My final races of this season:
Nations - 1st Time Slot
Driving the X2019 in practice, I was wondering if my pace would be alright since this car needs to be driven differently than my usual driving style, and while I was getting the hang of it, it wasn't fully sub-consciously in my mind yet.
@GTWolverine and
@mohitraina91 were in this race, along with some other familiar faces I've raced against quite a bit this season, so I knew this was going to be an extremely competitive lobby.
Qualifying went as expected, I qualified 16th despite my best efforts. I decided to start on the Mediums and decide later in the race if I wanted to do a 2 stop or a 3 stop, since both strategies are viable depending on how you drive and what traffic you encounter.
I get a good start, but I'm cautious coming into T1 as in a practice race, a ton of people wiped out. So, I go down into 17th, only to immediately go up to 12th as people crash. I take the first hairpin very cautiously as there are swarms of cars, and I go up into 11th as it all kicks off behind me. I then gain 2 more positions and go into 9th in the fast right-left complex as the two people ahead of me crash. I'm extending by lead to the gap behind, and a group of 4 ahead are fighting, which lets me close in on them. Coming off of the street circuit and back onto the main circuit before the quick S bends, the group ahead has a kerfuffle, and I take 7th place as two people are off the track.
The people ahead of me, now in clean air, begin to pull away, and the people behind begin catching me. I decide to not fight them too much because I know they're faster than me pace-wise, so I let them go and fall down into 9th after the first hairpin on Lap 5. I'm coming close to my pit window if I want to go for a 3 stop, but I decide I'll stay out an extra 2 laps so if I do the 3 stop, my softs stints will be easier and I can push hard. So, I let another faster person by on Lap 6, but also pass someone as they pit, keeping me in 9th.
At this point, I've stabilized a bit- The people ahead are pulling away, but I'm maintaining my gap to the people behind. Furthermore, the tires still feel good and my times on Lap 7 and 8 were consistent and also on-par with what I was doing in practice races. So, I decide to commit to the 2 stop. I knew I couldn't gain places on raw pace anyways, so again I relied on strategy to help.
It was pretty much a time trial until the beginning of Lap 14, where I actually ended up in 4th place as people pitted. A faster person was coming behind me, and the rear tires were definitely worn out as I was getting a ton of wheelspin. I got distracted looking at the delta coming into the long left-turn and clipped the wall, and that must've thrown the person behind off as they brake far too late and slam into the wall, meaning I keep 4th. I let them through on the S bend section and then pit. I refuel fully as I've fuel saved enough to make it to the end. I decide to switch to Softs due to the spacing of cars behind me, and I come out in 10th.
Our favorite hotheaded driver is behind me, but he's not gaining super quickly. So, I keep doing my thing since I can't close the gap ahead, and I let them through the first hairpin on Lap 18 when they do eventually catch up to me. This puts me down into 8th as I've passed some more people who've pitted. I grow the gap to the person behind to almost 3 seconds, but the hothead has caught up to another person on Lap 21. I don't want to make it a 3-way battle since that could get messy, knowing how the hothead drives, so I stay behind. The hot head gets by, and the person he was fighting makes a mistake in the complex before the final hairpin on Lap 22, so I come ahead and take 7th place, just in time as the person behind had caught up to me.
I'm able to keep that gap up though until my final pit stop on Lap 24 for Hards. I take a splash of fuel since I only had 0.8 laps left, just in case, and come out in 8th, with a 2 second gap to 9th and a 9 second gap to 7th. So, I cruise on the final lap, fully revving up the engine with the extra fuel I took. But then, on the final corner, I pass someone going slowly, recovering from a spin, and I finish 7th for 172 points. I expected nothing from this race, and it boosted by final point total for the season by 30 points over my next highest score that would count. I was happy, to say the least, and this was a clear one-and-done.
Manufacturer's, 1st Time Slot
I love the South Inner Loop track, it just flows really well for me. However, being in the 911 RSR, I wasn't entering this thinking I was going to get good results due to this being a power track. But, it's the last race of the season, so I had to take part, and furthermore, I made a special Wangan Midnight/Tokyo Xtreme Racer tribute livery for the 911.
Qualifying went much better than expected. Without slipstream, I qualified 10th. So, my hopes were raised. That was a mistake.
Everyone is calm through T1 at race start, and I get a run on the AMG ahead that got a poor exit, but something happens at the hairpin that sees the leader down into 7th. He ends up going side-by-side with a Lexus, blocking me and slowing me down, which also causes me to sideswipe the AMG trying to pass me. So now the top 6 are long gone. Coming into the hairpin, I brake early to be cautious and get swarmed by the pack behind. The Lexus gets a poor exit, but I can't pass in the sweeping section, putting me under attack. I mess up the final corner and two other 911s get by me as Lap 2 starts, with another car hot on my heels. The two 911s ahead block the road so I have to back off, which gives the M6 behind me a run on me. They pass me, but I pass them and one of the 911 ahead back as they serve a penalty.
I want to break their tow and start doing my own thing, but the M6 is still tucked into my slipstream. I defend into the hairpin, and I think I'm able to get a run as people behind are fighting, but they stay glued to my tail. Coming into the final corner of the back straight before the hairpin, the 911 that was tailing me goes for a move, but ends up shoving me into the wall, making me fall from 11th to 15th, with an AMG right next to me. And then for the rest of the race, this group keeps fighting, and I keep falling back. I tried to get an undercut by pitting on Lap 8, but the two 911s did the same, and we all become one big group again on Lap 9 after the rest of them pitted. Eventually, I cross the finish line in 16th. We all lost so much time fighting each other. I thought of going again, but given that I got two SR downs from someone trying to bump-draft me (which would've toned down the fighting if we could bump draft), and around half the lobby having red S SRs, including two SRs down to A and one SR down to B, I decided not to. Luckily, the rest of my races are still solid finishes.
... I managed to finish 18th for BMW. 
. Goal for next official season is to top 1,000 points! (Will hopefully make it to DR A during the upcoming exhibition series). Driver no.1 in Greater London too which I think must be worth something 
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