ROOZ NEWS Season 15 Fuji GT(part 2)

Welcome to part 2 of our League race reports. This time we will hear from division 3 and 4.

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We will start part 2 off with our report of the Division 3 race, brought to you by smokinscotty.


With Mount Fuji looming in the background a mixed bag of old and new faces made up the grid for what would be an interesting opening round to the second season in GT6 for Division 3.

Tovey was setting a cracking pace in practice and was proving to be one to watch. Blitzing the time sheets he would go on to grab pole by half a second!



Off the line Tovey and Dutch got good starts, but Hatfield was the standout off the line flying past Scotty to take the ultimate line into turn 1.



Unfortunately 5 into 1 just doesn't go. Scotty tagged Hatfield who went through Dutch, and Sparkles pounced jumping from 7th to 3rd in turn one. Slambo found himself off in weeds and dead last. To his credit he stuck it out and came home a very solid 5th.

The packs first venture into the left hand hairpin saw Groover give the fence a Wacko. He would continue on to drive a good race finishing a respectable 8th, made even more respectable by the fact he had run the race on the Hard compound tyre!



As the field headed through the infamous third sector, things got a little weird with cars going through each other, bumping each other, and ultimately the lot of us running wide.



At the start of Lap 2, things got messy! Stumbles got into the back corner of Gary's car spearing it into the inside wall. Being the good sport Stumbles is, he stopped to redress, although S54VED was all but on top of him when the brake lights came on. He clouted into the back bumper, shunting him toward the infield where he collected an unlucky S_Close and pushed him onto the infield. This left a nice big hole for Scotty to drive through who was trying to regain ground after going from 2nd to 9th in the opening lap.



There were a few battles throughout the race this shot from the early stages when newcomer Sammymoresilly was fighting hard with sparkles. Sam was doing well considering he was 30hp down. Look out for him next round when he has got the tune right. From the limited time he was in the lobby, he looked fast.



S_Close and Gary had a great fight. It was the closest battle of the race, staying within 2 seconds of each other for the last 15 laps!



In the end it was Tovey, then daylight (19.538 sec) to Scotty in second, with Hatfield capitalizing on a Dutch error to claim third on the podium a further nine seconds back.



With such a great group of drivers, driving at such similar pace, this season looks very promising. As the drivers become more accustomed to the McLaren and mistakes are less common, closer finishes can be expected. Tovey has set the bar pretty high, and has proven he will be a force to be reckoned with.



RACE QUOTES:

TOVEY_4SAKEN (1st): Thank you guys yeah in the replay you'll see me backing off alot every 2nd lap then picking it up again, keep gap then back off then last 2 laps still had rubber to push as hard as I wanted for the finish.

smokinscotty (2nd): Great race tonight guys. A little bit of lag, but no insane lag punts that I saw. I didn't really get to race anyone, moreso just took advantage of other peoples incidents and slid my way back up from a shocker first lap and went from 9th to 3rd and eventually 2nd.
Hatfield, your launch was amazing! Came past me like I was standing still! Dutch, unlucky to have a couple of moments as the tyres wore off, I was settling in for third as I didn't think I was going to catch you. Tovey, your an animal, when you were doubting your consistency per-race I thought the rest of us may have a chance if you were confident a mistake was coming... But it never did, every slight mistake or missed apex saw your gap get bigger and after the first lap, I never saw you again! Great speed great consistency! Well done mate.
GTP_Dutch (4th): Great start to the season I think and it seemed pretty evident that a lot of practice was going on for this track, which was definitely needed to be anywhere near the pace required (based on Mt T of course!) I needed to use his times as a benchmark and I am pretty happy with my improvement over the previous 2 weeks being barely able to break the 30's to getting a 27.5 during the round- both qualy and the race. I was actually impressed with myself staying 'in touch' with tovey for the first 3rd of the race, but i think he was just toying with me and conserving while i was trying to go as quickly as possible. This became my downfall as scotty caught me just after half way and drz 5 laps later as I continued to struggle on worn tires and could barely manage around the 30's towards the end. Looks like tyre conservation will be a paramount consideration for progressing my driving style over the race distance. Its a fun car to drive I think but has not immediately suited my style and I hope I get the chance to work at it enough for the races throughout the season knowing the rest of you guys are also working pretty hard at it. Well done to the guys who look like they hooked it up well already.

