Super Formula - Fuji race difficulty

  • Thread starter TumeK5
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It seems to me that on Fuji the AI is most beatable when Inostroza starts on pole, and pretty much unbeatable when some others start on pole.
 
Done! A fairly comfortable third set on normal difficulty and a one stop strategy.
Dry race. ”Semi clean” driving. SF23 on RS. Still to slow on any other compound.
With a track optimized chassis and no driver errors I’m sure this race can be won, but I obviosly do need to improve.
Great fun this one though!

Do you have the Praiano tune? It helps for this race.
I am a low DR A driver and managed 1st with a RS one stop strategy on hard difficulty. It's tough, you need to practice but it's doable.
Not yet. But will do for an attempt at P1 on Expert level. Thank You!
 
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It seems to me that on Fuji the AI is most beatable when Inostroza starts on pole, and pretty much unbeatable when some others start on pole.
and thank you very much for this, who starts firstand -I wouldn't be without it 2,and that from 8 attempts
Thanks @praiano63,-on settings
thank you both, cheers

 
Beat The Glen and St Croix. Had to elect for Easy in the end on Fuji... as others noted, normal mode is only slightly slower than hard! Easy is well... very easy in comparison.

Used Praiano tunes. Ended up reducing front down force to lowest to win st croix in the end.... awful track imo.

Really enjoyed the Glen though. Intensity of the sf cars on a a decent circuit, using fanatec 8nm dd pro and vr2 was superb experience... very intense!
 
Won Watkins, Road Atlanta and St. Croix on the first try with the SF19 on hard but Autopolis and Fuji seem impossible being about 30 seconds behind. Any idea if the SF23 (maybe with praisnos tune) could help me out finding that much time? I don't have a lot of credits right now.
 
Won on medium difficulty with Praisnos SF23 8 seconds in front of Lopez. Now i am curious how much faster the total race time is on hard. I always forget to look at that.
 
Watkins Glen and Sainte-Croix were so fun but this Fuji race was so hard. I got lucky I got no rain. I had normal difficulty, racing soft tires, never pitted, stock settings and managed a podium 3rd finish thats good enough for me
 
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Yeah Fuji was by far the hardest although I also found Autopolis to be a close second.
For me Praiano's tune was a game changer as best I could do before using it was 6th (Hard). I think its the gearbox set-up, particularly 1st and 2nd, that really make the difference with his tune.
Did all 5 races with softs and pitted once.
 
Yeah Fuji was by far the hardest although I also found Autopolis to be a close second.
For me Praiano's tune was a game changer as best I could do before using it was 6th (Hard). I think its the gearbox set-up, particularly 1st and 2nd, that really make the difference with his tune.
Did all 5 races with softs and pitted once.
Autopolis was hard for me, too. I lose a lot of time on 2nd half of the circuit, but with some luck I managed the win.

I'm only missing Atlanta.
 
I encountered something very odd in Fuji after winning the first two races. I had the fastest lap at 1:24.2. however, in the wet, the AI pulled away from me on RM/RS when I was using IM. It seems like the AI is fixed and driving beyond the real capability of the tyres?
 
Praiano's tune for the SF23 worked for me on the SF19 (suspension and downforce, gearbox set at 320, anti lag strong). While it didn't improve my lap times, it extended the life of my tyres dramatically. I went from 6/7 laps on RS to being able to stretch them to 10 laps if I wanted to. An easy 1 stopper in the dry
 
I encountered something very odd in Fuji after winning the first two races. I had the fastest lap at 1:24.2. however, in the wet, the AI pulled away from me on RM/RS when I was using IM. It seems like the AI is fixed and driving beyond the real capability of the tyres?
On the first lap of rain or in light rain the RM/RS are faster in most turns. Only slower in the slowest turns. Also this is for these cars not talking all cars. You really gotta look at the road itself it’s hard to tell but certain looks don’t need rain tires. I usually dont even bother with IMs anymore. It used to be the only thing I ran (edit only thing I ran when it was raining or about to rain) but now it’s slick or wet. Of course in risking spinning out if I’m on the slicks and I do sometimes. You also can’t just rely on the driving line being dryer. On certain tracks in certain areas it changes. The light and time of day affects the traction in rain and maybe even the wind. Like maybe the wind blows it across certain parts I don’t know. It definitely isn’t always the same situation. It’s a huge gamble when it just starts raining as you come up on the pit. Fuji is so short I just take the gamble and wait a lap.
 
