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Hristo Itchov
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« Reply #19 on: August 05, 2021, 05:48:07 PM +0100 » |
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That was a really tough one, because of the tyre wear and the nature of the track, but also very entertaining.
DD's lap time in Q, on his very first flying lap, on not even well warmed up tyres, was phenomenal! It took me many attempts to go quicker than that and then I managed to improved once more, but looking at his stream footage, he could have gone a tenth and a half quicker too, if it wasn't for traffic and last corner mistakes, so I guess I was fortunate.
Not so fortunate at the start though, as he had a better getaway and managed to overtake me going into T1. A few laps later he apparently forgot to shift up to 3rd on the exit of the last corner though, so I was through, but so was Geoffers, who overtook both of us and was now leading!
Another few laps later, he suddenly froze in front, I barely avoided a harder collision and so was now back in front. I was happy to see he continued behind DD in 3rd and so our 3-way battle resumed.
Geoffers, I don't agree that you were the slowest, you were in fact the quickest of the 3! After swapping positions twice with DD at T1, both times with clean attack maneuvers. You were definitely going faster and was a matter of time before you overtook me.
Unfortunately that's when the race deciding incident happened, on the last corner of lap 12 (I think). I was almost always going slightly slower and wider than the other two, and in this instance it wasn't any different, but Geoffers went a bit too wide and touched my rear end, which was enough to send my car into a slide towards the inside. I did my best to catch it fast, but it was not possible as his car was pushing into mine. Judging from DD's footage, he was caught out by the sudden deceleration in front and couldn't do anything to avoid tapping Geoffers from behind, sending him into a spin. It was a typical chain reaction in such situations.
I managed to recover quickly, but I was not aware at that time what exactly happened behind me. I was wondering why Geoffers was waiting for so long and thought perhaps he didn't see me continue, but as he explained later, he stalled his engine. DD on the other hand was waiting for him, so he dropped several seconds behind me as well.
I contemplated waiting for both of them so we can all continue our battle, however I wasn't sure if that was the right decision. In hindsight I should have.
From there on it was a matter of avoiding mistakes and keeping up the pace. A few mistakes here and there allowed DD to get closer and closer. He was just over 2 seconds behind when he spun while overtaking Robby, who I also had a problem with before that. Lapping him on the back straight, I went for the right side but he also decided to move to that side to let me through on the inside, so I had no choice but to lift off and go over the grass.
And this is where I'm just going to say it, because I think it has to be said. Robby, I don't see how you can justify continuing racing in such conditions. You were much slower (more than usual), you were constantly making mistakes, you were already 10 laps down by the middle of the race (and 17 at the end). Clive, who is a much more experienced and better driver than you, had the decency to retire when he realized he might be a danger to the others. I don't even think he was. Yet you never even considered that and just kept going for your own satisfaction while putting others at danger. What is the whole point of it and do you really learn anything from it? Please think about it...
I have nothing against you, but a line has to be drawn somewhere. I don't want to lose a race because of your driving. I know you're trying to get out of the way and so on, but you're too often out of control and make the wrong decision, plus the speed differential in just a single corner is sometimes just too great. It's fine taking part in practice, qualifying, even the start of races, but once you're several laps down, what are you racing (if you can call it that) for exactly? Points? You pretty much cost DD any chance of victory yesterday and some day you're gonna do the same to me and others. Doesn't that bother you?
And also, what's with your constant spamming in the chat? Tony warned you last time not to do it and yet you still keep doing it. It's very annoying and distracting.
Anyway... Once the tyres were really worn out, I managed to suddenly find more pace in comparison to both DD and Geoffers, which opened the gap further and secured the victory. I wish it had remained a 3-way wheel to wheel fight all the way through the race, even though I doubt I would have won it then.
Grats to DD for 2nd and Geoffers for 3rd, and everyone else who survived this!
The points situation before the final race in this championship makes me excited for the final race at Bathurst, but that's several months away. I hope all 3 of us battle it out properly when the time comes.
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