Slambobagan (5th): Awesome race guys. I made a mistake 1st corner ended up at the back. But Yup thanks to everyone's mishaps on lap two, I went from last place to 5th. Passed 4-5 guys before turn 3, yeeaha. Pushed on lapping low 28s and caught DRZ but couldn't hold that pace and he passed me back and disappeared into the distance. I need to work on conserving tyres for the next one. I was in the 31s by the end of the race.

S_CLOSE (6th): Didn't qualify well but had a good start and had a plan in mind to collect some guys with first laps jitters. Would have worked, but was taken out by Sammy in lap 2 with a dive and that left me in a great battle with Sparkles and then Gary all the way to the checkered flag. Half way through the race 4 guys disappeared from the list only to reappear in the last lap, PD crazy stuff. Well done to Tovey and the podium, too fast. Will be a great season.

garyw61 (7th): Great race thanks guys. Some good battles with sparkles and Serge. Great fun. Going to be another good season I think if PSN behaves.

Stumbles01 (9th): I qualified better than I expected with my fastest lap ever..lol 1:28.019 (backed up by a 1:28.054 the next lap... so it wasn't a fluke).
Managed to hold position through turn 1, but it all went pear-shaped after that. Lap 2, I braked a little later than Gary and tried to nip in under him at turn 1 but tagged his rear end and spun him out. I waited for him, but in hindsight, I should have gone a bit further down the track as I was on the outside (racing line) of the track and going slowly, caught out S54VED and he drove into the back of me. Sorry mate, completely my fault. Got going again after my collision penalty and caught back up to Gary and we touched again and I was pushed wide at turn 3 and Gary went wide into turn 4 so I re-passed only to spin out half a lap later and was last by a long way. Only mistakes made by other drivers saw me climb back up to 9th... Almost 8th as Groover had a couple of "moments" on the second-last lap and he was within sight down the front straight, but no more mistakes saw him keep position. Top effort on the wrong tyres Groover, can only wonder what would have been if you were on the mediums. Bring on Laguna, hope to put in a better showing as it's one of my preferred tracks. So glad we are done with Fuji (hate that track... always have, always will...lol)

sparklehead83 (10th): nightmare drive last night, was running 1.28/29's easily 1.27's pushing it practicing solo, but on the track with other cars I just couldn't keep my cool for some reason. Never liked this track and now I remember why.... oh well, on to laguna seca...

S54VED (11th): Yeah sorry, it all happened so fast (on incident with Stumbles01). I'm shocked how much having the traction control on 5 slowed me down. Oh well newbie mistake Wouldn't have changed anything as I had 2-3 serious sideway incidents. It seemed when I got sideways, the next few corners I'd also get sideways.... its almost like the tyres were way cooked still even though they were colour cool. Guess after a spin you need to take it easy for 3-4 corners? With being lapped, wasn't sure whether to stay on racing line and let other go around? This is probably best as then you know where the slower driver will be.

sammy_dawgs77 (12th): Just realised why I was getting slow lap times... :\ forgot to change oil and overhaul engine!

TOVEY_4SAKEN takes the triple crown, pole, victory and fastest lap. Congratulations. Well done also to smokinscotty and DRZ-Hatfield for the final podium positions.

Now we will move on to Division 4. Here's DoogleDave with the report.

The opening round of season two saw drivers tackle the very demanding Fuji GT circuit. Drivers returned to this season sporting their new steeds - the McLaren F1 GTR. This car can be summed up in one word - unforgiving. The Macca settles for nothing less than perfection from its pilot and waits patiently to reprimand for even the smallest of errors.

Eleven of the thirteen Division 4 drivers turned up for round one to try and tame their beast around Fuji, for 32 laps. Unfortunately for many, the track and/or car would get the better of them and their position amongst the field changed after each reminder from the Macca that perfection is what’s required.

Qualifying saw everyone trying their best to nail their lines in an effort to produce the best time.

In the end Doogle came out with pole position hitting a 1.28.048



As the field launched off the grid Kiwi and Molch surged to the front quickly and led the pack through lap one. Ad2mny (not shown) was amongst the lead pack.



Coming through turn one on lap two, Doogle returned the favour to Kiwi and took the inside line to claim the front position



The field drove hard trying their best to make good pace and again turn one saw more action a few laps in when Molch had a huge lag punt from Ad2mny which stopped him in his tracks and spun him 180 degrees.



