Gran Turismo World Series (Manufacturers Cup Exhibition Season: Feb 5 - Feb 15)

[mobilmasher]

Here we go, 20 minutes ago I got knocked offline. Now the lobby is about to open and the game won't load. Have been trying since disco, all PS services are working normally. Keeps timing out with a code [CE-222032]. Looks like I shoot for the next timeslot. Good luck everyone.

Must be my service, ACC won't load up either.

 

[Hodd10]

Only 1 shot today.

Managed to get some work in on the track lsat night. Gotta say I really enjoy this track. Flows really nice. Turn 1 is always one of my favs. The 650 doesn't like it as much thought. She needs more grunt in those up hill sections.

Quali had me starting P12. Had plenty of free air but never got it hooked up. Noted I was door 11 though I guess that was about right.

Race time and I start on hards. Think only 1 other person did and they were inside the top 8. Couple of cars passed me by on the opening couple of corners. I was not gonna fight them due to the combination on them on the better tyre and myself going for consistancy over outright pace. That proved right as some fighting up front took out 5 cars on the slow uphill left. I'll take that. Up to 10. Second lap I make a lovely pass up the inside on the sweeping right T5 and then a few more exit stage right at turn 8.

Puts me up to P5 but I decide off roading looks more fun thus dropping me down to P8 where I pit lap 11. I come out behind a supra and we had a great battle for a couple of laps. Once all had made their stops I was P8 and in a close battle with 7th. Some super racing for a couple of laps took place. They were in the Supra so had plenty of power and it was a struggle to get by. However he made a mistake into the last turn and I had a run finally into the home straight. Finshed up P7 overall.

 

[Zorz]

Just finished slot 1 with @xxPinkyKissxx and um, not quite what I had hoped for. It's been a while, but that continues the trend where if we race each other and Pinky qualifies in front of me, I always end up binning it without fail.

@xxPinkyKissxx - Sorry I didn't say hello when the lobby loaded. I was trying to get the VR screen to centre properly and when I saw the Supra being driven by the infamous French rammer I may have gotten distracted... I only realised you were in the same race when I saw your message after the warm-up ended.

I don't know what was going on but the car just never felt right. The back end felt so slippery, far more so than during my practice runs. I did the race with TCS1 and I'm thinking I might do the next one with TCS2 for safety. Starting on Hards was necessary beginning from P11 with a 1:20.000 but good grief they were awful.

Lap 1 was very difficult as the Citroen in front of me was very, very unstable. He was very slow coming out of the sharp right uphill which caused me to give him a slight bump and allowed a Ferrari past me. The pressure from the Ferrari then made the Citroen bin it out of the sharp left at the start of sector 3.

I then ran wide onto the gravel at the same turn on the following lap, ultimately dropping me down to P15 at the start of the main straight as my dirty tyres made me get the last bend wrong and go over the grass. Things then got even worse at the start of lap 3, and I'm assuming my tyres were still dirty. Even with just a gentle touch on the throttle coming out of turn 1, the car spun and I was a long way off the back in P16.

I'd dropped about 11 seconds from the spin by the time I reached the end of sector 1 and since I can't see deltas in VR, I thought that's probably going to be the end of it for me. I'm a stubborn git though, so keep going just in case!

I caught up with the Ferrari at the end of lap 7 after it had binned it where the Citroen had earlier, then was very surprised when it went into the pits. I could see an Aston Martin in the distance and was slowly gaining on it over the course of the next few laps, ending up being about 2.8 seconds behind when I came in to the pits at the end of lap 10. I eventually caught up with it on lap 14, but couldn't get past it. We both caught up a BMW a bit later and the Aston and BMW ended up really going at it.

I managed to get past the BMW after it served a track limits penalty, but then ended up giving the position back catching a near-spin on the following lap coming out of the uphill right-hander.

With a few deaths along the way, I ended up finishing where I started in P11. From the looks of it, I could have potentially been in the fight for P6/7/8 if not for my major mistake, but oh well. Hopefully the next try will go better.

 

[OJBrit]

Not a great race today 😤 all down to some mindless idiot!

