ROOZ NEWS Season 14 GT6 Round 6 Silverstone (Part 1)

Hello and welcome to the penultimate round of the ROOZ League races, Silverstone. A new track to the GT series, but another popular real-life track recreated by Polyphony Digital. This track provided some very close and action packed racing, as you are about to find out, and the top two Divisions crowned their champions with a round to spare. As always, the news will be in 3 parts, starting from the highest Division.



Here is the Division 1 report, brought to you by warrior2167:

The penultimate round of the RaceOnOZ GT6 league was held at the historic and recently upgraded Silverstone circuit. The 5.891 layout is filled with high speed corners that lead to more high speed corners meaning your racing line is even more critical here to acheive optimum lap times.

With Anon unable to attend this week, warrior needed to finish in the top 9 to win the championship

The field has grown from the beginning of the season and has welcomed many new drivers, our newest being Mint_GTR. 11 drivers began the ten minute qualifying session as warrior won the pole position for the 4th time this season with a time of 2:06.247. A tenth further back was Mustafur, and it was a fantastic first showing from Mint to start from 3rd on the grid. The field was boosted to 12 when DHolland arrived at the last minute.

Full Line up: Warrior, Mustafur, Mint_GTR, Zampli, Cyber, vh_mik, fastboysmith, comandgetme, thestig, Vendalism, Crunch and DHolland.


As the lights go out, all the drivers launch away well. warrior maintains his lead going through abbey and farm which can be dicey at best going two wide, but everyone gets through cleanly and move into single file throughout the opening lap.



Lap 3. After a couple of clean opening laps, Crunch makes ever so slight contact with the right rear of thestig at the exit of Luffield.

Lap 5. Warrior and Mustafur have been putting down fast, consistent laps and have edged away ahead of a group of 4 (Zampli, Smithy, Vh_ mik and Mint_GTR). A small mistake from Smithy sees him run wide into the gravel at the exit of Luffield and a possible maiden podium finish goes begging.

Lap 5. The race is on for the final championship point between crunch, the stig and Vendalism.

Lap 8. Mustafur and warrior remain locked together and are in an epic battle. Vh_mik is unable to keep pace with Mint and Zampli and slowly begins to fall back.



Lap 10. Big controversy as Dholland and Smithy force their way past vh_mik making plenty of contact on the entry and exit of luffield. It would have felt like a 1-2 punch.

Halfway Leader Board
1. Mustafur
2. warrior + 0.321
3. Mint_GTR + 5.236
4. Zampli + 5.610
5. DHolland + 11.009
6. fastboysmith + 11.439
7. Cyber + 15.362
8. Comeandgetme + 19.323
9. Vh_mik + 25.592
10. thestig + 30.590
11. Crunch + 31.072
12. Vendalism + 47.345

Lap 12. Mint and Zampli are having a delicious battle and have begun to slowly catching the leading duo who have been racing side by side.



Lap 14. With couple of laps of bumper to bumper instead of door to door racing, the gap has now stabilised and Musafur resumes his battle with warrior and the added difficulty of insects in his cockpit. (edit LOL)



Lap 17. Cyber and fastboy have been locked together for the last 5 laps and are racing each other hard for 6th. A few hairy moments have seen them loose time and be within striking distance of comandgetme.

Lap 18. A good drive from Dholland to be in 5th and a couple seconds off a podium finsh, after starting from the back with no practice, he unfortunately pulls out with a neck injury.



Final Lap. We have 4 groups of 2 drivers who are glued to each other. Starting with Comeandgetme and Crunch who had been closing down the gap over the previous laps. Crunch has a better exit out of the loop, moves along side on the wellington straight and out brakes comeandgetme into Brooklands. comeandgetme tries to fight back but is unable to stay close through Maggots and Becketts.

Secondly it's Cyber and Smithy for 5th. A solid lap from Cyber thus far has left Smith with no opportunity to pass. Exiting chapel, Smithy has pulled up to cyber's right rear. Both are on the braking limit and they are door rubbing on the entry of Stowe. Some more contact then some more and eventually Cyber comes out on top.

