Losing

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JohnBM01

21 years!
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JMarine25
Hi, GTPlanet.

Here is a topic many of us don't like to discuss. What happens when you have did well all race long, and when it comes to the finish line... you crossed the start/finish line, but not being the leader at crossing? Normally, you'd begin to feel upset for what you done, and often times, some racers don't want to accept defeat. When you lose a race, you lost for a certain reason. Some examples of reasons include:
- I lost to a better racer (most common).
- I am not experienced at this track.
- I tried my best.
- I had everything go right, but luck wasn't with me.

A time or two, I'd lose races in GT. I can recall GT1 when I raced my 3000GT in race trim, and at the last few laps of the Special Stage Route 11 Endurance, I lost to the Acura NSX-R GT2. GT2, I'd often lose the GT All-Star race at Rome in my GT-One (Toyota) because I spun out at the slowest corner on the track. GT3, I lost the European Championship race with my Nissan Skyline. I accepted that loss because my car with my power just wasn't enough, and that I don't want to re-run the entire series over again until I had a decent budget.

We don't like to talk about it, but it happens in racing. Remember the AU Cerumo Supra that was leading all the way to the finish line, but on the last lap, the car needed new tires, and it spun out, thus ending the race for that team. Now, a few things I want to note, just because you post something in this thread doesn't mean that you're a loser. Just because you lose races at times doesn't make you a real racer. I mean, come on. Even Michael Scumacher had oppurtunities slip away from him in his past. And there is no such thing as a perfect racer because we are all human beings, and not all the time do things go our way.

So, how would you overcome a loss in a certain aspect of motorsports? Do you accept defeat or decline it? Do you have words of wisdom for people who may be occasional losers? This can also be a learning experience. So there is a latent and manifest function (Sociolgy terms) to this topic. Contribute now.
 
That makes me think of David Coulthard. I don't know what you think, but I feel that he just isn't good enough for F1. He has raced in a competitive car for several seasons and has acheived WHAT? Very little. Now i think its time he should go with some kind of dignity intact.
 
I wouldn't know, I've never lost :rolleyes:

I found that the best way to accept a loss is to always consider it a learning process. Those who think they have stopped learning or aren't interested in learning anymore, will lose their focus and not only start losing but also getting frustrated that they are losing. However, if it's just in the interest of learning, then scientifically the best approach is to lose 50% of the time. Of course, you don't want to do that because learning isn't your only concern, plus winning is not really in your hands because you can't learn unless you try your hardest either. Regardless, it proves a point that you can't win every time and expect to make any progress. As Keiichi Tsuchiya said, even monkeys fall from trees. Personally, I learn much more from losing than I do from winning.
 
I'm talking on a basis of one specific racer or race team that has been solid race after race. I mean, there is only one gold trophy for the winner of any given race. I even recall Juan Pablo Montoya in CART in 2000 as the defending champion. The Toyota powerplant plus his driving talent made for pretty horrible results. And let me tell you. JPM is no average driver. He's a hell of a racer. He's more of the "on the edge" driver.

But as I say, oppurtunities come and go. It's human nature. When it comes to such a thing, I normally like to think of myself as one of the more humanistic thinkers in racing and in life. For example, do you remember Carol Hollfelder? She was the then Speedvision GT driver of a Ferrari F355. This one was custom-configured since she was a paraplegic. Anyhow, it wasn't like she was going to beat the Audi crew. I think Carol even said herself that it doesn't matter if she wins, she's happy racing her car. If I interpreted that correctly, then that is what she said from 2001.

Normally, when I lose a race or commit a mistake, I try to learn from them. For example, I know not to turn in too hard in GTs 1 and 2. Otherwise, I'd spin out and increase my chances of losing the race. Losing in motorsports, it makes many of us better racers because we think we know everything, that is, until we are challenged and we lose. I can recall the Miami Hurricanes football team win like, 30+ games until they fell to THE OHIO STATE BUCKEYES in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl. Nowadays, Miami been winning more than losing. They know how to get it done. But when they are down, they assess the situation and learn how not to let the loss come back to haunt them.

Any more?
 
I don't think I lost any races in GT1 or 2. In Simulation Mode, I've lost 8 in GT3:

- 3 because of bringing the wrong cars or not tuning them enough
- 1 because of tire deterioration (which hurt the most... curse those NSXs)
- The other 4 I just quit them being near the end of a series race.

Recently, I've been running a fully modded Clio against JGTC cars in Arcade Mode, I could beat them and have exciting moments at the same time. Then I raced in Tokyo against them and it took a couple of tries, making silly mistakes I lost twice to the Raybrig and Castrol NSXs, but I knew I could win the race, all it took was sitting back and running a calm and collected race, very few racers (virtual or real) can actually run faster than usual when they're in a sour mood, the rest fail miserably.

I have a tough time accepting defeat when I race, basically because it's what I do, the one thing that I enjoy and truly justifies me.

As words of advice I can only say that if you believe you can win a race you've lost before, race. Don't let past happenings affect your driving, just race.
If you get hammered trying your best, don't even try. Get another car, or just forget about it.

"Only an idiot fights when he knows he's going to lose."​
 
I guess the thing that worries me in a game that keeps track of W's and L's (wins and losses) in your racing. You know,you see yourself (especially for veteran racing gamers like me) as a champion, but when you don't prove it or do well enough, a loss will reflect. Like I say, nowadays, I take losses ONLY IF I was beaten by a better person and was mismatched by my tactics in racing. If someone beats me and I had every chance to win and all possible methods be it sneaky, aggressive, or tricky fail, then I'll accept the loss. In Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3, I'm starting to accept such losses. As of now, I've lost seven times "officially." So some good points are raised.

To Party's comments, I was hoping the Clio cup race would be race-prepped Clios against my street MR hatchback. Turned out, I had a Cup Car, the others didn't! I kept my horsepower down, and I won without a problem.
 
Jeez 8 losses, I have much more than that (mostly because I quit a series when i have enough points to assure victory)
 
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