GT2 - 1pm (BST), in an all DR B/S lobby.
Car - Genesis X - was car #3 today

Quali - awful! Just couldn’t get a lap together at all. Was doing 1.20.6/7s in the TT. In the session 1.21.225

View attachment 1265968

Race - so as I was starting P13 and I went with hard tyres. I was hoping for some slow runners towards the end to make places up. As it turns it out any chance of a good result went out the window on lap 1. Some Dutch driver just decided that push to pass was the best way to make places. They hit my rear which started a spin for me but they got away with nothing and carried on like nothing happened. Turns out they did the same move later in the lap to someone else! End of L1 I’m last, 20 seconds behind P1 and 9 seconds behind P15, on hard tyres whilst the rest are on mediums. L9 I’m now up to P14, (one car quit L2) and the car ahead spun. Then the most disgusting thing ive seen… the Dutch driver who took me out then purposely punted an innocent driver off. This allowed me to gain 2 places and P12. So I watch the replay back and this Dutch driver was making lots of mistakes running wide, and then eventually spun. For what ever reason they decided to completely destroy the Frenchman’s race who in the whole race did nothing towards the Dutchman. Dutchman then quits the race. I’m hoping PD ban the idiot from GTWS. Race goes on and I pit on L11. Had a couple loses moments which cost me a few seconds, but I managed to make an undercut work and jump to P11. Was closing in on P10 but just not enough laps.

Overall P11, poor race from me. My pace on the hards wasn’t too bad. mid-high 22s and the mediums I was doing low-mid 21s. I reckon I have ok pace to go again and score better points, but the car not stable enough for me round this track. P11 and 77 points. Watkins Glen is my aim for my big points.

Retirements - 2 car who quit.

This the idiot crushing issues

TC and Countersteer are a good guide for someone who doesn't mind leaning on others. They would have spun themselves from the contact with you without those assists. I feel for that Frenchman. (A first time for everything I suppose

Test Match Special on the radio and a GTWS race should make for a good afternoon. However it was a bit of a non event my race. I love this track but the Vette didn't seem to. Very inconsistent. I did not know whether my lap would have a random spin, cake tin brakes or understeer. It was a constant battle which meant I had less speed than others. Surprised me a little as she actually felt good at the Nord on Weds.
I managed to put her P11 on the grid and went for a hard start for a medium finish.
I made a place at T1 in my only highlight.

It only lasted a couple of corners and the rest of the next few laps it was a case of watching the battle ahead slip away whilst trying to minimise my pace whilst those on softs got past. I binned it a couple of times and came in on lap 10. I came out last and began my attempt to get back up the back. A few places made from spinners and pitters put me back up to P11 where I finished.
Not a place I would get decent points it would seem so this would be a one and done. Hopefully the next rounds will give me a better chance in the battle with @Fezzik

 

[xxPinkyKissxx]

All I can say about this race is I’m really pee’d off. Was the race I was looking forward to most, I enjoy the track and put in a fairly decent fastest lap in practice.l and was running into the late 33 min finish time in full race practice. Secretly had hopes of a podium finish.

Appeared in a strong lobby with @Zorz (first time in ages now he’s an A+ superstar haha) and that famous French guy amongst others only to see it was a head wind which is the worst on this track. Qualifying wasn’t fantastic either but got a 7th. All went wrong from there…

Started on mediums as I figured id be quicker getting into a rhythm and can get by a few hard runners early. That was a mistake. T1 forgot the Hards would be braking a little earlier than me and I bumped into the back of the car in front. Not very hard but game decided hard enough to give me a 2 second penalty so was back to about 12th after that. Great start! From there it was a case of just making back the positions as best I could. Was working until lap 6. I was back up to 7th again when a Renault put a back wheel on the curb and spun into the side of me taking me out:



Joined back on and kept going. Found myself running 2nd at one point as my tired lasted until lap 15 amazingly. Came out in 7th. Some madman pitted next lap after running to lap 16 on Hards?! So into 6th. Couldn’t stay ahead of the medium runners behind and finished 8th. Would have had at least 6th if it wasn’t for the crash. Was just a rubbish performance really, scruffy driving. Car just didn’t want to turn for some reason, especially at the right hander at the bottom of the hill.

Thanks to PDs 3 slots only, that’s me done as I can’t enter the other 2.

 

[xxPinkyKissxx]

Just finished slot 1 with @xxPinkyKissxx and um, not quite what I had hoped for. It's been a while, but that continues the trend where if we race each other and Pinky qualifies in front of me, I always end up binning it without fail.

The pinky curse strikes again

 

[Fezzik]

Ok, forget what I said earlier, THIS was the best, hardest and most stressful race I’ve done in a long time.

Always a bad sign when I get a low number board - #3 this round - I do better as an underdog. Sure enough I could only manage P12. Clean laps, just not fast.

Started on hards and had one of those lap 1s where everything opens up. I was P4 by the banked downhill right-hander! Someone ahead gets a penalty and I’m P3 down the straight. Of course no way I could hope to hold it against faster drivers on mediums. Just tried to survive until my planned stop on lap 10. Very slow laps but everyone from P4 down was battling (quite dirtily) so I was able to keep up.

