Another race in the books and now beyond the halfway mark in the championship means that time is going to start running out to put yourself in contention to win the championship.

Road America in Elkhart Lake Wisconsin set the stage for 280 kilometres of racing action.

There’s been so much going on in the background around more team changes, allegiances, colour and sponsor changes that I got the feeling the drivers just wanted the opportunity to just turn laps and focus on the driving.

Griffin Gardiner would move teams, make changes and show that it was absolutely worth the work. Pole position in his debut in new colours at Lobs Esports. Teammates James Scott and Jarrad Filsell would round out a 1-2-3 result for the team.

One driver in particular who had a focus on this round was Hayden Veld. His driver bio included the note that he had picked this race to be his focal point of the season to be in 27th place at the drop of the chequered flag of Road America.

Hayden Veld became a focus point of the race in his quest to finish 27th

The big key to qualifying was that it was a morning session. As time ticked on through qualifying the peak pace had come out of the track, and it was down in large part to the runs drivers got done to start the session.

Synergy Sim Racing looked good on qualifying form and looked to put a number of their drivers up the field. Fawzan El-Nabi would qualify 5th, Tom Freer 10th, Jordan Ross in 18th would be the stand outs. Adam Briggs (22nd) mentioned how well the team looked during the Gamesmen Grid Walk and also how important strategy and not being isolated would be to the race.

With lights out, immediately came the drama! Before making it to the first turn, Griffin Gardiner nearly stalled the car and had major contact with Marcello Rivera. Both would be majorly impacted with damage and be relegated to a night of trying to take what was left on the table. They would begin to slide through the field nearly immediately, and only through the grace of a spread field and a tow hold on to the spots they held. Marcello Rivera would immediately fall to 15th and Gardiner would try and resurrect his night from slightly high in 10th.

Griffin Gardiner fell through the field from Pole Position

Big gainer inside the top 10 from the opening lap would be defending champion Madison Down. 9th to start, made 3 spots in the opening corners and would settle into 6th for the first stanza.

The next period of the race would be defined by the front of the pack settling themselves into full on save mode, the mid pack trying to grab spots and save, and the rear of the field trying to get a lot more aggressive to bring themselves into contention.

Jake Moloney started out of 35th, due to failing to set a valid qualifying lap. Within the first 10 laps he had driven his way to 21st and would continue picking cars off as the race progressed.

The first stops would begin from the end of lap 12, with the bulk of the field running slightly longer on the first stop looking to carry their tires deeper into the race. The bulk of the field would make their way down to the lane by the end of lap 20, with only Jarrad Filsell, Madison Down and Andrew Youssif102 going longer at the front of the field.

The next stint would be about playing your strategy and finding the window to drop into the lane with a very wide variety of strategies in the mix.

Quite a few drivers had opted for lighter, more agile cars they could make moves with for this segment of the race. Brady Meyers, Ethan Grigg-Gault and Fawzan El-Nabi chief among them, whilst the bulk of the drivers went with a full tank, and some split the difference in the middle.

Moloney lit the track up early charging from 35th to 21st in the opening 10 laps

Jake Moloney carried a lot of pace and ability to overtake up until just prior to the last pit stop where drama caused his night to end early. He ran as high as 16th before the first stop, and drama after the second stop ended his night from 22nd.

Final stops for the leading group would begin from 13 laps left to run when Jake Burton would opt to dive to the lane. He ran long in the early stints and took larger fuel loads to give him the opportunity to undercut at the final stop.

One lap later and the rest of the lead pack except Jarrad Filsell would pit, only for Burton to pop out with the effective race lead and be right on the gearbox of Marcello Rivera, who was still yet to pit. Rivera would attempt to play the team game and help out Ethan Grigg-Gault by offering a stout defence that resulted in contact. Jake Burton would be spun at the crest of the hill on entry to Turn 6 and deny him any opportunity of a podium.

Everyone else would feed through with Burton resurfacing after being passed by 9 cars whilst off the road.

Filsell would pit two laps later and emerge just behind James Scott’s underfueled Holden Commodore, and Scott would offer no resistance in letting Filsell by for the new effective race lead.

With 7 laps to go Hayden Veld would be 29th on track, with a penalty to Rivera ahead of him, effectively having him in 28th spot with one place to gain. He would run down and overtake Luke Mitchinson to achieve that effective 27th on the road before night’s end!

The run to the flag would only be dispersed from here by contact between Scott Gamble and Adam Briggs after Gamble locked a brake on the run into Turn 5. There would be another incident on the final lap of the race as well involving Blake Worboys and Zach Rattray-White. 

Podium would end up being Jarrad Filsell in another Lobs Esports 1-2 showing how good they have been consistently again, with Madison Down returning to the podium after a few rounds struggling for speed.