Several cars passed by leaving Molch to do his best to weave back through the field to try and gain on the leaders. Several laps later Kart-No1 followed Dbn’s slipstream down the straight and as Dbn hit his braking marker this caught Kart unaware who swerved the wrong way onto the grass and the Macca reminded him that the track is where it belongs (not in the grass)



Kart eventually got going again but had his work cut out for him if he was to catch the field who were creating an enormous gap. Shortly after, Ad2mny dropped from 3rd with a spin at Dunlop corner, dropping behind Kart. Haze, Dbn and 3vil mixed it up mid-pack and kept each other working hard to fight for front position.



Around mid-race Dbn pulled out and sat on the side lines as the remaining drivers wrestled the Macca around Fuji, pushing to keep good pace as the tyres started to fade and make the job even more difficult.3vil made an error and spun, leaving Emmo to pounce and claim a position.



Molch continued to apply pressure to Doogle who was out in front, making small gains and then losing time, due to the tyres that were forever fading further after each turn.

In the end Doogle was able to hold his pace and managed his first ROOZ race win, followed ten seconds later by Molch with the newcomer (Kiwi) completing the podium in third place. Disturboed finished 4th. Ad2mny had emmo46 closing on him in the closing stages, but a small slide on the last corner starting the final lap gave Ad2mny the breathing space to come home in 5th. 7th place went to X-3vi1m00n, 8th HazeOne68, then kart_no_1 and finally DekGT5mad



A good effort by all, many who are still trying to come to grips (literally) with the Macca.

The field will now head to Laguna Seca where round two will be held and drivers will look to again tame the Macca in the hope of picking up maximum championship points.



RACE QUOTES:

DoogleDave (1st): Well race 1 of season 2 was a very exciting but uneventful race for me. A little disappointed with my qualifying time (even though it still gave me pole position), I was hoping to get into the 27's like I had in practice during the week but it was not to be. Again my launch off the line let me down and I think I was third by the time we hit the first turn. I concentrated on just getting through the first turn unscathed and upon exit saw Kiwi and Molch just ahead of me. Kiwi was an unknown quantity to me and I knew that Molch's pace has really picked up so I knew if I didn't get in front very early I would have a hard battle to contend with as the tyres started to go. I used the first lap to get into the groove again and thought patience would eventually prevail. Within a lap or so I found my way to the front and once I saw clear track ahead I put my head down and powered on through the circuit trying to make as much lead as possible. Early on I started to see my lead continue to extend slowly and I knew eventually Molch (and possibly Kiwi) would get their game on and start catching me, so I tried to put as much distance between us as I could. I had my lead up to just over 8 seconds after perhaps 10 laps or so but I knew any small error and that would dwindle away very quickly, so I focused on keeping the car feeling stable but pushed it where I knew I could push it. Molch then started stripping time away and after seeing it get back to just over 6 seconds I knew the charge behind was on. I put in a couple of low-mid 28's which I knew would help my cause and eventually saw the gap start to open up again. Assuming Molch had tried to push too hard and almost come undone I figured as long as I could keep my pace high I would force the guys behind me to push very hard to catch me. With about 5 laps to go I saw me lead extend to just over 10 seconds and from that point I knew everyone's tyres were starting to hurt as much as mine, if not more. I made sure I hit my markers and held my line around the track and even gave myself a little fist pump as I exited the final turn on the last lap, when I knew the race was won.
I think this was the most consistant race I have driven to date and although I haven't looked back at my lap times yet I'm pretty sure they were very consistant - and in the 32 laps I did not have one error where the car felt out of control (or worse) - which in the Macca is an achievement in itself!