Pitted from P7 or P8 on lap 10 to get my mediums. Big shock as I saw I only had 15.4 laps of fuel left! Corvette is a thirsty beast. Decided not to top-up and short-shift for a few laps instead.

Came out in clean air and banged in the quick laps. The undercut worked beautifully, after all the stops I was a clear P4 with a 7 sec gap behind.

Managed to keep it clean and tidy to the end even though the P5 GTR was catching me at nearly a second a lap.

Pretty low points so I won’t be overtaking @OJBrit today. Still can’t figure out this whole scoring and seeding system, my DR hasn’t dropped since the first couple of rounds but the points available are much less.

Please PD, let us plebs have some more of these long races like the glory boys in GT1.

 

[icycls]

first slot this morning, Genesis X. My dr has been dropping a bit (thanks interlagos chaos) so it's a mid-lobby all-B for me, worth 97 pts.

I make a safe (i.e. slow) qualy and start P6. Maintain position in first couple of laps while everyone around is losing their minds. Honestly, not the best racecraft on display, especially for a 25 lapper. Emerge the chaos in P3 and we're off and running with a 2+ second gap behind us.

So I'm pacing 1 and 2 towards our pit laps (12, I think, for me), feeling pretty good about things. Then P2 pits and he's on hards, while I'm on meds, Geez! Somewhere in the pit shuffle we lost P1, I think he dnf'd. So after things re-settle, I'm in P2 and, yeah, P1 is pulling away on those meds. Settle in for the rest of the race with P3 2-3 seconds back. I got a little complacent and P3 got within 0.3 on the last couple laps, so the finish was more nerve wracking than it should have been. Managed to keep it together for P2 fiinsh, 90 something points. Also a CRB.

Enjoyed the track, car and longer race (for gt2 at least). Of course, it does feel good to have a podium result, the dailies have been a struggle for me in the last week or so. And honestly, I don't think my pace would have played better in the higher lobbies so the points would liekly wash out if I did get a higher lobby/lower result.

One nice thing I'll note. The post-race chat was full of positive comments, no foul tempers or bruised egos on display. How refreshing.

 

[Fezzik]

I love this track but the Vette didn't seem to. Very inconsistent. I did not know whether my lap would have a random spin, cake tin brakes or understeer. It was a constant battle which meant I had less speed than others

Not ashamed to admit I was running TC3 today. Took the spins and the power oversteer out of the equation.

 

[amnesiactical]

Ran the 5pm slot and came out with my best result of the series thus far. Running board 9 in the NSX.

Qualifying was disappointing, set a banker of 20.4 and then picked up a penalty on the second lap making the rest of my running meaningless. Eventually ended up 6th.

Decided to run hards, knowing full well I was going to get mugged on the run into T1, with a Ferrari and GT-R behind me, managed to navigate the chaos and end up P4 by the end of lap 2 due to incidents and some questionable racing. Pitted at the end of lap 11 for an aggressive under cut knowing that I didn't have the race pace on the cars ahead. Worked a treat and the blend gave me the lead on the road.

Unfortunately, tyres died with 2 laps to go and I had to settle for 3rd, the tyre management of the BRZ and the RSR left me with too much to do.

 

[Zorz]

I'm done for today. The second slot lobby I was in with @Michelin Man has put me off trying this combo a third time. (Congrats by the way, great result!)

I lost my first qualifying lap because the car behind didn't bother leaving much of a gap to me after we'd all queued up in sector 3. I ended up moving over at the end of sector 1 to let him though, so frustrating. Ended up being the polesitter as well...

I started P11 again and went with the Hards. TCS2 definitely helped keep the car stable this time, although it did make it feel quite understeery in places. I guess it just shows how you can be using rotation from a slippery rear end without realising you're doing it.

My entire race was pretty much a showdown with a BMW who I am not at all impressed with. He started in front of me in P10 and trying to race this guy cleanly was infuriating. My race was compromised pretty soon after it started because of this. I had a bad feeling the moment I saw him go left of the Toyota who was already all the way at the edge of the track but I'm not sure what else I could have done.

I catch up with him again on lap 3 after he makes a mistake and get alongside coming out of the left-hander at the end of sector 1. I'll admit I think I lightly clipped his back corner due to the weird line he was taking, but then when I get alongside he gives me a hard shove towards the gravel. Definitely angry at this guy now as he's already lost me several positions and now seems like he's taking his frustrations out on me.

We catch up with another AMG and get stuck in a train for a bit. I try sending it down the inside of the BMW into turn 1 on lap 6 but in taking such a tight line into it, he holds on around the outside. A little later that lap, the BMW gets a poor exit out of the left-hander at the start of sector 3 with some fishtailing, so I start trying to move towards the inside only to be greeted with this. I don't think I was fully alongside so fair enough for closing the door, but good grief that's some aggression.

