Winless in Over 100 Races

Don’t listen to anyone who says you should be lapping at your qualifying time during a race. If you can, your qualifying time is slow and you weren’t pushing the limits which is what you’re supposed to do in qualifying.

If you’re on pole you may come close or match it but that’s risky.
 
Like others have stated, I spend way more time in qualifying than I do racing. I generally set a goal for my hot lap, and a goal for my race pace. Once I lay down a hot lap that will get me in the top 5 (I'm high B/S), I then work on my race pace and consistency. I definitely watch vids of the quick times. I will replay a turn 10 times in a row, studying different aspects every time. Generally dissected into race line, brake on/off/pressure and throttle on/off/pressure.

Sometimes I use zero aids (besides abs) and sometimes I use some aids. Sometimes I run my hotlap without aids, but use small aids during the race for consistencey. Each car/track/race is different. Do what works best for YOU. Do not get caught up in worrying about these guys that say you MUST have all aids turned off. Do whatever works for you. Last night I ran a race with 2 S/S and 4 A/S. I qualified 8th and finished a close 4th. I set fast lap of the race, which was 1 tenth quicker than the pole time. It wasn't until the last lap that I realized I accidentally forgot to turn off TC. It really made me realize that speed potential is there with aids. So don't mind the whiners and purists that preach anti-assists. Yes, no assists are the absolute fastest in most cases, but a good assisted driver is nothing to be ashamed of.

Driving with low-mid level pedals is REALLY hard to drive consistently without assists! So don't let some guy using a $500+ pedal set with load cells tell you not to use assists!!! Pedals are equally as important as the wheel. Sometimes more important. I'd rather have a mid level wheel and hi-end pedals vs. the opposite.

I have no issue racing against guys that use aids. Because I know #1 There's a good chance they might be slower than me if they don't know how to use aids properly and #2 They are probably going to have a cleaner race and not spin in front of me.

I also use a view that has no rear view. I just race the track. I don't worry what's behind me. I only think about other cars when I see them peak alongside me. If someone is going to ram me, they are going to ram me. Freaking out because they are in my rear view does nothing but cause mistakes.

Sometimes a car/track etc just isn't a good match for me. I know when I just need to move on and find a better race or just wait until tomorrow to see whats available. For me, if I can't get within a second +/- of the #10 time for the day, I know I need to get better or hang it up.

You may want to try dropping your rank some. Wins were pretty easy until you get with all the S/S, A/S guys.

Just remember, there is no right way or wrong way. Just find YOUR way.
 
UGA95
This makes absolutely no sense.
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It's really not that complicated. If you're a fast driver go for pole. But if you're not a fast driver you're not making threads asking for help to win.

So, let's assume in a10 lap session you can achieve a 1:35.0, but your average is closer to 1:36.5.
In the event, you would be better off putting in a 1:36 with pace to spare, than qualifying off the back of a fluke lap that you cannot consistently maintain in qualifying, let alone in a race surrounded by drivers with a lot more pace than you.

The faster you qualify the faster the driver's you'll be matched with (within your DR/SR bracket), so better off to qualify well within your own ability and have a confident race.

Obviously learn the track, learn the car, drive faster, blah, blah, blah...
I'm just offering help for the confidence factor. That needs to come before the wins.
 
_ApexPredator
you would be better off putting in a 1:36 with pace to spare, than qualifying off the back of a fluke lap that you cannot consistently maintain in qualifying, let alone in a race surrounded by drivers with a lot more pace than you.
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would you agree that in a typical race, most people do not match their qualifying lap? Wouldn't you want a good qualifying lap for a higher start position for a bigger chance at podium or even a win?

Qualify as best you can, race with people near that range, improve yourself. you should always be improving yourself, get comfortable with being uncomfortable because if you're not pushing, you're not racing.

I am also a big advocate for consistency, so focus on staying on track and get used to taking odd lines to defend or overtake. Also learn where on the track you are, where in the race you are, and if defending is worth it. Most of the time, letting people go ahead of you is best, keep consistent with the lap times to ensure more people don't catch up and add stress to you.
 
kilesa4568
I've seen what happens down in DR C and it's a full on Mad Max mode for most people. It would be a lot quicker to say what went right in those races rather than what went wrong.:lol:

If I'm honest, it's survival of the fittest down there but you can turn it to your advantage by using their aggression against them. Keep your radar on and watch your mirrors.