Next it's Mint_GTR and Zampli who both have been having a superb race, coming into the last lap Zampli is trailing Mint. He has a small look into Brooklands, but is content to remain in position at this stage. Exiting Copse, the pair race side by side through Maggots, Becketts, Chapel and are still side by side coming into Stowe. Zampli has the inside line and moves slightly ahead but not enough to clear Mint. Now mint has the inside line into Vale and moves back into third to finish on the podium on debut.



Finally it's the race for the win. Mustafur and warrior have been swapping positions for the whole race and coming into the final lap, warrior is trailing Mustafur. There's no way through for warrior until Mustafur takes too much kerb at Copse, running wide on exit. warrior doesn't hesitate and is straight into 1st. No mistakes through Maggots and Becketts, warrior is 4 car lengths ahead. Mustafur begins to reel him back in and is right back within a car length into Stowe. With too much entry speed, warrior goes wide and Mustafur moves back ahead but not enough to clear into Vale. Both drivers on the braking limit, rears locking, both go side by side with no contact. Mustafur has track position and therefore has the weaker exit being on the shallower line. Having the better exit warrior pulls along side, but it's not enough as Mustafur takes his first win of the season by 0.039 of a second.

Finishing in second gives warrior enough points to win the inaugural RaceOnOZ GT6 League Division 1 Championship ahead of the final round at Bathurst.

Fastest Lap: GTP_DHolland 2:05.914



RACE QUOTES:

Mustafur (1st): Was a really good and exciting race, i found alot of pace on sunday morning when I practised offline then translated it to online and was really comfortable around maggots and backetts and the last sector. In qualifying I felt I did do good , but I could of done more in the first sector, I don't think I could of got close to warriors second sector time as I felt I did a clean run there and he gained 4 tenths on me there.

Anyway in the race I felt pretty comfortable staying with warrior, and for the first time since Trial Mountian felt I had enough in reserve to insure I can stay with him if i fall back a bit, was going well till mid race when insects in my room starting playing with my feet and i couldn't get them off. It was hugely anoying and was costing me a second a lap however i was still in the lead at this stage so it was okay, after a few laps I managed to kill the cockarouch and get back into the 6s, thats when warrior went up a notch and passed me and tried to make a break for it.
He almost did as i went out of the draft for about half a lap, but I managed to get back behind him and then for the last few laps it was an epic battle changing postions until he made a mistake on the 3rd last corner and went too wide and I managed to get on the inside of him and get around him at the last chicane which allowed me to take my first win of the season.

warrior2167 (2nd): congrats mustafur. Our race was awesome and the final lap was just epic, it looked even better on replay. I couldn't count the number of times we swapped places.

Fastboysmith (6th): I didn't mind that race was fun keeping pace with Dan until I stuffed it. The only reasons I fell back was because I getting a bit keen coming out of the 2 hair pins, and my run in with cyber late into the race (sorry about that, saw a gap and it closed on me) other then those 3 problems it was good, last lap at the final few turns would have been the best, past Cyber_STIG_77 at the big right hander after the straight, seen this gap open every lap for about 7 laps but finally got it up the inside with a little contact(again) as I was going past, but coming into the last 3 turns I braked earlier then usual which caused cyber to hit me making me go wide and past me. But that didn't bother me because I had an awesome battle with him for 8 laps before trading paint. Kept me behind him for that long he could have it.

Congratulations warrior2167 on your Championship title for the first season in GT6, and your second place in the race. More kudos to Mustafur on the win, and Mint_GTR for the final podium position.

Now we will move on to the Division 2 report. Take it away Jono (N64TheStig007):

Round 6 of Season 1 saw the drivers fly across Asia and into the UK, as the British sunset cast a long beam of light over Silverstone.
The ROOZ mod team had decided to crack down on the potential for drivers to cut corners, which had put a spanner in the works for some drivers who had perfected their racing line. As a result, some drivers lost over a second of their practice pace.