I finally get some respite at the end of lap 8 when the BMW pits. That thing must be good on tyres if you can stretch 17 laps out of the Mediums. I carry on until lap 10 and then pit myself, going for the 10H/15M I did in the first slot. I wasn't expecting to overcut, but the gap to the BMW wasn't all that big when I exit, and within a few laps I've closed right up again as he's stuck behind the AMG from earlier.

The rest of the race is the three of us stuck in a train until the BMW eventually finds a way past. I then end up in a fight with the AMG for a bit before I manage to get an overtake done into turn 1, then start hunting the BMW. I catch right up again but don't manage to find a way past before the race ends. I end up taking P7 due to major mistakes from a few others along the way.

 

[Talon16]

Did one race this morning. Got pushed wide T1 L1. Guy apologized and I've raced with him before. Def an accident. So on we go.

Shortly after got PIT'ed into the wall. [Flag here] in a blue Vette who caused a ton of crashes throughout the race. Caught up to him later in the race and went for a pass only to get smashed again. Caught up to him again and put my front fender into his rear fender to give him a little taste of his own medicine but my car went flying and his was unphased. Kinda like when you run into an AI.

People in the chat afterwards were not happy with this individual and one guy said he was hacking so his car couldn't be pushed/messed with, and he'd seen it before. Makes sense because I hit him pretty decent and nothing happened. I dunno, never heard of that before but maybe it's a thing.

Anyway, over all a poor race due to the aforementioned. I think I finished in P8 but don't even remember. Don't care to... forgettable.

 

[Stilva]

I ran the 1:00pm GT2 Americas slot and while not my best result, it was still a fun race. I did a practice race to see tire wear and the McLaren had no problem with that.

I qualified P4 with the #7 plate and I was pumped for that result. I went wide early in the race and fell down to P6. There was some nice clean racing the entire time. Some aggressive moves by some, but nothing outright dirty. I started on the Medium tires and pit at the end of lap 15 and after the pit stops cycled I was in P6. Then I made too many small mistakes that added up and finished P10. So, not the finish I could of had. Oh well, not going to be mad about it. Post race chat was friendly with congratulations and apologies for incidental contact. I did make a dumb move on a driver, but then I gave the spot back as they were clean with me in the last few laps.

I also was in the lobby with @mobilmasher which is always cool to see someone from here in a race. The winner was over 26 seconds ahead of everyone else at the end, so that had to be a smurf account or someone who tanked their DR to get easy wins.

 

[Zorz]

Shortly after got PIT'ed into the wall. [Flag here] in a blue Vette who caused a ton of crashes throughout the race. Caught up to him later in the race and went for a pass only to get smashed again. Caught up to him again and put my front fender into his to give him a little taste of his own medicine but my car went flying and his was unphased. Kinda like when you run into an AI.

People in the chat afterwards were not happy with this individual and one guy said he was hacking so his car couldn't be pushed/messed with, and he'd seen it before. Makes sense because I hit him pretty decent and nothing happened. I dunno, never heard of that before but maybe it's a thing.

I wonder if that's a case of a bug that I've seen streamers get called out for a few times in the past. There's a rare connection issue that can occur where one person can't see the rest of the lobby and appears to be driving around on their own on their screen, but everyone else can see him/her. Any collisions that occur only register on one side, so the driver with the bug just drives around pushing people off and nothing happens if you try retaliating.

 

[GlockPants]

GT3
DR/SR - B/S in a lobby of 15 equal drivers
#6 Board

Qualifying went ok, but I got held up by traffic on what I was going to try to be my faster lap. Good thing my last lap was sufficient (still about one second slower than what I was getting in FP) and I'm starting P4.

Since I'm starting in the top 5, I decided to begin the race on the Medium tires.

At the start of the race, P5 dives into T1 while I take a wider line and get passed. A light bump, but nothing bad. I get by them on the next tight left hander at the end of sector 1.

Up ahead, P2 goes wide and off the track into the tight right at the end of sector 2. P3 and I easily take the pass before they reenter.

Lap 2 P2 makes a mistake in the same spot the last person did at the end of sector 2 but instead oversteers and looses his exit speed and I take the position. From here out, I'm just seeing how close I can get to P1 and devising my pit strategy.

I'm pretty consistently getting purple sectors in S1 and S2 but I can't seem to connect S3 for a FL. So I'm thinking catching up to P1 to put pressure on them is possible.

On lap 13, P1 finally makes a mistake and I catch up a bit but not enough. I know that they still need to pit, and I decide to try for the undercut at the end of the lap. Thinking maybe they make another mistake on old tires while I warm up the Hards. Exit P3, but current P2 has yet to pit.