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Some of you guys have got to be kidding me when you say you won on first try on Fuji by over 10-20 seconds... On the Hard AI.

I did a RS/RM strategy, with a total time of 21:15 and finished 15 seconds behind 1st place... First through 4th place didn't even pit... And I finished 5th. Barely catching up to 4th which was Fraga.

Wut???

I used the SF23 but I'll try it with one of the SF19s which seem to be faster.

EDIT: Used the SF19 and with a time of 21:09 with a few penalties in the mix I was able to win by 8 seconds... ... And no rain again. The AI on this event is really random.
I’ve just had the same problem, I don’t know what my first total time was but I did the whole race on Mediums first attempt was scruffy but I was we miles behind P1 and ended up 8th or something without stopping. I tried again with a higher downforce setup (wrong??) and Soft/Soft did it in 21:18 and still 11 seconds behind first who didn’t pit?

Might do it on medium instead of hard just to get the win. Seems to be worst on races where there can be dynamic weather where cars you can’t ‘see’ are simulated to be driving far faster than their tyre/weather/track conditions would physically allow them to. As soon as you meet them on track they are all over the place. Really really poor implementation
 
Having at last won the Fuji race on RH tyres in a stock SF23 car with 'normal' AI, I see similarities between this race and a crane/grabber machine at the amusement arcade. Those machines are set to only give a 'full grab' every so many goes, so most people land the grabber on the cuddly toy but it does not have the strength to pick up the toy. But every now and then it does …if you dropped the grabber in exactly the right place.

This race normally has an extremely aggressive 'ringer' AI car that can defy physics by overtaking you round the outside of a bend on hard tyres when you are at maximum grip on softs. And then to add insult to injury it will swerve into you so hard that you end up in the next town! Sometimes the ringer will pull away so fast from the pack that you will only ever see it when it laps you; other times it will tear past you like you are stationary, before holding station a few seconds in front of you, taunting you to have a go if you think you’re hard enough. But it’ll never let you get close enough to actually have a go.

It doesn’t matter if you’re on a hard or soft strategy, although mediums will leave you on a very tricky last lap. It also doesn’t matter if it rains lightly or heavily, because the race is rigged against you. But just like the arcade grabber that is designed to play fair every now and then, so the game will let the race run normally once in a while, to a ratio of about one-in-six, so I estimate.

And when the game plays fair, it plays very fair. With no ringers, frequent but light rain that makes progress difficult but not impossible on dry tyres. When I got this 'fair' mode after at least half-a-dozen totally impossible-to-win attempts, the whole grid was so evenly matched that even after 15 laps, every car could still fit onto the main straight at the same time. My progress was challenging in stock trim, but doable and clean. I took the lead on lap 13 and then had a fantastic few closing laps as I had a pack of cars on my tail, ready to pounce if I made the slightest mistake. It was great fun, especially in VR, but it was nothing like the impossible other six races I’d attempted before it.

This race is rigged, in my humble opinion, and to win it you just have to keep trying until you are lucky enough to get a full grid of 'hard but fair' AI drivers who will play by the normal rules of the game.
 
Finally conquered this today. This was the last race in the game that I hadn't gold'd yet. Watched GeauxGreddy's vid on youtube about it. Put the tune he suggested and started grinding. He also mentions that if Hizal starts in the top 3 to just restart until he isn't otherwise he just runs away. He also does a 1 stopper with RS. Since I'm notoriously hard on front tires I started the race with RM on front and RS out back so that I could get an extra lap in before pitting. So I do 9 laps RM/RS, and finish the last 6 laps on RS. Did a 21:01 race time with a 11 sec lead at the end.
 