Post your videos up though as there's a lot of friendly top ranked drivers on here who'll be happy to give you hints and tips.👍
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Newbie question, but what's the best way to share a replay video here? Via YouTube, or can the replay video be directly linked from the GTS server? I've never shared a gameplay video before. I'm sure if you go under Discover and search my username (Satomiblood), it'll come up.
 
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I don't have a lot to add, but I will echo what others have said-watch replays of skilled drivers, paying close attention to throttle and brake application. Practice those techniques, even if they seem strange at first. If you keep practicing your way, without examining other techniques, you are basically teaching yourself to be 'slow'.

And careful with that ghost car, if you always use one when hotlapping. It's helpful to a point, but if you find yourself plateauing, turn it off so you can focus on the track, NOT beating the ghost through every turn.

Also, when practicing, don't be afraid to overdrive the car and smack into stuff-you won't know the limits until you go past them! Try drifting around, see what oversteer feels like and how much steering angle corresponds to having the back come around. Hit the brakes way later than you think is possible, and release them earlier just to see what happens. You might be surprised.

Mikyll
Pedals are equally as important as the wheel. Sometimes more important. I'd rather have a mid level wheel and hi-end pedals vs. the opposite.
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AMEN! Just the switch from G27 to G27 pedals has caused me headaches due to the added 'bumper' under the brake pedal. I just can't modulate the brakes at the limit the way I was used to, and I'm not adapting very quickly to the new setup. Same pedals I know, but the difference was substantial.
 
Its like real racing, you have to clear your mind and focus, focus, focus. Having said that, race craft and driving the car have to come naturally to you, then you can focus on actually racing, positioning the car correctly and anticipating what the other drivers will do. Watching and following motorsport helps alot, its all about practice and experience.
 
Satomiblood
Newbie question, but what's the best way to share a replay video here? Via YouTube, or can the replay video be directly linked from the GTS server? I've never shared a gameplay video before. I'm sure if you go under Discover and search my username (Satomiblood), it'll come up.
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I don't know mate. I've heard people mentioning sharefactory (PS4 app) but I've never done one myself.
 
Mr Satay
Its like real racing, you have to clear your mind and focus, focus, focus. Having said that, race craft and driving the car have to come naturally to you, then you can focus on actually racing, positioning the car correctly and anticipating what the other drivers will do. Watching and following motorsport helps alot, its all about practice and experience.
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That's about right, i think my 9 wins came all from being focused... very focused... but it's not something i just can do... it's just there sometimes.. it's not a switch i can turn off/on. Would be nice though..
 
Too right, I won a GT Nations Cup race on Monday night and I had maybe 15 minutes practice on the car (a corvette Gr3 road car) and just got on with it. I find if you relax and just get on with it it works out most of the time, rather than pushing your mind into making the car go faster. Its tough to explain but its definitely a thing, I guess this is why coaching exists.
 
I'd to add another point with regards to qualifying and race pace. If you've done enough laps in qualifying to the point where you can come back and almost replicate those laps, be consistent and know you're safely at your ragged edge (you'd be amazed how many players try this and fly off the track due to in experience). I've done 244 sport mode races ranging from Gr4, Gr3, N classes and even Gr1, and I've won 108 of those races and sit about 2/3's across DR S rating.

It all stems back to the point I made earlier about "practice makes perfect". Once you've got to the point where you can confidently lap at your qualifying pace you should have no worries in the race knowing you can run at that pace and not worrying about being 'wrongly placed' on the grid.
 
Since getting to B/S I've just become cannon fodder for all the S/S and A/S peeps on the Japan/Australia servers, never qualify higher than 12th....... when I had my SR at B had a lot more competitive races because my start position was mid table or upper end, then it was also easier to race for a win.......
 
