If I told any of you that I could get on the podium in a Laguna Seca championship race, chances are you probably wouldn't have believed me until now. My track record there in GT Sport was patchy at best, with a best finish of 4th courtesy of the awesomely agile WRX Gr.4. Every other race I usually languished in the bottom half, and despite the strong drive at Bathurst there was no telling with limited track time which end of the spectrum the G70 would find itself in. Would it again work like a 'bigger WRX', or would it flounder and flop in the sand? This evening was my chance to find out.
17:00 Manufacturers EMEA
Initially found it hard to get a good rhythm in Free Practice sessions, but learnt that by braking earlier, finding the right turning angles and keeping the throttle engaged mid-corner, a high-1:28 was doable. This technique was key to my success last time in Gr.4, and resulted in a personal best of 1:28.660 set moments before the first slot became available for entries. Only around 1.7 seconds off the #1 ranked Atenza which was a promising sign.
Another 19-car lobby with perhaps the strongest representation yet from Genesis - three G70s plus myself with mine being the third-ranked machine on the grid. There was a small delay, but no connection issues denying anyone a chance of qualifying. This race happened to involve a famous sim-racing streamer in an M&M's-sponsored Lexus, whom I initially followed out of the pits and for much of my first flier. It immediately became clear that the G70 was getting much more speed out of corners through the throttle techniques I had been practicing and a benchmark of 1:30.226 was set. Next lap I encountered a bit of understeer going through Turn 3 and almost went over the kerb exiting the Corkscrew, but a 1:29.581 and provisional 3rd were secured. There was a lot of potential for a 1:29.2 in both of my final two attempts, but internal pressure and excursions over the dunes proved to be my undoing. Settled for 6th in the end, with my teammates starting 2nd, 3rd and 8th respectively.
Nailed the start from the final corner and worked my way quietly around the first lap as a yellow WRX went off between Turns 9 and 10. The techniques we learnt also allowed us to make rapid gains on the Finnish Cayman in what would become 4th. At Andretti, it was almost 1.7 seconds - by the Corkscrew, it had already been slashed to nine tenths, and would continue to be slashed further until he too dropped all four wheels onto the sand coming out of Turn 5. One of my main methods to gain time was to brake gently for and and take a tight line through the Corkscrew, making the descent in 3rd gear for maximum stability and an incredibly smooth power delivery. The Cayman stuck around for a while which gave me hope of an entertaining battle for 4th, but the traction advantage eventually allowed us to pull away and focus on catching up to my British teammate in 3rd.
As it turned out, he didn't seem to adopt the same techniques I had done, and this showed in the way that the gap between us was decimated during the second third of the race. While I negotiated the Corkscrew on Lap 2, this was as large as a little over 3 seconds. By the start of Lap 5, it was (once again) down to just
nine tenths, which meant that there was a chance I could snatch the final podium position away from him if I kept it clean and consistent enough. Three consecutive 1:30.2s brought me within just a car length behind going into the final lap, at which point I seized his slipstream and a chance to nip down the inside under braking for Andretti.
Got the move, got 3rd place with plenty of room to spare. Kept the Hotel Bellevue car out of the sand to bring home my second World Series podium in as many races.
As much as I believe that the Gr.4 Genesis shouldn't have as much power sapped away from it, it's become abundantly clear to me that it is pretty much in its element on handling circuits such as this and Brands GP. Still vulnerable to understeer if I get a poor entriy, but this can be mitigated by the near-limitless traction it has on corner exits thanks to the four-wheel drive setup. The fact that the other two leading G70s crossed the line 2nd and 4th speaks volumes about its competitiveness at this early stage, though ultimately a more compact (and presumably lighter) WRX would take victory by a considerable advantage.
Even after Auto Drive somehow turned our G70 into the concrete as soon as we crossed the line, I was so happy with this result that I forgot to save a screenshot of the points I'd earnt. After checking an upload of the stream I mentioned, I'm equally delighted to report that 247 were awarded from a 269-point split, which should give me a nice boost to my overall Manufacturers standings as Test Season 1 draws to a close. Seems like the right time to give myself a short break from racing so that I can recharge my batteries for the next set. The primary aim when I do return is to extract more pace out of the Gr.3 Genesis in my ongoing prep for the main Manufacturers championship. For now, however, I'm making the most of the Californian sunshine while it lasts!
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