In the end I'm unable to significantly close the gap to P1 and we finish cleanly. Gap to first is 06.366 seconds. Not bad and the race is worth 64 points, by best haul so far.

 

[Nineteen97]

After my unexpected win at Nords, I would’ve settled for any half decent result today as long as it was a trouble free race.

Ran the 5pm B/S slot, and it was anything but. Traffic and spins in qualifying put me a subpar 7th with a lap in the low 1:21s.

I started on the hards and made up a few places, then chose the wrong line past a R8 LMS in 4th that was criticially off-line through the downhill S and hit the wall hard. Then I spun on the uphill hairpin after it for good measure.

I was now stone dead last, over eight seconds behind my nearest competitor. As I fought my way back through the field I was hit by a 458 losing traction over the kerb on the last turn and somehow received a three second penalty. Anyhow, I ran a good stint on the mediums and salvaged a 9th place, re-passing the R8 that had effectively ended any chance I had of a good result.

I was crazy enough to run again immediately after, confident I could do better. And so I did.

Qualified 5th on a 1:20.5 in an extremely close contest, only two tenths away from pole, satisfied knowing I could do no better.

Started on the mediums this time hoping to make time up on the start. Overtook a 650s for 4th which momentarily got me back into T1 though with a push. Driver was happy to concede position though, so I let it stand at that. An AMG spun into the barrier on the downhill S gifting me 3rd as I began to pull away from the McLaren.

Pitted for hards on lap 11, probably a tad early in retrospect as the 650s would pit a few laps later, pushing me so hard in the final few laps I couldn’t afford even the smallest mistake. I needed laser focus for it, and couldn’t remember the last time I had sweat so much 🥵 Had to bump it up to TC1 to tame the twitchy RSR. Then a GTR spun in the exact same place the AMG did, and second was mine… well, only just.

My redemptive second run gives me just as much satisfaction as my Nords win, considering the winner was streets ahead of us all ability-wise. Back to Gr4 next and the return of the Cayman for Spa…

 

[Roggers]

TC and Countersteer are a good guide for someone who doesn't mind leaning on others. They would have spun themselves from the contact with you without those assists. I feel for that Frenchman. (A first time for everything I suppose

Yeah the assist tools saved them there from spinning themselves. I don’t blame people that do use them as they are there to be used, but just annoying when people that use them can then exploit them in conditions like that.

 

[appu]

Some aggressive moves by some, but nothing outright dirty.

I was one of guys who hit you, lol. I was 'Boy' in your race. I had forgotten that your tires were dirty as I was too focused on myself, and accidentally pushed you into sand by not braking earlier to take your dirty tires into account. Thank you for accepting my apology post-race.

Agree that the winner basically drove like he was an A+ guy. Definitely was not a B guy like rest of us.

I started 3rd so I was basically forced to take mediums when I wanted to start on hards. The traffic ahead kept holding me up and I kept falling down the positions, and still kept getting held up by traffic ahead. Others, especially PHG_Papa, overtook me on hards and kept pulling away.

@A_Higher_Place was also going to overtake me but spun out. He ended up recovering impressively by end of the race though. I made pretty much no mistakes, got no penalty, and yet ended up 7th. Other guys were that much faster than me. I am very happy with my results as I got much better result than the #14 plate I got. The 3rd in qualifying was a bonus.

I quite enjoyed the race. The whole race was about relentlessly chasing and being chased. A lot of positions swaps, especially on corners. I had to force myself not to let my mind wander away.

A shot from the race featuring @Stilva's orange McLaren, my green McLaren, @A_Higher_Place's white Audi R8, PHG_Papa's black McLaren, and @mobilmasher's maybe blue Ford GT.

Edit: Forgot to add- very happy to say that there was no lag in this event and the race was clean, at least around me.

 

[mobilmasher]

Ran the same race with @Stilva, @appu, @A_Higher_Place, didn't realize all of us were GT Planeteers. I had door #3 but messed up both Q laps and started 15th of 16. Started on hards and had a good start. T1 I went wide entering and a good thing I did, the driver starting last missed his braking point big time, hit the car on my left who then hit the car in front of him all the way out to the wall. Gained a few positions here and concentrated on my race. Made it up to 10th at one point only to get passed by faster runners recovering from mistakes. After my pitstop on lap 13, had a great battle with Spray, clean and respectful. I was trying for a top 10 and had it after @Stilva had an off only to hook the curb entering the last chicane relegating me down to 12th. Over all a great race with some clean racers, at least all the ones I raced with.
Yes, my Ford GT is blue.

 

[TheWeapon874]

Disappointing race last night. GT1 10pm slot, Asia Pacific, door 10.