Another classic race from a classic track moves the championship lead for Dylan Rudd to 4 points after a 4th place finish. Will the “Temple of Speed” at Monza prove the moment that Jarrad Filsell retakes the championship lead and makes the statement he has been working to making all season long.

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by Scott Rankin

Is it just me, or is there something in the air this year. Sometimes I think I can smell the petrol through the screens.

With this championship set the way it is, something is going to happen at Watkins Glen. Its just too short and sharp a track for it not to happen.

Lap one through the Esses is about the most claustrophobic you can ever feel in a race car. Imagine if the start line at Bathurst was three quarters of the way up Mountain Straight. We’d be going across the top 3 wide. Car drivers are just crazy, absurd, mental, nuts, not normal…Well… You get the idea.

Watkins Glen has been an icon of American Road racing for a long time. It put V8 Supercars on the map for the NASCAR nuts when Ambrose won here in 2011. I hadn’t even heard of NASCAR then, boy has that changed now. Could someone in the field write their own story of Victory from obscurity?

When we got here last year, the series had just skipped over Round 4 from Road America due to the timing of an iRacing update. This year we’re going to be just over a week into one of the biggest changes to Supercars racing in the time we’ve been on the Gen 2 car!

New Damage Model, N-D-M. Three letters, big consequences. “That's not a big change, nah that's going to have no impact, you’re off your rocker”. I’m not, I’ve been clinically checked, and yes it will be a big change but not to the speed of the cars, more to the way the drivers go racing.

Last year’s race qualifying times were ridiculously close. A dead heat for 2nd on the grid, and the next driver only 2 thousandths of a second further back. Jarrad Filsell took pole last year and was the only driver comfortably clear in terms of the timings. Everyone else was hundredths apart. When your pole time was 1:07.250 there’s not many places to gain time, but certainly a bunch of places to lose it.

Fuel is going to be a big talking point as well. Filsell didn’t want to lead the opening stages of the race from pole position last year, and whenever you hear that from a driver it's a critical part of the race.

The draft is expected to play a critical role again at Watkins Glen

Expect a big draft train. We expected that at the Red Bull Ring, but the train broke up centred around drivers who were struggling on tires. At the Glen that won’t be as big of an issue. The draft will keep those drivers relevant for a longer period of time.

The other note from last year was the the 9ine5ive outfit had a very strong round both from qualifying and race pace. Dylan Rudd lead the way very early on, but ailed on the long run pace. Theoretically if the Speedcafe Lobs Esports crew have a bit better pace, this might be Dylan Rudd’s breakthrough round.

Race pace from Andrew Gilliam was very strong last year and he made up ground from 12th to just miss out on a podium. Gilliam has been looking fantastic of late and could he break through for a round win?

Righto, time for me to send out the commentators' curse on a few people. What do I think is going to happen?

My predictions

Trans Tasman Racing will put 2 cars on the podium. - Jake Burton won last year from Madison Down. I expect their pace to be strong, but this is my least confident prediction.

We will see at least one safety car. My gut is telling me we will see two. - New Damage Model and limited time on that prior to this round says we will see something new, some kind of damage-related issue.

Dylan Rudd will be in the podium, or outside of the top 10. - He ran brilliantly here last year

Synergy Sim Racing’s run of strong quiet finishes comes to an end. Brenton Hobson, Jordan Ross, Tom Freer and Adam Briggs have barely featured on the coverage, but boy they have been putting points on the board. Tom Freer sits 4th in the standings and Hobson also inside the top 10 in 8th. Something happens to these guys…. It's got to happen somewhere in the field and Jordan Ross got some heavy hits last year.

The big question to everyone reading this is “Who do you think is going to win this race?”.

That race win could come from anywhere in the field and luck and timing will be the deciders in the race. Do you roll the dice with an early stop to get out of the pack? Do you run long and pin your hopes on a Safety Car? Tire fall off isn’t a big part of this race as well!

I’m thoroughly excited, see you all on race night!

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by Scott Rankin

On Wednesday night, the Logitech G Pro Invitational Qualifying Series turned to its last page; this was the last chance for drivers to claim their entry to the main game.

In true blue Australian fashion, the drivers would return down under to lap the infamously challenging Winton Motor Raceway to cap out four incredible rounds of racing action.

With many names anxiously dancing above and below the cutoff line, nerves were high for drivers and spotters alike as the session opened and cars took to the asphalt. Would it be your final time amongst the best? Or would you make it to the most competitive series in the Oceanic Region?

Let’s dive into the final race review of the Qualifying Series!

Big gaps spell out interesting qualifying session

While it’s not the shortest lap of the season when looking at the stopwatch, Winton easily takes the cake for the slowest lap of the season when you look at average speed. That makes for a large skill gap in traction management in the seemingly endless kinks of this distinctly Australian speedway.