Qualifying times were in the mid 2:07's. Natman, Joe and Stu all had their turns fighting for pole, but N64 once again came out on top, despite running very wide at Becketts on his fast lap. TB's absence meant that N64 had secured his first Driver's title, no matter where he finished.



GT6 gremlins had once again returned to wreck havoc on the visibility of some cars. In the race countdown process, natman was no longer visible to N64.

N64 got a cracking start and had a 2 second lead over Joe. Overdrivve was swamped into turn 3 and was down into last place. Sparklehead had found his way up to 4th, but was soon passed by Cob. Sparklehead continued to drop to 7th place. Joe was catching N64 until N64 grabbed too much of the kerb at Stowe and somehow controlled the slide. However, he had lost positions to Joe and Stu (and natman, though he was not visible). Now Cob was on his tail.



Chaos emerged at the rear of the pack when Sparklehead dropped the rear of the car on the final corner, smashing into the pit wall. At the same time, F1RE and fRZn were battling side by side, and spun each other! Overdrivve cleared his way through the smoke, and made up 3 positions!



N64 had already caught the back of Stu by Luffield. Stu had oversteered, and thus tricking N64 into moving over to the left. He dipped 2 wheels into the sand and spun behind Cob and scotty.



Joe, Stu and Cob were having an awesome battle, however this was allowing Natman to pull away. N64 was still pushing hard, outbraking scotty on the outside of Stowe on lap 6. Joe ran a bit wide at Luffield on lap 7. Stu went for the gap and took 2nd. Cob then slingshotted past Joe brilliantly at Copse to push Joe into 4th.

Cob got some serious oversteer at Brooklands, succumbing 3rd back to Joe. N64 was really on it, and caught the battle pack by lap 10. But Joe blew it in the arena, losing 2 places to Cob and N64. Cob was defending like crazy from the blue car, and held 3rd until once again, N64 dropped it in the gravel at Luffield, falling to 6th place. He easily passed scotty at Brooklands a lap later.



It was sadly another disconnection heading it's way for F1R3. N64 had caught Joe quickly, who had also caught Cob quickly. On lap 15, Cob was using (literally) every inch of the Hangar Straight to keep the pair behind, but Joe snuck up the inside at Stowe. However Joe once again ran wide at the arena, falling behind the pair of Cob and N64.

N64 wanted to get a wriggle on, but didn't want to cause and accident. They made contact as N64 tried to go around the outside at Stowe on the 16th lap. This allowed Joe to make a crazy but futile dive up the inside at Vale. A lap later, N64 drafted Cob up the back straight perfectly and hugged the inside of Brooklands for dear life, cutting Cob's switchback. Sadly though, despite N64's new wired connection, he was still lagging severly, and Cob was compromised. As he did with TB at Motegi, N64 waved Joe and and Cob through, begrudgingly.



This cost the pair a chance at the podium, as by the time Cob had recovered, Joe was well clear. Cob again lost postion to N64 at Brooklands, only to fall victim to another lag punt. Only a small one this time. Now that N64 was clear after slowing down for Cob, he began chasing Joe like a madman. The gap shrunk, and shrunk, and shrunk. N64 was right on him until the end, but zig zagged on the main straight as he celebrated his maiden GTLOZ title.



Natman had secured an overdue and dominant first win of the season, securing the fastest lap in the process. Stu was a great 2nd, ahead of Joe. Cob finished 5th thanks to N64's troublesome lag. Scotty had 6th in the bag, but he dropped it on the final corner, drifting and smokin' all the way down the main straight, with fRZn just pipping him for 6th! Sparklehead and Overdrivve were going ding and dong for 7th place, though their races were terrible.

I spoke to some of the drivers post race, to give me their thoughts on the penultimate race of the season.