Not much to say, but I'd like to add this phrase
"Practice smartly"
Going around a track over and over again would form habits, which a great thing for muscle memory and for knowing the track like the back of your hand. However, before you go and practice to form these habits, check if your line is correct. Check if you're overspeeding into a corner, too slow on exit, etc. etc.
Like others have said, watch the top 10 replays. Watch 2-3 of them, and analyze what they do. It's important to correct your line before moving on to building up muscle memory because it's going to be very hard to fix these mistakes when it's so habitual.

Also, if you find yourself matching your qualifying pace during a race, try to qualify again. Step out of your comfort zone, and try new things. Again, like what others said, try new lines etc.
Because if you can match your qualifying pace during a race, it means you're now capable of setting an even faster time :)
 
Alpha Cipher
Not much to say, but I'd like to add this phrase
"Practice smartly"
Going around a track over and over again would form habits, which a great thing for muscle memory and for knowing the track like the back of your hand. However, before you go and practice to form these habits, check if your line is correct. Check if you're overspeeding into a corner, too slow on exit, etc. etc.
Like others have said, watch the top 10 replays. Watch 2-3 of them, and analyze what they do. It's important to correct your line before moving on to building up muscle memory because it's going to be very hard to fix these mistakes when it's so habitual.

Also, if you find yourself matching your qualifying pace during a race, try to qualify again. Step out of your comfort zone, and try new things. Again, like what others said, try new lines etc.
Because if you can match your qualifying pace during a race, it means you're now capable of setting an even faster time :)
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How do you get the top 10 replays?
 
I'm winless in 66 races, DR "C" and SR "S" with one fastest lap and one pole and I think I have two 2nd place finishes (both of which I led for a few laps). I'm still getting screwed by the occasional hit from behind while braking or turning into someone who dive bombed the inside of a corner just as I start turning in. At least I'm not getting assessed bogus time penalties any more, but being knocked deep into the gravel (and without an auto reset to track) can eat a lot of clock. Most of the devastating setbacks have occurred half way into a race (as was the case in one of the FIA races yesterday...was closing in on 4th when the 6th place car put me in the dirt). And I've noticed people seem to start driving a lot more aggressively on the second to final lap (became a ping pong between cars in one race).

I'd spend more time qualifying if I had more time to do so. I'm lucky if I have enough time each day to earn my driving marathon...
 
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Dealing with the pressure is an aspect thats hard to learn, it comes with experience. Try not to worrie as much when someone is trailing, key is to only go defensive when they have a good run and just stick to normal line when they dont. Its mostly their responsibility to make a clean pass, if they rear end you when there was no gap and you drove normal then there is nothing you can do about that so dont even worry about that. Watch them but dont focus to much on them, keep focus on hitting your apex and nailing the corners and only shift focus to them when you mess up a corner or when you see they get a good run.
 
I didn't go through all the answers you have in detail but a few thoughts from my side, as I partially share the feelings you have when racing:

First of all don't be intimidated by other drivers. I know it looks like "oh I am so slow" when they get bigger and bigger in you rear mirror, however: the game has a quite heavy draft effect, so it is really easy for the cars behind you to get closer, it doesn't mean they are more skilled than you are.
Then also, and this applies especially to the lower DR rankings: people tend to brake too late, far too late. There were some races (usually daily race A) where I had a qualifying time near the top 10 or even in the top 10, and I was lapping in the race not far off my qualifying time, and people still got insanely close to me while braking. At first I thought wtf why am I so slow, and often made mistakes in that curve,and then I really lost time vs. them through that curve. But once you are confident that the braking points you use are fine and the line you use is fine, then you will see, that those people will lose much more time out of the curve and on the following straight than they win by braking late.
This is also a good strategy for overtaking btw.

Here is one example:

I seriously screwed up the chicane at the bottom in Yamagiwa and Ruby-74 did overtake me towards the hairpin, but at this time I knew that Ruby is about my skill level, I knew he is a fair driver that will not try to screw around and I knew he'd have to take the inside line towards the chicane, so I kept my nerves, took a bit of an outside line, anticipating that he'd come out of the hairpin rather slow while I took a bit more the outside line than usual to get max speed for the following straight - where in fact I then took my position back.
One of the best moments I had in the game so far, and only because I stayed calm and confident even despite the mistake I had made in the chicane before. And of course it also helps a lot by knowing the other driver and that he's not an idiot that will **** around. But if you can pull something like this off then it is very rewarding. And btw it would have been also rewarding the other way around, I'd rather have a good fight that I lose than push the other driver to keep my position.

