Time for an exhaustive recap. In GTS, I actually enjoyed this track, apart from the CoD, but it was possible to get through it by being a little cautious. Now on GT7, with the much more vicious curb physics, it's become a track I avoid; and that was before the new damage model that at utterly wrecks everything at the slightest touch so now even being cautious is risky because if you don't risk a head-on strike with the inside wall, you won't be able cut the curb ENOUGH, which causes you to bounce over the high side of it, and into the outside wall. In GTS, I would take the more cautious approach because a slight graze on the exit wall would just kill a bit of momentum and cost me a few tenths, but otherwise I'd be fine. Now it costs you a couple seconds with suspension and body damage. Unfortunately I only had 3 scores this season, so I needed a 4th one to have a "full season" of points, and the only options were this race and Interlagos, and I'm absolutely useless around Interlagos...
Also remember how I said the start gaps were comically large? Well, that's only true until P11. After that, you start in or before the final corner and the game, and the game actually bunches everyone up and slows P11 way down almost like the start glitch that would occasionally appear in GTS when someone had a poor connection. In fact, it actually drags the brakes until it actually gives you control of the car! Anyway, on to the recap...
Slot 1: In with my usual racing buddies
@Geauxgreddy and
@F1Bernardo. Based on FP times, and practice races, I knew I didn't have a snowball's chance in hell of keeping up with
@Geauxgreddy, so my goal was to not finish last...
Qualifying would see
@Geauxgreddy, me, and
@F1Bernardo starting P9, P11, and P14 respectively. Oh, did I mention there was a Corvette on pole? I guess it's me who sucks now, not the car (ok, it's more like we both suck...). Not much happened from my perspective after that, aside from
@F1Bernardo jumping me in the pits on Lap 5 due to being able to save fuel in my slipstream, then slowly pull away from me as I failed to get the CoD right even once (but at least I didn't die...). In the end, I was the only one of us to actually finish worse than I started, coming home P12, with
@Geauxgreddy P8 and
@F1Bernardo P11.
Slot 2: Back in with
@F1Bernardo and we qualified P13 (me) and P14. Thanks to the aforementioned bunching of the field at the very back of the grid, and the fact that we were starting in the middle of the final corner, we were both able to mug the Mercedes that started in P12. I drove around the outside of the Merc and unfortunately had to lift to avoid running of track, while by the time
@F1Bernardo caught him, the inside had opened up allowing him to easily shoot through. Since he didn't have to lift, he end up passing BOTH of us out of the final corner. The poor Merc also lost a spot to another McLaren before T1. Someone quitting/disconnecting, and another dying at the CoD on Lap 1 saw me move up to P11. I followed behind Bernardo for a few laps before he caught a bit too much curb at the kink before the first hairpin and ended up in the gravel, moving me up to P10, which is where I stayed for the rest of the race...until I binned it at the end of Lap 13 at the CoD. I caught too much air over the curb trying to avoid the inside wall, which bounced me into the outside wall hard enough to give me engine damage, dropping me to P12 to start the final lap, which became P11 when someone else died even harder at the CoD on the final lap. My original P10 would've been good for 200 points, with the P9 I could've gotten as a result of the other person crashing at the CoD would've put me over that threshold. Instead my P11 was only good for 188 points.
Slot 3: Started and finished P10 after having no pace for the cars further ahead, except for 1 Corvette who'd started behind me on Mediums and got by me while I was on the Hards. When we swapped tires at out pit stops, I was able to run him down but for the final few laps I couldn't use my grip advantage to successfully overtake, so once again it was me that sucked, not the car...
Slot 4: This time there were a total of 3 Corvettes in the race...and I qualified worst of them in P10, with the others in P9 and P6. Behind me was a GT-R that REALLY wanted to get by, and he sent it up the inside at the final turn. Like an idiot, I decided to try to hold on around the outside like an idiot and proceeded to spin myself on the curb like an absolute moron and fall down to last place (14th), a long way behind the next car. I eventually worked my way back up to P10, before the Corvette that started in P6 and somehow had an even worse race than me was able to pass me after the CoD on Lap 11 due to me bouncing off the wall yet again (this time with no engine damage). I tried getting by at the seaside hairpin on Lap 13, but he managed to do a brilliant cutback to keep the spot. We were in the same position one lap later on the final lap when he went even more defensive, leaving me JUST enough room to stick my car up the inside. That was all the invitation I needed, and I sent it up the inside again, this time making sure to park it on the apex even if it meant sacrificing me exit. It worked, and I was able to hold on to the P10 spot...for 187 points... Meanwhile the other Corvette that I started directly behind went on to finish P5...
Slot 5: My best qualifying time of the night (first time under 1:46) saw me line up P8 (of only 13 starters). There was A LOT of battling in this one, mostly at the seaside hairpin, including 1 instance where we were briefly 4-wide, and other in which I pulled off an overtake around the outside on Lap 13. This ended up being by far my best, most exciting race. In spite of losing quite a bit of time in those battles, I was able to bring home in P7 (of 12 finishers) for 231 points, which is now my 3rd-best score. Still frustrated because it took 5 attempts, and I only managed to do it in the emptiest room of the night...
next race, please 
)
