FIA Race Discussion [Archive]

[GTWolverine]

Slot 1, found myself ranked mid pack in a lobby with @GTWolverine @Winnie847 and @Granadier . Looking at the names around me, I was going to be happy with a top 10 and some +DR. My strat was super simple: drive behind the guy in front until he ate it or his tires fell off. In the practice lobbies, penalties were popping up often. When racing got tight, even good drivers were eating walls. Pushing in the beginning really cost you at the end with tire wear. So, I figured the race would be similar.

I qaulifed p8 with a 1:38.9xx and was pretty dang happy with that. Pole was 7 tenths up, @Winnie847 rocked a 1:38.2xx.

Being too cautious on lap 1, I quickly fell back two spots. But, my plan was to just chill and wait to race on Lap8+. So I didnt get in a hurry and settled in behind the guy in front of me.

One by one, drivers took penalties or wrecked and I slowly made my way up to p5. Then, on the last lap, I made up 3 spots due to a costly error by @GTWolverine and then another error by crg88x as he and @Winnie847 were swapping postions back and forth.on the final lap.

I took 2nd place, 223 points, and I escaped with my SR intact. Also, got a healthy DR gain. Now Im just a few hundred from getting back to A+ after my costly daily race DR reset a few months ago. Saweeet.

Wow that looks even worse than I thought it did. I thought I was more alongside, but I had nowhere near enough overlap to justify that. I think he felt like it was partially his fault, but that was definitely 100% on me . I wound up behind him again in the next slot on the last lap in exactly the same place, but didn't stuff it up the inside (it was only for 12th anyway). He then slowed down at the line to let me have the spot as if to apologize for the contact in the first slot.

 

[barak181]

Nations last night was...frustrating, shall we say? It's normally a track I'm pretty good at but I'm not particularly fond of either of these cars. Everything about them feels stiff and unresponsive to me. It was obvious that the BMW was the META, given one glance at the leaderboards, but I was faster in the Lexus (although still slow) and it felt a bit more to my liking.

Not to get into too many details but the last week or so of my life has been very trying and stressful. I get all my personal and professional things done and start prepping for the race. And end up taking a nap instead.

Word of advice to all you simracers out there - waking up five minutes before a scheduled race is not a good preparation strategy. My practice laps are a good 1 sec off my FP time and I just can't shake the cobwebs. I qualy P18 in a strong mid-B lobby. I then contribute to the carnage in the first chicane, which sets the tone for the rest of the race. I end up going wide at the entrance to the four corners several times and go into the sand coming out of the esses at least once. The final lap was a mess where I it seemed like I spent more time getting back on track than I did racing on track. I finished DFL.

I do more practice runs between slots and find a little bit of pace. Not quite back to my FP time but at least close to it. Slot 2's lobby is a bit weaker being that I lost around 1k DR in the first race - P1 is worth about 20 less points. I get in some clean qualifying laps but never get a real banger in. I start P15 this time. I manage to avoid carnage and stay on track this race. Find joy in the little things, my friends. I was still not on pace with the field - about 1sec off the lead lap times - but had some close, clean racing and improved my position a little. Ultimately, I finished P12 and felt good about it.

Something about this particular combo was just rough for me. One of the nice challenges of this game is that whenever I start to feel like I'm getting good at it, something like this comes along. After going through a couple of combos where I felt quick and faster than my DR, I get something like this where I feel clunky and slow. Keeps me humble and aware of the work I need to do.

 

[CJam]

4th Slot: qualified 6th, would've finished 8th again. but since 8th place points were useless for my score, I parked it at pit entry just before the finish since I figured some of those behind me might find the points more useful.

That's what happened! Thought you binned it at the quads. I'm sure that helped my DR/points...