Had a nice reference in qualy, following @D_Dragline out of the pits, and putting a pretty solid lap together - 1.19.9 had me second behind Dragline.

Decided to start on mediums to avoid having to defend on hards, so I could have a stress free race…

Well. I got dive bombed into turn 3 and pushed onto the grass, then 4th finished the job next corner by blatantly turning me around. I rejoined 10 seconds behind 2nd last, and quickly caught back to the pack, made several clean passes only to get dive bombed the following corner, with several drivers even making contact swerving on the straights after I got better exits. One genius even tried to push me into the pits.

Another forced excursion after pitting for hards, then a mistake all on my own, I was completely furious, pitted for another set of mediums and see if I could get FL just for the hell of it. Ended up 0.01 off, then spun trying to push too hard, got lapped, which at least ended the pain a minute earlier.

To top it all off, the points / results screen didn’t load, so possibly all of that was for nothing….

Disappointing result, since I enjoy that track, and had a reasonably good start to the season.

 

[A_Higher_Place]

I was one of guys who hit you, lol. I was 'Boy' in your race. I had forgotten that your tires were dirty as I was too focused on myself, and accidentally pushed you into sand by not braking earlier to take your dirty tires into account. Thank you for accepting my apology post-race.

Agree that the winner basically drove like he was an A+ guy. Definitely was not a B guy like rest of us.

I started 3rd so I was basically forced to take mediums when I wanted to start on hards. The traffic ahead kept holding me up and I kept falling down the positions, and still kept getting held up by traffic ahead. Others, especially PHG_Papa, overtook me on hards and kept pulling away.

@A_Higher_Place was also going to overtake me but spun out. He ended up recovering impressively by end of the race though. I made pretty much no mistakes, got no penalty, and yet ended up 7th. Other guys were that much faster than me. I am very happy with my results as I got much better result than the #14 plate I got. The 3rd in qualifying was a bonus.

I quite enjoyed the race. The whole race was about relentlessly chasing and being chased. A lot of positions swaps, especially on corners. I had to force myself not to let my mind wander away.

A shot from the race featuring @Stilva's orange McLaren, my green McLaren, @A_Higher_Place's white Audi R8, PHG_Papa's black McLaren, and @mobilmasher's maybe blue Ford GT.
View attachment 1266044

Edit: Forgot to add- very happy to say that there was no lag in this event and the race was clean, at least around me.

Always enjoy running into you in sport mode. I can count on you to respect space and racing lines, maybe a little wider for me than other considering my inconsistent driving 😂. Thanks for the great race.

Ran a split an hour later where I qualified 2nd and finished second. Only reason I didn't win is because a Brazilian decided to pit me on turn 1 about 7 laps in!

Hope to see more GTPers out there again soon

 

[Michelin Man]

I'm done for today. The second slot lobby I was in with @Michelin Man has put me off trying this combo a third time. (Congrats by the way, great result!)

I lost my first qualifying lap because the car behind didn't bother leaving much of a gap to me after we'd all queued up in sector 3. I ended up moving over at the end of sector 1 to let him though, so frustrating. Ended up being the polesitter as well...

I started P11 again and went with the Hards. TCS2 definitely helped keep the car stable this time, although it did make it feel quite understeery in places. I guess it just shows how you can be using rotation from a slippery rear end without realising you're doing it.

My entire race was pretty much a showdown with a BMW who I am not at all impressed with. He started in front of me in P10 and trying to race this guy cleanly was infuriating. My race was compromised pretty soon after it started because of this. I had a bad feeling the moment I saw him go left of the Toyota who was already all the way at the edge of the track but I'm not sure what else I could have done.

I catch up with him again on lap 3 after he makes a mistake and get alongside coming out of the left-hander at the end of sector 1. I'll admit I think I lightly clipped his back corner due to the weird line he was taking, but then when I get alongside he gives me a hard shove towards the gravel. Definitely angry at this guy now as he's already lost me several positions and now seems like he's taking his frustrations out on me.

We catch up with another AMG and get stuck in a train for a bit. I try sending it down the inside of the BMW into turn 1 on lap 6 but in taking such a tight line into it, he holds on around the outside. A little later that lap, the BMW gets a poor exit out of the left-hander at the start of sector 3 with some fishtailing, so I start trying to move towards the inside only to be greeted with this. I don't think I was fully alongside so fair enough for closing the door, but good grief that's some aggression.

I finally get some respite at the end of lap 8 when the BMW pits. That thing must be good on tyres if you can stretch 17 laps out of the Mediums. I carry on until lap 10 and then pit myself, going for the 10H/15M I did in the first slot. I wasn't expecting to overcut, but the gap to the BMW wasn't all that big when I exit, and within a few laps I've closed right up again as he's stuck behind the AMG from earlier.