Natmanscoop (1st): "I thought I was in a race long battle with Jono, so I was pushing all the way! Great race."

stuart170773 (2nd): "You're right about the lap times being slower, however i think like Motegi last round your lap time is more directly determined by being able to get onto the straights without fighting for position. As soon as you try to defend a little, a narrow line definitely hurts you onto the straights and that in turn costs bulk time. I was also running in the mid 2:07s in prac, but a combination of being a little safer with some of the turns and a few little battles meant my times were a little on the slow side. Great win Nat, thats the pace that i have known over so many seasons. Good battle Cob and Joe. Respect for close racing, and no contact. Another well deserved podium Joe, am glad you stayed on that horse mate. Cob, bad luck mate, understand your frustration."

TTR_joe90 (3rd): "Good drive Nat - thought i may be able to stay with you but once Stu & Cob caught me i could not maintain my pace under pressure.
Great battle between me, Stu, Cob and then Jono - Was a real shame that lag destroyed your race Cob. Surprised to be on the podium again..hehehe
Cob was not going to let me pass without a fight but there was not a single touch that i was aware of at the time...err ok i think there was one moment where i tagged him but let you both thru to redress. Silverstone had so much room to move around and try different lines - Bathurst however does not, so the first few laps are going to involve a bit of bumpercars until we spread out. As for the points situation it would seem that i'm stuck in the middle again so no chance of dropping a division - ah well so be it!"

N64TheStig007 (4th): "Great job natman, utterly deserved and overdue. Though I think I might have had the pace to keep up with you, I couldn't see you on track and I made far too many mistakes, whilst you were flawless! Well done. Excellent job too to Stu and Joe.

I apologise profusely for ruining another race, this time Cob's. Anyway, after that race, I reckon the time of day has an impact on the track conditions, as when I was practicing during the week with razor and the time set for early morning/midday, I was getting 2:06 deads and mid '06's. But last night, I didn't even come close to getting those times. So I was very surprised to score pole with an '07.3, which gave me an overly exaggerated sense of confidence.
I was still very happy with my overall race pace, but spinning out of the lead at Stowe and spinning twice at Luffield did me no favours whatsoever. I could see the smiles of my rivals as they sped past me in my cloud of spin smoke!

The battles with Joe, Cob and Scotty were great fun, but of course, my lag put a downer on it once again. It's very frustrating to not be able to enjoy the battles fully with Scotty, who was resilient down the Hanger Straight, Joe, who ran wide a couple of times at odd places and Cob who was (rightly) defending like crazy, due to problems I have no control of. Naturally after seeing Cob's red machine disappear from my rear view a little bit faster than normal, I waited for him.

Whilst I am completely over the moon in taking the title, it doesn't feel as satisfying as it should due to the lag. Don't get me wrong, it feels amazing to be crowned champion, but it is certainly tainted. I am very satisfied with my driving over the course of the season, and nothing is going to stop me from trying to become one of the 6 first time league winners at our Motorsport place of worship!"

F1R3W1ND (DSC): "I see a few people didnt have the pace in the room on sunday for some reason me too!!!!!!! stupid F@#King gt6. i was doing low 2.07's and then in the room i couldnt even break into the 9's dont know why stupid tyre like usual i thought, all the bugs in this game make it hard to enjoy racing......sigh but what can u do. sry to frzn too for that stupid inside move when i jumped the chicane and hit u i had a lapse in brain function!"

fRZn (6th): "Having a great battle for the first few laps there, was good fun."

Fastest Lap: natmanscoop 2:06:933




Once again, the Division 2 race provided excitement, close racing, great battles and plenty of surprises. With N64 having wrapped up the championship with a race to spare, the drivers will be looking to win the other big prize of the season. The first winner of the new Jewel in the Crown for Gran Turismo as far as Australasians are concerned. The endurance race will be a test of skill, speed and tenacity. Strategy will be a major factor, as the stupid pit glitch will rear its ugly head during the race. Please join us for the season finale!
Cheers, Jono

Well done for the Championship title Jono. Congratulations also to natmanscoop on his victory and fastest lap, and stuart170773 with TTR_joe90 for the final podium positions.

Stay Tuned for Part 2!

Division 1 Reporter/Photographer: warrior2167
Division 2 Reporter/Photographer: Jono (N64TheStig007)
Division 2 Victory Photo: OverDrivve
Editor: Jamie (Ad2mny)