My night was a loooooooooooooooonnnnng one. Went in very confident with both car and track, enjoy Dragon Gardens in both directions and the M4 isn't the worst car on GTS. As has been the case in my last couple FIA races the amount of aggression and lack of vehicle awareness/space at my current DR level is shocking. Lost 3 to 4k these past couple of weeks due to lack of practice and last Saturdays quit. Slot 1 #18 on the door and qualified 4th. Messed up the chicane on lap 1 trying not to hit the guy in P3 who could have got out of his car and walked through it quicker. Put the hammer down and almost spun out. Recovered, but that took me down to 10th were at this level clean driving doesn't exist. Got a run on somebody a lap or two after coming out of the chicane, went up the inside and they either didn't see me or didn't care and nearly forced me off. Got through the hairpin some how but was sandwiched between two cars with my nose well in front. Was expecting them to back off so we could all maneuver safely through the next set of corners but the guy who I overtook after the chicane decided to end both of our races. After that the red mist had set in and I basically barged my way to 12th killing my SR in the process...down to A.

Decided to jump in to slot 2 to build SR. Thinking was, qualify well, get ahead, get a CRB....NOPE! Got absolutely smashed by an out of control guy on my outlap which got me a 3 second penalty. He smashed the barrier flew across the track, had nowhere to go and I get the 3 seconds. Enough has been said about the penalty system so I'll leave that and the race description there. Lost 3SR in total for the race.

Ended up having some fun races around Brands to get back to 99, three in all and jumped into the 4th slot. Was in with @GTWolverine so above my normal standard but THIS is how races should go. Apart from some craziness from the last ranked guy on lap 2 the race was very enjoyable and clawed back the faith I'd lost over the last weeks with this game. Good, clean racing and an awesome battle for 12th (would have been 13th but for GTWolverine's generosity) got me some decentish points. After the disheartening start to the night, the club sealing around Brands and the clean racing in slot 4 made it all worth while. Think I'll hit the dailies and try regain my DR level from days gone.....wish me luck

 

[Winnie847]

GTS was good to me last night. I had one of the closest and cleanest battles for the lead I’ve ever had.

Qualified on pole in 2nd split but got a bad start and lost the lead immediately. I wanted to build a gap to the cars behind us before fighting too much, so I tucked in behind, collected his draft and saved tires until he made a mistake then took the lead back. He then followed me closely until the last couple laps. We were both primed and ready for battle.

I went defensive for a bit, then got complacent on T1 of the last lap and he took the inside. That set up a final lap shootout that I’ll never forget. Much respect to crg88x for being fast, clean and patient. Win or lose I love racing against smart and calculated drivers like this.

It’s unfortunate it ended the way it did, but I was happy to see a fellow sportsman like @Geauxgreddy come outta nowhere and pick up the podium finish. Great drive and great video from him. I’ll post mine below.

Full race. We stayed in each other’s slipstream all 10 laps. Needless to say I was a bit sweaty at the end.


Final lap shootout. This is why I play the game. It doesn’t get much better than this.


I loved this combo so much I got back online for a later slot and got another win on my main account, this time in “top split” but it was a mix of A+ and A drivers. Not as exciting of a race but I did have a good fight with Dibblr for awhile until he made a mistake and gave me a large enough gap to breathe. Full race posted below as well.

Cheers everyone!

 

[Geauxgreddy]

GTS was good to me last night. I had one of the closest and cleanest battles for the lead I’ve ever had.

Qualified on pole in 2nd split but got a bad start and lost the lead immediately. I wanted to build a gap to the cars behind us before fighting too much, so I tucked in behind, collected his draft and saved tires until he made a mistake then took the lead back. He then followed me closely until the last couple laps. We were both primed and ready for battle.

I went defensive for a bit, then got complacent on T1 of the last lap and he took the inside. That set up a final lap shootout that I’ll never forget. Much respect to crg88x for being fast, clean and patient. Win or lose I love racing against smart and calculated drivers like this.

It’s unfortunate it ended the way it did, but I was happy to see a fellow sportsman like @Geauxgreddy come outta nowhere and pick up the podium finish. Great drive and great video from him. I’ll post mine below.

Full race. We stayed in each other’s slipstream all 10 laps. Needless to say I was a bit sweaty at the end.


Final lap shootout. This is why I play the game. It doesn’t get much better than this.