The rest of the race is the three of us stuck in a train until the BMW eventually finds a way past. I then end up in a fight with the AMG for a bit before I manage to get an overtake done into turn 1, then start hunting the BMW. I catch right up again but don't manage to find a way past before the race ends. I end up taking P7 due to major mistakes from a few others along the way.

Thanks , nice to see another GTP'er again. Looks like you made a super recovery yourself, especially as overtaking is so difficult here. As I found in slot 1, getting stuck in traffic is so costly, so it's hard to avoid any incidents as a result.

GT1, DR A Slot 1:
As for my first attempt, it can be described as frustrating...

I was again in a strong 229pt lobby, so I knew things would be hard. Fully expected to drop back to being a mid-pack hack on pace, without the weather based luck . Neither of my 3 qualifying laps were ideal, with my best still being messy. So I felt lucky that a 20.1 still put me 7th. But for the race, it meant I was in amongst the danger zone. And sure enough, on lap 1, Turn 4 I became the meat in a Supra sandwich. The early laps were costly, as we all ended up battling, and the aggression from some was evident.

Ultimately, after going 13M/12H I found myself in 5th on the tail of a Porsche. But with 3 laps to go, in my haste to keep up I cut the kerb too much out of the final chicane. Resulting in a tank-slapper that sent me to the barrier. All thrown away, with P8 my final result...

Slot 2:
So I went again, hoping for better this time. This was a stronger lobby still, with some A+ drivers, and 246pts for a win. And with a familiar face this time in @Zorz 👋.

After earlier practice the RX-V felt good, on a track I feel comfortable with (my favourite Sardegna layout even). But I didn't expect it to be as strong a combo as it turned out to.

Qualifying this time was far better, with a 19.6, or thereabouts, putting me 2nd. As my qualifying is so inconsistent, it's a feat I don't expect to repeat. The race was fairly lonely, myself and P1 managed to build a gap, with those behind starting on Hards. Went 14M/11H this time, dragging the mediums as long as I could, since I found the Hards to feel worse than the +1s delta would suggest. So to finish 2nd again, with a PB of 235pts is something I'll take for sure...

I don't expect Spa to be as successful by comparison. As much as I enjoy the Atenza, I suspect it will struggle. My only hope is that weather changeability is a factor 🤞.

 

[Talon16]

Stuff stuff stuff

yadda yadda yadda

I was rooting for you both on Papa's stream today (time stamped).

---

So I wasn't sure if I should do another one of these because the previous wasn't great, but did... and glad I did. Some really fun and clean racing this time around. Put in a m'eh quali time and started P4 on the RMs. Six of the seven leading places were all different cars (less two Ferraris) which was super cool to see: Audi, Supra, GTR, AMG, Ferrari, Ferrari, and Vette. Just another thing I love about Manu.

So off we go and there is some really close racing for the first couple of laps. I was pressuring the GTR and there were a couple of side-by-sides in there where I couldn't quite get it done, all the while the Ferrari behind was loving it and right on my bumper as well. Eventually the GTR went a bit wide onto T3 and I was able to sneak up the inside and make it around.

That battling with the Nissan allowed the Supra and Audi to get away. The Supra was ~2.0 seconds up but I was able to chip away bit by bit until I had caught up on about lap nine going through the final couple of turns. Then, in an unprecedented show of sportsmanship, he let me by on the front straight. He signaled, moved to the outside line and let me take the inside without a fight. I think his tires were shot and he didn't want to cost himself time by fighting. Obviously it helped me but it was a really smart move on his behalf as well (as I'll note below*). Cheers to "C. Junior."

Now in P2 it was time to chase down the Audi ~3.8s ahead, who then pit on lap 11 (I think) off the RMs. I thought that was quite early but okay. I stayed out for quite a bit longer hoping a super overcut would work. On lap 14 my times were still a bit better than what RH tires would be, but I went a little deep, compromising my exit onto the front straight... so rather than feel that pain all the way down the straight I just decided to pit.

Ended up coming out about 2.5s behind the Audi in P1. So I was trying to chase him down but losing ground lap by lap by a decent amount. Then he spun on T1 so rather than being behind by 4s I was now up by 3s. At the end of that lap I see how he was pulling away so quickly, as when he pitting off his RMs be accidentally put RMs back on, so at the end of lap 17 he pit again for RH tires.

From there it was just managing the gap and not screwing up, which I managed to do. C. Junior was now in P2 and I was able to pull away as the laps went on. *C. Junior who let me passed earlier in the race in lieu of fighting, ended up finishing P2 ahead of a Ferrari by less than .150". Had we fought earlier in the race, for even one turn... it likely would've cost him P2.