molch_82 (2nd): Like Doogle I was a little disappointed with my quali time haven gotten a low 28 but not good enough to get into the 27's which would of bagged a pole position but still pretty happy with a second place start on the grid. Also like Doogle I had a pretty poor start and found myself shuffling for 2/3/4 into the first corner. Tried to keep my cool and came out behind Kiwi into the first lap. By the end of lap 1 I was following Ad/Doogle/Kiwi down the straight purposely trying not to stay too close to Admny. Into the first corner and Bam I got Lag punted badly. Damage to the front left side of the car or engine and pushed to the back of the pack. Dont know how many seconds behind yet but Ill have a look tonight. Then spent the next 7 to 10 laps racing through the pack. Spent the first couple of laps behind Emmo and then found some extra pace and grove and was able to quickly move through the pack and into 2nd. I think just around lap 12 is where I did the one high 27 so was happy with that time and hoping I could keep it up. With Doogle way way out in front and Hazeone and Kiwi not too far behind I decided to push hard and see if I could make a gap between me and the guys behind and try and catch Doogle. The plan worked and I found myself about 6-7 seconds behind Doogle for many laps with the Gap behind me getting bigger. I just kept pushing hoping Doogle woud have a slip up. The slip up never came and I started to slide off the track and make some silly mistakes which saw Doogle open the gap out to 10 seconds. At this point there was no way I could catch Doogle so settled in and just concentrated on making consistent laps. Was still doing mid 29's on the last lap so was very happy with that. Thanks for the great race and looking forward to next weeks with the shorter track.
K1W1_DRIVER (3rd): Congratulations to DoogleDave and Molch, a good race win and second. Well done to the other driver who shown up. I was very pleased with my effort. A great start from the second grid caught the boys in front napping and was able to lead into the first corner. Kept the faster guys behind for the first lap but had to yield to the pressure from behind and to race my own race, driving within my own limitations. A good chase against Haze for many laps only seconds apart (That dam weak slipstream) I couldn't quite catch him up until he made a braking mistake at the end of the straight which allowed me to get by and into forth, steady as its goes. Turbo has a mishap and now I'm in third, Dave and Molch comfortably in front, no pressure from behind, I settled down to finishing the race hoping greedily that the front runners would have to pit ( in my dreams only as it turned out) A good start into Div 4, hope I can do as well next race. Thanks everyone.

Ad2mny (5th): Ahh bloody lag. Sorry Molch. Qualified 3rd. Got away well and into 2nd then 1st by lap 2. I was straight into the mid 28's Which was a real surprise. Lap 3 came unstuck a little at the first left hander running a little wide, then again at the GT corner where the hairpin usually is, ended up fishtail ing and spinning off. You can never find reverse when you need it. Rejoined behind Kart and put my head down. Took a few laps to catch and pass, then saw the huge gap to emmo and Dbn and was resigned to finishing there. emmo had a spin and I gobbled up his spot. Then Dbn pitted and I thought why did you do that? Haze pitted then and by my list I was in 3rd so I settled down and tried to keep a steady rhythm. I'd dropped to high 28's to mid 29's then finally 30's near the end with my front tyres at 5/6 and rears both 8. emmo was really breathing down my neck second last lap but he had a little slide coming onto the straight which lost him an all important slipstream and possibly my position. Thought I got a podium then I hear Doogle was first which put me 4th and maybe turbo in 4th too which makes me 5th. Will have to wait to see results from someone who saw everyone. Good race overall though, and once again apologies for my lag didn't even see it happen was so fixated with my high position and not spinning out.

HazeOne68 (8th): A decent return to action, apart from the decision to pit on lap 22. I should have had more faith in my tyres. I didn't get off the line brilliantly, and lost a couple places fighting around the first corner. I was able to keep lapping steadily though, and found myself in 3rd/4th after a few laps. I scrapped with m00n for a while. We took turns passing each other for a few laps. Then it was the turn of Gentleman Jim (K1W1_DRIVER). He kept me honest, until I out-braked myself at turn 1. That was a scrappy lap, and I, for some reason, decided to pit. Bad call! I managed to get back up to eighth but the damage had already been done. A satisfying race in that i truly despise the Fuji circuit, but i was still able to show some pace and consistency. I can't wait for Laguna. Another of my fave circuits, NOT!
Kart_no_1 (9th): Well my maiden race went not so well and I'm thinking it may be worse with Laguna Seca as have only 7 days to learn the track instead of the 4 weeks I had for Fuji. I think i'm in for some pain.

DekGT5mad (10th): Fuji has always been a bogey track for me,and last night proved no different, lol. Good race though for a while but a spin by myself, then one that i had no idea why, i just saw a cloud of smoke and suddenly i was around, but ya get that. I pulled off to watch as i was gonna get almost no points anyway, so was gonna be my drop round & i could watch the race. I'll put some photo's up tomorrow of Molch and Ad glued together at the hip, very funny!!!

Well done DoogleDave, with pole and victory. Congratulations also to molch_82 and K1W1_DRIVER for the final podium positions.

Stay tuned for Part 3.

Division 3 Reporter/Photographer: smokinscotty
Division 4 Reporter/Photographer: DoogleDave
Tables: DRZ-Hatfield
Editor: Jamie (Ad2mny)