I loved this combo so much I got back online for a later slot and got another win on my main account, this time in “top split” but it was a mix of A+ and A drivers. Not as exciting of a race but I did have a good fight with Dibblr for awhile until he made a mistake and gave me a large enough gap to breathe. Full race posted below as well.

Cheers everyone!

When I watched the replay to see what happened to crg88x I was jealous of the race yall were having. Outstanding racecraft on display. Well deserved win as well, great job out there.

 

[Winnie847]

When I watched the replay to see what happened to crg88x I was jealous of the race yall were having. Outstanding racecraft on display. Well deserved win as well, great job out there.

Thank you sir. It was a race I won’t soon forget.

 

[Razgriz2118]

Not feeling too good about this race, I just can't come to grips with the Viper on Racing Softs around Fuji. My average Racing Medium times are only around 0.5s slower than my Racing Soft times. I just can't find the limit on the Racing Softs on the Viper around here, I either go too conservatively or I go beyond the limit. I'm only lapping mid-1:38s at best on Racing Softs around here, with my Racing Mediums times being consistently in the low-to-mid 1:39s,

I think I've settled on a 7S/7S/9M strategy, with a three-stop strategy being my alt. in case something happens. In a practice race in one of kie25's lobbies all of the top 5 did a two-stop, although they were better with their tires and could go on 8-lap long stints on the Softs. I have to say I like the strategy aspect of this since some people were splitting their refueling or refueling all in one stop, so that should make things interesting.

 

[Timm Sheehan]

Not feeling too good about this race, I just can't come to grips with the Viper on Racing Softs around Fuji. My average Racing Medium times are only around 0.5s slower than my Racing Soft times. I just can't find the limit on the Racing Softs on the Viper around here, I either go too conservatively or I go beyond the limit. I'm only lapping mid-1:38s at best on Racing Softs around here, with my Racing Mediums times being consistently in the low-to-mid 1:39s,

I think I've settled on a 7S/7S/9M strategy, with a three-stop strategy being my alt. in case something happens. In a practice race in one of kie25's lobbies all of the top 5 did a two-stop, although they were better with their tires and could go on 8-lap long stints on the Softs. I have to say I like the strategy aspect of this since some people were splitting their refueling or refueling all in one stop, so that should make things interesting.

Have you tried the e-tron on hard tires yet at Fiji? That is this week's Nation's Cup race. I tried and will probably run it but I am not expecting a good finish at all.

 

[RX8 Racer]

Not feeling too good about this race, I just can't come to grips with the Viper on Racing Softs around Fuji. My average Racing Medium times are only around 0.5s slower than my Racing Soft times. I just can't find the limit on the Racing Softs on the Viper around here, I either go too conservatively or I go beyond the limit. I'm only lapping mid-1:38s at best on Racing Softs around here, with my Racing Mediums times being consistently in the low-to-mid 1:39s,

I think I've settled on a 7S/7S/9M strategy, with a three-stop strategy being my alt. in case something happens. In a practice race in one of kie25's lobbies all of the top 5 did a two-stop, although they were better with their tires and could go on 8-lap long stints on the Softs. I have to say I like the strategy aspect of this since some people were splitting their refueling or refueling all in one stop, so that should make things interesting.

With my abysmal qualifying record, I’m planning on a 7M-8S-8S strategy for the Viper, with refueling on both stops to get me through the latter stints. The Medium stint at the start is to burn off the fuel to help extend the Softs’ lifespan. With +3 BB and a light fuel load, the Softs drop to Medium times on the 7th and 8th lap.

I still need to work on not cutting Coca Cola, though. I did that twice in my Custom Race.

Also, reminder to everyone: After this week, Nations and Manufacturers will switch days. We are doing Gr.4 Goodwood next Wednesday, then e-tron Fuji next Saturday. Don’t prepare for the wrong race!

 

[Granadier]

Going into this round after leaving BMW

It was really nice to enter first slot and see all the familiar faces. Unfortunately it didn't turn out well for me as I tried to push the M4 beyond its capabilities while trying to keep up with the pack. The first few laps had a really close and clean battle for 10th play out, but as I crested the hill on the left hander before 4-brothers I dipped a tire into the gravel and spun; dropping me down to 16th. Honestly can't remember where I finished that race but it wasn't good.

