GTP NASCAR SPRINT CUP S3 Champs: RFLX_Niop, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota

TomMcD

I'll take 5th anyday, wasn't hopeful going into today.

Quite annoyed if ACDC is pursuing the strategy of simply not attending and taking the wildcard spot as it screws me over, but there's nothing I can do about it unfortunately 👎

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You can win a race, and get more total points than him before the end of the regular season, and you would secure the wild card.

MustangRyan

You can win a race, and get more total points than him before the end of the regular season, and you would secure the wild card.

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The chances of me winning at SSRX are pretty damn slim, they're even worse at Indy. Oh well, I'm just taking each race as it comes.

What were the standings for the HSR race?

Niop, Joe, Litchi, Matty, Tom, Nater, me, Knelly, Fastfox, dowhat, Drop, homeslice (dnf)

So I had two goals last nigt, the first was a podium (which for driver errors would have happened), and the second was to close the gap on Drop and keep second place in the standings. I managed the second. This is how I see (through quick calculations) the standings look up to a place past the cut off.

Drop 90 2 wins
Knelly 84 1 win +6
Joe 83 0 Win +7
Mule 79 1 win +11
Niop 69 1 win + 21
Dowhat 69 0 win +21
ACDC 54 1 win +36
Tom 54 0 win +36 CUTOFF
Mudd 50 0 win +40 CURRENTLY OUT If not taken any of Homeslices points for last.

So, Tom, I think basically all you need is top 7 finishes in the last two races to secure the Chase?

Mudd needs some help as he may even miss the next race?

All the others above a pretty much in, and others not mentioned (I think) are driving for team points, pride, seats next year, and the fun of it 👍

EDIT : PS, anyone else missing Crazy right now?

Yeah I think you're right, it's not looking as bad as I anticipated then. Awesome, cheers Knelly 👍

Well within your grasp mate 👍

PS, double header at SSRX with SC and Indycars, this weekend. Thank god neither of them are too long.

It's technically possible to no stop the 10 lap SSRX race, but good luck doing so. You'd need the whole pack to draft and save fuel off of for most of the race. If this somehow did happen, you'd be able to go for 10 3/4 laps or so.

never going to happen

DrifterJoe

It's technically possible to no stop the 10 lap SSRX race, but good luck doing so. You'd need the whole pack to draft and save fuel off of for most of the race. If this somehow did happen, you'd be able to go for 10 3/4 laps or so.

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Well, I wish you the best of luck.

Sorry guys for sucking so bad yesterday. I forgot how hard it is to compete with zero practice. I hope i didnt take someones spot who actually had a chance at a good finish.

homeslice47

Sorry guys for sucking so bad yesterday. I forgot how hard it is to compete with zero practice. I hope i didnt take someones spot who actually had a chance at a good finish.

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Only practice I had was during the Nationwide race, went into this without a tune and made a half decent one.

No practice here either

Yeah but you guys are used to running these cars week in week out at the moment. Homeslice has been away all season, so I can understand where he is coming from.

Great to see you on track buddy 👍

I have no intension on making the chase, I'm gonna miss next week and I'll be up north on Mackinac Island for a week during the chase. I'm still gonna race as hard as I can, but it's pretty much just to get a seat for future seasons. I'll use my 2/3 points when I can, I didn't have anyone set up to race for me yesterday, kind of a last minute. If I can get someone to commit to next weeks race, I'll use the points then.

TomMcD

No practice here either

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And then you got me who practices for 2 hours to finish 10th and get passed by the start-and-parker who turned up 5 minutes before the start without a setup - Furinkazen...👎 for the Nationwide race.

I will practice for at least 4 hours for Daytona.

Chqr

And then you got me who practices for 2 hours to finish 10th and get passed by the start-and-parker who turned up 5 minutes before the start without a setup - Furinkazen...👎 for the Nationwide race.

I will practice for at least 4 hours for Daytona.

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I'm not as much a tyre wrecker as I used to be, would have been higher had I not got collected early on... but anyhow thats another story.

Just realised that the last two pre chase races, that Drop has won at them both this season .

Can't have him starting on 312 points in the Chase now

Knelly

Just realised that the last two pre chase races, that Drop has won at them both this season .

Can't have him starting on 312 points in the Chase now

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No worries there. The first SSRX win was a fluke, and the strategy can't be replicated in this shorter race. I'd be thrilled to win either one of the two remaining races. I fully expect Joe will win one of them, and I'd like to see someone that hasn't yet won win the last race (Tom, Mudd, Dowhat, RedPartyHat). It could make that wild card spot very interesting in the last race.

I think if I'm to make the chase I'd have to win the next two races...

Extreme strategies will be used..