Could write quite a bit more but it's way way past my bed time...
 
Most of the tips on here are what you should be following, but some are utter garbage.
Im an A/S driver with around 40 wins in 140 races

1) Setup - It doesn't matter whether you use a Wheel or Controller, the difference between the 2 while there is not enough to make a massive difference. Make sure your setup is what suits you. If using a wheel look up optimal sensitivity settings etc, if a controller try out the different button setups. Some like motion, others L2/R2 while I prefer X/Square with L2/R2 for Gearing. Pick the one that feels most comfortable for you and practice.
By the time you get into races you should be able to gear shift automatically up and down at optimal times.

2) Aids - Aids can be a help or hindrance depending on the car. Set the default as Expert to begin with, the others are just holding your hand and you will not improve running those setups. Once you are more confident you can customise to turn off ABS etc

2) Practice Makes Perfect - Pick a car and a track.
Leave TCS on 3 and BB on 0 to begin with.
Run 30 or so laps.
Laps 1-10 Focus on learning the racing line (Out in Out), braking points (The cones are a good measure, but these are not the optimal braking points.) and speed for each corner. Don't worry if you are going off track, slowing down too much into a corner, getting a slow exit; just adjust for the next lap.
Laps 11-20 Once your confident you know the track start pushing faster. Try to run a pace where you feel comfortable you won't make mistakes but should be able to lap within a second each lap.
Lap 21-30 Now you know the track and have a comfortable pace switch over to your section time view. This will show you the fastest sections you have done as well as your optimal time. While optimal time can be misleading if you run a super time on a single section you should be within .5 of a second. Now push, try to beat each section individually going as fast as you can.
Lap 30 - By now you should have a very good grasp of the Car & Track. This is where I suggest starting to adjust the TCS setting, reduce it from 3 to 2 and lap, if you are still feeling like you have the car under control reduce to 1 then to 0. TCS at 0 makes a huge difference if you can control the car throttle & cornering. Some cars really require TCS as they are almost impossible to control.

Once you do this a few times you will find that the amount of laps required to learn a track will decrease, ATM it takes me about 2-3 laps to learn a track and the optimal TCS and BB settings. Another 5 to set my comfortable pace and 5-10 to push to a hotlap speed. Once you get to this point then Sport Mode will become much easier as you can do 15 qualifying laps, jump into a race which essentially additional lap practice, then you get to do more hotlaps when waiting for the next race.

A lot of the time I have found that my first hotlap is about .5 off my optimal, but after 1-2 races I am consistently qualifying in positions 1-3

Also never qualify intentionally slower as you will just be dodging cars rather than sitting behind people who are as fast if not faster than you, putting pressure on them to make mistakes or having people behind you forcing you to cover the racing lines etc. Learn from the people infront, what corners are they faster than you in, did they take a different line.
 
_ApexPredator
It's really not that complicated. If you're a fast driver go for pole. But if you're not a fast driver you're not making threads asking for help to win.

So, let's assume in a10 lap session you can achieve a 1:35.0, but your average is closer to 1:36.5.
In the event, you would be better off putting in a 1:36 with pace to spare, than qualifying off the back of a fluke lap that you cannot consistently maintain in qualifying, let alone in a race surrounded by drivers with a lot more pace than you.

The faster you qualify the faster the driver's you'll be matched with (within your DR/SR bracket), so better off to qualify well within your own ability and have a confident race.

Obviously learn the track, learn the car, drive faster, blah, blah, blah...
I'm just offering help for the confidence factor. That needs to come before the wins.
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I disagree. The matching is inconsistent anyway. Sometimes a 1.36 may put you at the front of a group of 1.365+ and other times it will put you at the back of a 1.355+. Qualify as best as possible, hold or better your position.
 