Second slot went better for me. I played the longer game and drove consistently. The start was much slower and more cautious which saw me drop from p11 to p13, but over the rest of the race I was able to work my way through and ended up finishing in p6. Just in front of you-know-who even after collecting a track limits penalty from the chicane on the last lap.

Here's the full race replay for those interested.

 

[Hasnain282]

Just catching up on highlights, the results weren't anything special but Spa was a bit of a missed opportunity
Nations R4
Manufacturers R3
Manufacturers R4

Was the only Lexus in my Nations race at Gardens, qualified mid pack, managed to survive the start and after that just waited for mistakes ahead and ended up with my highest score of the season so far

 

[Timm Sheehan]

Also, reminder to everyone: After this week, Nations and Manufacturers will switch days. We are doing Gr.4 Goodwood next Wednesday, then e-tron Fuji next Saturday. Don’t prepare for the wrong race!

I think your schedule is a little off.

Manu 27 Sep, GR3, Fiji
Nations 04 Oct, e-tron, Fiji

Edit: Sorry, still learning to read a schedule - your are correct.

 

[kungtotte_]

It's not off.

Next upcoming Manufacturers race is Gr3 at Fuji on Saturday the 26th.

The Manufacturer's race after that is on Wednesday September 30th which will be Gr 4 at Goodwood, and the next Nation's Cup will be on Saturday the 3rd of October.

 

[sk1719]

Fingers crossed I can repair my SR tonight so I'll be in proper lobbies for FIA tomorrow. Been in too many 50 point races... You know it's bad when you stop paying attention to your DR and just look at SR.

 

[SlowDriver87]

Fuji isn’t my favourite track by all means but at least we’ve got soft and medium tyres this time. It’s awful in hards. I’ve just done a practice race and finished in just over 39 minutes, with a best lap time of 1:39.000 on a 3 stop strategy (7S/7S/7S/2M). I’m considering trying a 2 stop as the mediums didn’t feel too bad, although it was on an empty tank and I’m not sure I want to run 7-9 laps on them.

 

[barak181]

Fuji isn’t my favourite track by all means but at least we’ve got soft and medium tyres this time. It’s awful in hards. I’ve just done a practice race and finished in just over 39 minutes, with a best lap time of 1:39.000 on a 3 stop strategy (7S/7S/7S/2M). I’m considering trying a 2 stop as the mediums didn’t feel too bad, although it was on an empty tank and I’m not sure I want to run 7-9 laps on them.

Fresh mediums aren't bad on this track. The problem is they wear almost as quick as the softs. @Mistah_MCA did both a 2-stop and a 3-stop for his strat guide and the difference between the two was only about a second in favor of the 2-stop.

 

[Razgriz2118]

Have you tried the e-tron on hard tires yet at Fiji? That is this week's Nation's Cup race. I tried and will probably run it but I am not expecting a good finish at all.

I haven't yet, between school, job applications, and personal life stuff I'm barely having time to practice for the race coming up. I'm not a fan of the Goodwood circuit so I'm most likely going to skip that race so I'll probably start prepping for Nation's at Fuji on Thurs/Fri.

Fresh mediums aren't bad on this track. The problem is they wear almost as quick as the softs. @Mistah_MCA did both a 2-stop and a 3-stop for his strat guide and the difference between the two was only about a second in favor of the 2-stop.

From my experiences I wouldn't say they wear almost as quickly, since at the end of my 9 lap stints they aren't as worn as the Softs at the end of my 7 lap stints, but they do start getting noticeably slower after 5-6 laps or so, just not "off-the-cliff" level slower yet. Of course, for some reason I find the Mediums easier to drive on for this combo than the Softs for some reason on the Viper, so I may just be weird with my preferences.

 

[SlowDriver87]

Fresh mediums aren't bad on this track. The problem is they wear almost as quick as the softs. @Mistah_MCA did both a 2-stop and a 3-stop for his strat guide and the difference between the two was only about a second in favor of the 2-stop.