If ACDC doesn't show up again for the last two races, you could take the wild card position from him by doing either of the following:

-Win 2 races. This is a 100% guaranteed path into the Wild Card spot, at worst, for any driver.
-Win 1 race and pass ACDC in total points (this also means that other drivers in 8th-10th have to not win, or you would need to pass them in points as well)

If ACDC shows up to race, it could actually be more helpful for the guys fighting for the 8th and final spot in the Chase. ACDC could get back up in the top 7 in points, removing his win from the wild card equation. That could put a driver with 0 wins in 8th place, meaning any win from 8th place down would advance to the wild card position.

OFFICIAL High Speed Ring Results:

1. #14 RFLX_Niop (Pole Position, 30 laps led) - 20 points, +3 bonus points
2. #43 JoeOfTheFire (20 laps led) - 18 points, +1 bonus point
3. #83 GTP_Litchi - 0 points (Nationwide Driver) (+10 points for RedPartyHat)
4. #24 MattyMc1996 - 14 points
5. #99 Tom_97_COD - 12 points
6. #20 Nater_Racing21 - 0 points (Nationwide Driver)
7. #83 MULE_9242 - 10 points
8. #42 Knelly - 9 points
9. #18 FastFox400 - 0 points (Nationwide Driver)
10. #48 dowhat13 - 7 points
11. #11 Droptop2001gt - 6 points
12. #88 homeslice47 - 5 points







Driver's Championship:





Owner's Championship:





Manufacturer's Championship:

Maybe Gibbs and Toyota won't run away with this thing after all.

Week after week SGR are making more and more ground up now we are at full force again 👍

Ford not looking too bad actually and I'm in the Chase as of now. Good weekend 👍

If only I was racing the start of the season I'd possibly be in the chase.. Ah well a forth is great and it definitely helps me for the coming season.

Summer holiday starting this weekend might have an effect on my opinion of racing in the SC, but Season 4 is still very distant because it'd take place in the fall, when I have the first of my final exams.

GTP NASCAR Power Rankings:

1. RFLX_Niop - The 2-time defending GTP Sprint Cup champion is just hitting his stride, gearing up for a third straight run at the Sprint Cup title. Niop pulled off a perfect sweep this weekend, winning from the pole, while leading the most laps in the Sprint Cup race at HSR. Niop is one-for-one, with a race win in his only NW start, at Suzuka East two weeks ago. He is again dominating qualifying, with 3 poles in 4 starts.
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2. JoeOfTheFire - Joe continues his strong-and-steady march to the Chase, racking up his 2nd runner-up position this season in the Sprint Cup at HSR. Joe has also dominated in the NW, when he has participated. He has 2 wins and 5 total podiums in his 6 starts.
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3. TRYNOR88 - TRYNOR is making a huge run in the Nationwide Series, in the hopes of passing Carbonox for the title with only 2 races remaining. TRYNOR got his second win of the season this past weekend at HSR. He has 5 podium finishes in NW, and a 4th place finish in relief of Niop at Monza in the Sprint Cup.
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4. Droptop2001gt - The current Sprint Cup points leader had a very rough outing at HSR, greatly hurting his individual and team standings in the process. However, he's the current Sprint Cup points leader. Drop is currently in position to lead the points after the Chase starts with his 2 race wins thus far in season 3. He also has 1 Nationwide win this season.
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5. Carbonox - the current Nationwide points leader has been steady the entire season, mostly unchallenged at the top, until the last few weeks. Carbon is in the top 5 every single week, but he might need race wins to hold off Trynor as the Nationwide series comes to a close.
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6. Knelly - Another in the camp of steady at the top, much like Joe and Carbon this season. Knelly had a subpar outing at HSR by his own high standards, but should be very pleased with his one race win and 2nd overall placement this deep into the regular season.
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7. MULE_9242 - Mule has had a great season this year in both top series, winning the season-opening Daytona race in the Nationwide series, and beating Joe for a win on a road course in the Sprint Cup, taking the trophy at Monza. If not for a little bad luck, he could be as high as 2nd overall in the Sprint Cup points right now.
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8. GTP_Litchi - Litchi was a late addition to the Nationwide series, but he is showing a lot of speed in a hurry. He already has two wins in just 5 NW starts, and might have had a third win if not for disconnecting at Darlington. In his first career Sprint Cup start, he put his Red Bull car on the podium. The only two cars in front of him belonged to Niop and Joe, the two winningest road-course drivers in the history of our Sprint Cup series.
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9. ACDCROCKS123 - ACDC has perhaps the most skill in the field, but attendance issues will probably derail his chances in the Chase, if they aren't resolved. If he shows up to race, he's an odds-on favorite to compete at the very top of the standings.
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10. Smuffyatfcp - Smuffy looked almost unstoppable when the NW season started, finishing second, second, and first in his first three starts. He has cooled off some since then, and missed a few races. But, his ability to drive very well is undeniable.
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Also considered: Dowhat13, Tom_97_COD, Nater_Racing21, Mudd

Nice write-up Drop, it was a fun read. 👍

Awesome stuff Drop, this going to be a running thing? 👍