so I didn't test everything, but at this time, all I can say is "Nice !"
on a relaxed lap, riddled with mistakes, I was able to run a 5'23.412 stock with R3/R3 which translates into an estimated 5'18 with no mistakes and driving at the limit. I admit that I had improved after all that practice, but the car handled like none other. Even the Minolta and R92Cp aren't as composed as this car is at high speeds. It's true that it becomes shaky at 225+ mph but I found it easier to control with it's near neutral handling. It's slightly faster than the R92CP in terms of accleration, but it is in my opinion, the better corner curver of the great Group C cars. This car was worth winning the championship for. 👍 Summary:
In order to make the F1 championship a fun challenge ,as well as a good learning experience, I chose to use an Audi R8 for this series. The only modifications allowed were tires, gearing changes, and no more than a Stage 3 turbo. As a result, 13 of the 15 races were won, one of which was done with the aid of the turbo. Two races were won with filthy oil. The A spec points increased because the R8 had passed the magic 900miles barrier, thus, power was going down with each race. The F1 cars were great adversaries, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself throughout this series(mostly
my defeats will have to be rectified at a later date). The key to winning is to take full adavantage of the practice/qualification sessions and race until your tires wear out. You will be able to determine two things: when the F1 cars pit, and how fast they run. Next, substract 1 to 2 seconds from their qualifications times and you will have their true race times
If you can't run that fast, then practice even more until you do. Another important advice is to run as fast as you can when the F1 cars emerge from the pits with fresh tires. You will have a two lap window to add more time to your lead as they take it easy so their tires can warm up within this small period of time. This is very critical for tracks like Seoul in which they have a natural advantage. Figure out where the F1 cars slow down too much and capitalize upon that, there aren't many places where they are slow, but the few they upon which they are significant enough to give you an edge on each lap. As long as you stay consistent, you will pull away. And lastly, make sure to pay attention to the license tests and the driving missions. They are a tremendous help and there will be situations in which you will feel like you are participating in a one lap magic mission. Well, I hope this long post helped any who may want to attempt this in the near future. I may try the GT One after doing some more hot laps with other cars. But I know that it can be done, and that all races can be won, with no more than a stage 3 turbo. Well, thanks for the read and hopefully it wasn't too boring 
Do it for "Fun" all you like but "Flaunting" it won't earn you much respect.
I will have a go. The handy write up will come in handy too. 