I’ll probably go with the 3 stop in that case. I felt comfortable on the softs in the McLaren. Just hoping turn 1 isn’t a horror show like it so often is.

 

[barak181]

I’ll probably go with the 3 stop in that case. I felt comfortable on the softs in the McLaren. Just hoping turn 1 isn’t a horror show like it so often is.

And I'm serious, if you don't subscribe to his YT channel and watch his guides, do so. He's saved my butt more than once for races I didn't have time to do a lot of prep figuring out strategies for.

 

[Geauxgreddy]

I’ll probably go with the 3 stop in that case. I felt comfortable on the softs in the McLaren. Just hoping turn 1 isn’t a horror show like it so often is.

Cant figure out what to do with the Yeetle. Thing is slow on the straight but I hang around just fine in the curves. May 3 stop it to make sure i am always in the pack and grab slip streams on the straight, then Yeet the corners. Counter to what I usually do. This is going to be a disaster. HA. Can we do FF at Alsace instead? LOL

 

[05XR8]

Here we go...

Close at the top!

Edit: 1RM(added 5% fuel)/9RS/9RS(topped up from 3.3 laps to 10.1laps)/5RS(added 3.6laps fuel)+1.Os(penalty for me, getting hit on the side, while passing two cars that collided with each other, early in the race)

RS tyres weren't dropping off horribly.
Lost five places, but the racing was fine. Wonder if someone will do one stop.

 

[ShiftingGears]

Ended up winning no thanks to the other contender pushing me off and spinning himself into the wall in the process. Would've been interesting if he kept it together.



@05XR8 they tried the one stop but it didn't work, his pace on softs for the first five laps was identical to mine however I'd already made up a whole stop by lap 15 before we tangled.

 

[05XR8]

That was dumb. Should have seen your move a mile away. Why be tight about? Once he was passed, just stay calm and try to keep fighting. Like you said, he might have been strong enough to fight those last 7 laps. Oh well...

 

[Rangeraus]

You will probably want a slipstream in qualifying, it is worth about 0.3-0.4 seconds. Made that mistake in slot 1 and started in the mid-field which is always going to end badly.

For slot 2 I got a great tow in qualifying to get P2, where I finished with a 38:01. Still need to work on overall pace but it will do for tonight.

Also I have never been quick at Goodwood so next round will be interesting.

 

[ShiftingGears]

That was dumb. Should have seen your move a mile away. Why be tight about? Once he was passed, just stay calm and try to keep fighting. Like you said, he might have been strong enough to fight those last 7 laps. Oh well...

I guess he was desperate. There was a bit of niggling earlier in the race, I first took the lead on lap 6 when I pulled inside Turn 1 then he turned in on me. Then he hit me from behind in Turn 2 then pushed me wide in Turn 3 to move back into the lead but I was willing to let it slide.

 

[05XR8]

I guess he was desperate. There was a bit of niggling earlier in the race, I first took the lead on lap 6 when I pulled inside Turn 1 then he turned in on me. Then he hit me from behind in Turn 2 then pushed me wide in Turn 3 to move back into the lead but I was willing to let it slide.

To still be that close towards the part of the race that matters... What did Marsellus Wallace say to Butch?... Ah, yes, "Pride hurts, it never helps.".

 

[barak181]

Cant figure out what to do with the Yeetle. Thing is slow on the straight but I hang around just fine in the curves. May 3 stop it to make sure i am always in the pack and grab slip streams on the straight, then Yeet the corners. Counter to what I usually do. This is going to be a disaster. HA. Can we do FF at Alsace instead? LOL

That's my plan in the Audi. In my practice race, the power cars just run away from me on the long straight even when I got their slipstream. I think our only hope is to make up ground in the corners and try to grab as much of tow as we can, when we can.

 

[Hasnain282]

I do like Fuji so would be nice to have a good race (will hopefully have some familiar faces in this one)

 

[stpatty]

I really, really, really hate Fuji.

 

[MCL1974]

I really, really, really hate Fuji.

me too! and hate all other drivers there.....