If I do a 1.35 but put in an average lap 1.5 second slower, I've properly messed up somewhere and it's unacceptable for me to not keep practising. If I'm being a bit lazy with the hot lapping, I'll settle for an average of .5 seconds but if I want to get as close to the front of the grid as possible, it's 2 or 3 tenths at most.

I really want to be in a grid group with similar pace drivers as the driving kind of takes care of itself (almost like slow motion in a train of cars) and leaves me thinking time for how to progress. Chasing quicker drivers is good as they teach me a better line as I race and if I throw in even more qualifying laps after each race with what I've learned from them, I'll often improve on my original qualifying time right through the session.

Running a race with a bad (for you) qualifying time is a hiding to nothing. I tried that at the beginning while I was getting used to the physics but I was getting trouble from slower drivers constantly impeding my race and that delayed my progress to where I'm supposed to be. Dumb idea.

Robben
I disagree. The matching is inconsistent anyway. Sometimes a 1.36 may put you at the front of a group of 1.365+ and other times it will put you at the back of a 1.355+. Qualify as best as possible, hold or better your position.
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Your DR rank has a lot of bar to go through. That 1.36 might be good at the beginning but if you have a good race and see a small DR increase, you'll get matched to that 1:35.5 DR level instead.

It's a brilliant system to constantly keep learning from others so never rest on your laurels with qualifying. Do it before every race.

My favourite quote on these forums is 'Don't practice till you get it right. Practice till you can't get it wrong'. Words to that effect anyway. Wise words.
 
NommyNom
would you agree that in a typical race, most people do not match their qualifying lap? Wouldn't you want a good qualifying lap for a higher start position for a bigger chance at podium or even a win?
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Yes. But I'm not making threads asking how to get more wins.
Seems we've all gone around the houses a bit and come back with: "yeah, just drive faster m8".

Fair enough really, Im certainly not struggling for wins, poles, or fastest laps.
I was just trying to think out of the box.

Confidence & consistency will yield more wins than a blistering one-off pole lap, but I'm tired of trying to make this argument now - so just stick it on pole, OP, don't make any mistakes, manage your tires & pace, and lead from the front for the whole race... easy.
 
kilesa4568
If I do a 1.35 but put in an average lap 1.5 second slower, I've properly messed up somewhere and it's unacceptable for me to not keep practising. If I'm being a bit lazy with the hot lapping, I'll settle for an average of .5 seconds but if I want to get as close to the front of the grid as possible, it's 2 or 3 tenths at most.
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This 👍
 
_ApexPredator
Yes. But I'm not making threads asking how to get more wins.
Seems we've all gone around the houses a bit and come back with: "yeah, just drive faster m8".

Fair enough really, Im certainly not struggling for wins, poles, or fastest laps.
I was just trying to think out of the box.

Confidence & consistency will yield more wins than a blistering one-off pole lap, but I'm tired of trying to make this argument now - so just stick it on pole, OP, don't make any mistakes, manage your tires & pace, and lead from the front for the whole race... easy.
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I think the point that I and others are making is that if you have done a one-off, you are capable of doing it again. So keep qualifying until you can do it consistently.
 
I don't think qualifying time has any impact on matching - I'm often top 10, and frequently see people dropped in to my race who haven't put a qualifying time in.

My advice is to always qualify as highly as you can - and use the time spent in qualifying to build your consistency/learn brake points/try different lines.
 
Massive respect to you. It’s nice to see someone that doesn’t have a ‘win at all costs’ mentality!!

My advice is mirrored by what has already been said- learn the track, put in consistent lap times and try to qualify on pole. Anything after position 5 is very tough to win from (but not impossible). I actually find position 2 and 3 are great places to win from. Depending on the track.

How are you with the oval tracks?

I would also suggest dropping your rating down to have a chance winning. I’m currently C/C and this is the right balance for me.Obviously, the better your driving the higher your rating will be-especially letting people pass you.
 
Robben
I think the point that I and others are making is that if you have done a one-off, you are capable of doing it again. So keep qualifying until you can do it consistently.
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Which is fair enough :)
I was just suggesting that qualifying off the back of a one-off won't help the OP's cause, and I was of the opinion that "keep qualifying until you can do it consistently" is a bit duh-duh and sort of goes without saying; I guess not though.
 

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