Have played this race 4 or 5 times and got a best result of 11th because my RM tyres go bust by the end. All this while I've been trying a 0 stop strategy, thinking it might rain so I could catch the AI off-guard but it never rained in the races I played here.

I'm using Priano's tune but the maximum speed is at 350. I'll get it down as it will be provide better acceleration & higher top speed in the final gears. Will try RS as well with 1 stop on both SF-19 & '23 cars to get a feel for the difference in handling & stability.
 
Have played this race 4 or 5 times and got a best result of 11th because my RM tyres go bust by the end. All this while I've been trying a 0 stop strategy, thinking it might rain so I could catch the AI off-guard but it never rained in the races I played here.

I'm using Priano's tune but the maximum speed is at 350. I'll get it down as it will be provide better acceleration & higher top speed in the final gears. Will try RS as well with 1 stop on both SF-19 & '23 cars to get a feel for the difference in handling & stability.
I just got my best result of 2nd place yesterday on this event. With hard AI, I don't know if it's even possible to win without having heavy enough rain to stop for IM tires.

For my race, I started on RS. Stopped for IM tires when rain began to show up, typically undercutting the field, up to P2. Sometime after, when the track started to dry out, Fraga had pit for slicks and I got to P1. However, by the end of the race, my IM tires were dead and Fraga passed me before the last turn. +3 seconds behind at the finish.

Very frustrating race.
 
I tried playing this race again. Is it a coincidnece or not that when I started the race on mediums or ards & stuck to either tyre, it didn't rain a bit even. But when one race I started with softs, It rained for a lap during the middle of the race. Does it rain only when racing on softs?

I'm on Hard setting for this race & won't change it for an easy win. I'm using Priano's tune but it's not easy to get through. Either I try to not pit by using med/hard tyres or try to run a little faster with softs & make 1 stop on the cost of losing places.

What makes this race harder is that most of the top positioned AIs either won't stop at all or even when it rains for a while, the keep lapping at good speed. I'll keep trying once in a while as I'm keeping myself busy with the Mt. Panorama TT.
 
@Uday9479

I'm sure the weather is entirely random. But playing on hard, I don't know if there's a good strategy to come P1 without weather for a significant portion of the race. Only thing I could suggest is start on the RS tires and hope for a downpour after lap 7 or 8 that lasts almost to the end.

My best result was P2, had the wet weather lasted longer, my IM tires would've lasted longer. Instead by the last lap the track had dried enough that I had to slow down so much that Fraga passed me in the last sector and finished ahead by 3 seconds. I was very close.
 
To summarise what I wrote a few posts up: I recently (July 2023) won the Fuji race on RH tyres in a stock, un-tuned SF23 car with 'normal' AI, with a DD wheel and in VR. I am quick, but only averagely so. To win, you just have to keep trying until you are lucky enough to get a full grid of 'hard but fair' AI drivers who will play by the normal rules of the game and physics. I estimate that this happens about one in every six races, so try not to make any mistakes if you get the magic (i.e. fair) mix of opponents. Rightly or wrongly, that's just the way it is with this particular race! Keep trying 👍
 
@roytheboy

I'm curious about the differences in the AI lap times between difficulties. I'm fairly competent with the SF cars and Fuji is a pretty comfortable course. But with the hard AI, catching up with the leaders if they also do a no-stop is especially difficult. The weather forcing all the AI to pit seems to work very well, but you've got to try to undercut for IM tires so the rain slows everyone on slicks.

The AI usually will pit again for slicks if the track begins to dry, but if you do the same you could lose your position. I'd recommend trying to extend the IM tires until the end so you end up only stopping once.

But this entire race is a crapshoot. If there are any members here who can win this race on hard consistently, they must be quite good.
 
Again weird thing I encountered..........

When I went for a Soft-Soft race strategy, it did rain for a while on the 7th lap but stopped within 1 lap. Next time I tried I went for Hard (no stop strategy) & it didn't rain. I wonder if this race is designed such a way that the AI has to win. So if I were to take on Soft tyres, the game will throw in some rain to add uncertainty.
 