 

[D_Dragline]

Ran 2 races this round.

First in Asia Slot 2 was the one with @TheWeapon874 . Qualified pole with a 19.2, pitted lap 14 still first, got a track limit penalty about lap 19 and then binned it into the sand out of the right hander at the bottom of the hill. Dropped to second and then spun on the dirty tyres between the next two left handers. Dropped to 4th where I stayed til the end. 220 points but no results showing. The Porsche was no fun on the hards.

Decided to go again in the final slot because I felt I could do better and I wasn’t sure if my points would be counted.

This time door 6 and qualified 2nd with another 19.2. Pole was an 18.8!

Drove a really strong and mostly uneventful first stint. P3 passed me on lap 10 as it became impossible to hold off the Supra on the straight. He was basically making 0.4 secs on me there every lap.

Pitted at the end of lap 15 and rejoined in p4. Once all the stops were done I was back in p3, 7 seconds clear of p4. Again the hards were nasty, but I avoided any major mistakes and brought it home for p3.

Again the lobby glitched and it actually showed me the winners result on my post-race screen!!!

The system seems to have registered correctly though, so 242 points and now 5th in Asia for Porsche and a nice buffer on top of the Porsche driver standings for Australia.

 

[Stilva]

I was one of guys who hit you, lol. I was 'Boy' in your race. I had forgotten that your tires were dirty as I was too focused on myself, and accidentally pushed you into sand by not braking earlier to take your dirty tires into account. Thank you for accepting my apology post-race.

Oh, I had no idea that was you! I did keep saying "Boy" like Kratos the entire time you were behind me and that made me giggle. That picture of us is cool. I also had no idea that @A_Higher_Place was a part of this community. I don't believe that we've raced together before so I wouldn't have known anyway. Overall, an enjoyable race with everyone here.

I was rooting for you both on Papa's stream today (time stamped).

So you saw my off track with the other driver in front of me that let him get by me. I might have been able to defend my position against him if not for that off track before his pit stop. Now everyone can see my lack of driving skills on the YouTube!

 

[Globato44]

I was hoping next Gr.4 round would make me competitive again, since "it's my group" and I love Spa... But I also knew 155's top speed is terrible, and I've just found out 4C's is no better. Also, I've done some laps and I'm getting a lot of penaltys and I can't find barely acceptable braking points.

Yeah, there's time to improve, but I don't like practicing races. I usually do the bare minimum to just make sure I won't be a hazard when surrounded by other players, and sometimes to know how many laps I can do with each compound.

 

[Dep Fishtail]

After missing all the fun on Wednesday due to being out of town. I was ready to put the GR3 RCZ to the test.
GT1 low A/S lobby.
Didn’t qualify well and landed p12 on the grid wearing door 7. Started on hards and they really didn’t feel that bad by around 10 laps so I kept running until lap 14 to change to mediums so they were really fresh for finishing. Worked my way up to p6 with about 7 laps to go and held on until the finish.
Had quite a few side by side racing through corners and was pleased by the very clean racing i experienced.
Landed 148 points which is my high score for the series. 😉

 

[gunmetalskyline]

The cars you get loaned from your chosen manufacturer get taken back at the start of the next series. I haven't seen cars I've actually bought disappearing.

hMM loaned, okay maybe that's it, and I didn't realize! thanks for clarifying.

 

[Spider-Racer]

Got a P7 on slot 1 for 260 points in the same split I've been matched to basically all races this season. Saw @Geauxgreddy there as well as @OutlawQuadrnt get a pole (congrats!). Always nice to see familiar people.

Usually I'd be 100% satisfied to get a 260 in such a fast lobby and a combo that I never truly felt good at. However, this season only counts three scores and my lowest is a 272, so I went again with even lower expectations...but hey, you never know.

...and it turns out slot 2 was worse 🤣. Got a P8 this time for 227 points. Again, lacking pace in both Qualy and Race to make an impact. I decided to pit extra early (lap 7) to undercut people, but they just caught up and overtook anyway.
Had lots of fun bating Ninjabar in the last 6 laps of the race, that was probably the highlight of the night. I only finished ahead because that Lambo is horrible on tires.

I do enjoy taking pictures of it all, though...I like doing that ALMOST as much as actually racing this game (plus it's chilled, can do it lying down on the sofa, chatting with Mrs Spider , sipping coffee...vastly different from holding the wheel with all my concentration and sweating 😅)

 

[Fezzik]

Next round at Spa is looking like a no-stopper on hards (GT2/3) unless it rains. The pitstop is so slow, not worth using the mediums. Practice sessions so far were in sunshine.