Returned to Manufacturers this afternoon for the 15:20 slot. Thought against it at first as I wanted to focus solely on
@Drex124's Group C Challenge later tonight, but
@Mistah_MCA's guide and an encouraging test lobby with
@Adam Barber convinced me to try and boost my points haul before season's end.
15:20 Manufacturers
Despite being on a roval course, I met a rather diverse field in my allocated lobby. Four 911s, two 4Cs (one being that of 'Wifi password') a second GT LM and one each of the following:
- 458
- AMG GT3
- Atenza
- DBR9
- F-type
- Genesis
- GT-R
- R8
- R.S.01
- RX-Vision
- Supra
- Viper
First qualifying lap wasn't too shabby, a 1:07.279 despite running wide and not being close enough to my Ford teammate in front. Almost improved my time when I stayed out, and in doing so helped the Viper jump from 5th to provisional 2nd. Decided at that point to make the Viper my slipstream buddy and clocked 170mph down the straight as we started out next laps. Unfortunately, a lot of traffic filtered out in front of us at the first corner, which put me four-tenths down and prompted me to return to the pits. Regardless of slipstream, I knew I could improve if I took a better line through Turns 3-4; the result was a 1:06.929 and provisional 5th on the grid. Well I say provisional, but to my surprise no-one else was able to improve, so it stuck.
Changed brake balance from +1 to -1 to preserve tyres, and chose initially to see through a two-stopper (14M-15M-1H) as I did in the test lobby. With plenty of short-shifting, I knew the Ford could last the whole distance without refuelling, so decided to take things steadily while following the Viper as closely as possible. The Dutch Porsche behind was already struggling to keep up and eventually dropped back due to a penalty, so for the first six laps there was virtually no pressure as the Viper got in front of the Italian Porsche. On Lap 8, the Renault picks up a questionable 1-second penalty for lightly tapping the leading Audi, allowing me to slipstream past down the straight.
The Renault, as it became clear, was much faster, and saw an opportunity to sneak back on the inside when I overcooked my entry into Turn 6. However, I kept my position with a smooth exit, and was in the process of braking for Turns 7-8 when I receive a tap from behind. The Renault was on my outside, and though we had a car's length between us he seemed to have been caught out when I moved across to take the racing line. Apologised to him after the race as the contact gave him another 1-second penalty, but he later explained that it was entirely a mistake on his part. Now the Italian Porsche becomes a victim of the bump-draft penalty system (1 second), and I spend the last few laps of my first stint following his tail. Almost got the slingshot into Turn 1, but couldn't quite get it to stick either time.
Enter the 458. He had gradually closed in on the lead pack when the Renault faltered, and got the slipstream on me as I scraped the barrier on Lap 19. It wasn't as much of an issue since I was up to 4th and there was a decent gap between myself and the Audi now sitting in 5th. The problem was that the Audi had already cycled through the Hard compound and was gaining considerably. Still, the Ford felt nice and I set a new personal best of 1:07.210 at the two-third mark. Got a slipstream on the Ferrari on Lap 21, and at some point he must have realised I was faster, as he proceeds to indicate and back out earlier into Turn 6. Through this unexpected and kind gesture, we're in 3rd, our final position dependent on where the Audi slots back into the field.
That part of the story became clear as we entered the final few laps. Behind, the Ferrari pits for Hards on Lap 27, during which time I ponder whether it would be worth doing the same a lap earlier to jump the Viper and Italian Porsche. The Viper was struggling much more with tyre wear at this late stage, so there was also a chance to take the provisional final podium slot away from him if the Audi had his way. In the end, I followed the Viper into pit road on Lap 28, and watched as he made a hash of Turns 2-4. The Hyundai (still on Mediums) gets close, and there are yellow flags waving on the entry into Turn 6...
The Audi has spun! Touched the grass on the outside under braking and round he went. Having passed me on the inside at Turn 7, the Hyundai pits for mandatory Hards. The pressure is off, and I slot into 3rd with the Italian Porsche taking the lead to the flag. Too far behind the Viper to worry him anymore, but the same could be said for the Supra behind me who had fought his way up from 10th.
Finally, a podium finish in 2020 Manufacturers! Don't know whether I'll be doing any more rounds in Stage 3 (probably for fun more than anything else), but I knew from setting consistent 1:07s in my earlier test lobby that the GT had the potential to be strong around Blue Moon Bay. Off to rest now before the Group C Challenge gets underway...
Hi guys!
First of all good luck to all those over here racing today. I only had 1 go at each race, Nations went pretty well but Manu...
I would need some advice regarding tyre saving, because after 7 laps my tyres were half red in the NSX, so I binned it twice in the 8th lap and ended up last.
How come the wearing was so bad for me whereas the Corvette in Kie's stream or the AMG in Dillster's were hardly red after 10 laps ?
I know some cars are more "tyre-friendly" but there's definitely something I must do wrong...
Forward (minus) brake balance and gentle handling are the way forward. I had a similar issue with the GT in test lobbies until I figured out that BB -1 helped stabilise the car under braking and reduce the wear on my right-rear.
Worse one lap pace, worse fuel consumption and tyre wear not that much better than TT. Did 3H/7M/13M to stay out of battles, but ran out of tyres in the end. Still finished midfield though so not too bad.