@Uday9479

Designed to be incredibly hard? Yes. Impossible? I don't believe so. Some luck is certainly involved.

But the Formula races have always been a difficult challenge throughout the Gran Turismo series.

I'm sure you'd see just as varied results if you always just started on the RS tires. I'd almost recommend it on the hard difficulty. Just plan on a one-stop and pray for hard enough rain that requires IM tires. If you have a dry race, just take your <P1 prize and try again.
 
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If anybody is curious about AI lap times, I ran this race again today. Not a great result for my finish, but was more an experiment than anything.

Hard AI fastest lap was 1:21.xxx on soft tires.

As for me, I'm going to try to run this race a couple times a week. I will be starting the race on RS tires and plan a 1 stop.

Today, I pit for new RS tires about half way through the race. Light rain showed up around the time to pit, but ultimately didn't rain enough to need IM tires. A bad spin around lap 6 or so would ruin my race after I had climbed to P9, finished P17.
 
I had trouble with Fuji here too but nothing to write home about. It has nothing on running 100 laps at Grand Valley in a Concept Car from The New Dodge. I also had trouble with with Gr 1 race at Suzuki and the 1 hour at Red Bull Ring. That one was so close that P2 puked on my car.
 
If anybody is curious about AI lap times, I ran this race again today. Not a great result for my finish, but was more an experiment than anything.

Hard AI fastest lap was 1:21.xxx on soft tires.

As for me, I'm going to try to run this race a couple times a week. I will be starting the race on RS tires and plan a 1 stop.

Today, I pit for new RS tires about half way through the race. Light rain showed up around the time to pit, but ultimately didn't rain enough to need IM tires. A bad spin around lap 6 or so would ruin my race after I had climbed to P9, finished P17.
Exactly what's been happening with me. Hizal when leading goes bonkers. He will set the FL around 1:22:xxx as well he will be the only front running driver to pit once for new softs.

I've only raced this race about 8 times & the maximum rain has lasted for 1 lap so the AI don't bother to pit in for IM. I think in dry conditions it's quite impossible to even stand on the podium here.
 
Went again today. Same strategy, starting on RS and planning a 1 stop. Hard AI.

FL again was Fraga with a 1:21.6xx

No weather but some dark blue rain was showing on the radar, never made it over track.

The winner started from pole and would start with RH and no stop the race. Their Lap times seemed to be around 1:25.xxx.

Fraga on the RS, would pit at the end of Lap 8. Noted, he started P7 and would finish P2.

As for myself, I pit for another set of RS at the end of Lap 8. I had one error on the final lap that ultimately didn't change the result, I don't think I would have caught the next car.

Finished P7. My best lap was 1:23.xxx or something like that.
 
Went again today. Same strategy, starting on RS and planning a 1 stop. Hard AI … Finished P7. My best lap was 1:23.xxx or something like that.
If you think this race is frustrating, don’t go anywhere near the Alcase race in the Human Comedy Mission …it makes the Fuji SF race seem like a stroll in the park on a summer's day. After trying a few laps each with a US muscle car and a Ferrari 308, and realising that I might have to 'cheat' by using the Honda RA272 because the road cars were clearly being outpaced by the unfeasible AI again (as with the Fuji race), I just spent an hour spinning four times and coming 12th with no pit-stops. This is going to be another race (like the Fuji SF) where you can’t afford to make a single mistake, except that the comfort tyres are way, way more difficult to master at speed round a twisty circuit, and the race is an hour long! I like a challenge, and I will win this race if it kills me, but whoever said that GT7 was too easy (on a recent Facebook post I made), clearly hasn’t played the entire game!

EDIT: Got the win at Alcase. I had to change the set-up of the RA272 and drive perfectly for an hour - no mistakes at all. My best lap-time was 2:30; my average was around 2:31/32. I won by 10 seconds which just goes to show that one spin and I would not have made it!
 
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