At the halfway mark, there was just over half a second separating the top 10, with Synergy Sim Racing's Dylan Perera topping the table on a 1:22.322. While just 0.029s separated Perera from Evolution Racing Team’s Jobe Stewart at the time, there would be a two-tenth gap down to third.

Dylan Perera set the early benchmark in Qualifying for everyone to chase

Andrew Dyson caused a calamity at the pit entry with 10 minutes to go, running deep onto the grass at the penultimate corner. When Dyson rejoined, he would spin across the nose of Dylan O’Shea’s 9INE5IVE Mustang, trapping himself between the tyre barrier and the pit entry lane.

When Dyson attempted to spin his Camaro back in the right direction, he would bring Lachlan Caple to a stop. Caple’s teammate, Hayden Veld, would not notice the checkup in time and slammed into Caple’s rear bumper at speed. The incident would leave both of the ERT Mustang’s with significant damage.

As drivers got in their groove, times would tighten by the time qualifying drew to a close - with the top 10 separated by just 0.291s.

Perera would hold pole position from his time set earlier in the session, while Eclipse’s Damon Woods pipped Jobe Stewart by just 0.001 for that second front row spot. Brenton Hobson would line up in fourth, followed by Kurt Stenberg, Glen Postlethwaite, Matthew Bowler, Denis Gataric, Tao Soerono and Corey Preston.

The field races down into Turn 1 off the start

Woods robs Perera off the line in lap 1 scramble of the ages!

Once the cars settled into a window of tyre temperature, there would not be many overtaking opportunities around the tight and technical lap of Winton. So, when the green flag dropped, what would be seen was more symbolic of the start of a hunger games film than a race start.

The first to take aim was Damon Woods, who stormed off the line to claim the race lead from Dylan Perera before the pair got to Turn 1.

Jobe Stewart arrived at the scene next, pushing Perera into third as the qualifying series tussled through the tight first chicane. There would be one more position loss in Perera’s nightmare start, with his teammate Brenton Hobson pinching third place on the downhill run into Turn 3.

Jacob O’Reilly found himself in the gravel on the exit of Turn 4, plunging from his starting position of 18th down to 36th.

What’s worse than going off into the gravel? Not getting off the line.

Daniel Benefield would stall his 9INE5IVE Mustang when the lights went green, with everyone behind reacting quickly enough to avoid a monumental accident. Benefield would also have engine trouble later on, pulling off into an escape road to avoid bringing out a safety car.

Cars jostle for position on the opening lap

Podium runner spins in heartbreaking unforced error

Brenton Hobson would be chasing the leading pair of Woods and Stewart at the start of lap 3, but it would be tragically short lived.

On the exit of the first chicane, Hobson’s Camaro would bounce strangely and bottom out on the exit curb of Turn 2. His car would carry enough speed to find itself in the wall on the right side of the track, leaving him with damage on the front end as well as dropping all the way to the back of the order.

Thankfully for Hobson, his consistent results in the previous three rounds would mean his place in the main game was not under threat.

Bottleneck sparks heated scrap in the midfield

While the running order had mostly settled as the racemoved into the 13th lap, the timing board quickly revealed a ticking time bomb on the fringe of the top 10.

DPR’s Ryan Jones was four seconds behind the car in front. In the meantime, he had five cars stacked behind him within a second.

Vermillion eSports’ Tao Soerono was quick to give Jones a hurry-on, bumping the DPR driver wide on the exit of Turn 9. Two laps later, Soerono would pass Jones down the inside of Turn 7.

That same move opened the door for Eclipse’s Kobi Williams, who found his way into the top 10 after the scrap concluded.

An uncharacteristic mistake sent Hobson into the barriers on Lap 3

Pit lane comes to life in first round of stops

The first round of stops began as the race progressed past lap 20. Damon Woods would box from the lead on lap 23, while Jobe Stewart interestingly stayed out an extra lap despite anticipation of an undercut.

While short-fuelling saw Dylan Perera take the race lead - followed by Kurt Stenberg in second - Jobe Stewart would drop all the way down to 6th after the first stops.

The top 10 order on lap 27 after the first batch of stops concluded was: Perera, Stenberg, Woods, Postlethwaite, Stewart, Gataric, Veld, Bowler, Williams and Borg.

Main game glory clouds driver vision at halfway mark

With the first pit stops completed, drivers and their spotters began to crunch numbers on where they would need to finish to continue their V8 Pro campaigns into 2025.

Jacob O’Reilly would throw a spanner in the works on lap 30, throwing his Vermillion Mustang down the inside of Andrew Dyson into Turn 3.

Shawn McNamara would pile on the pressure to Dyson for the remainder of the lap, but would get the spot for free when Dyson peeled his DPR Camaro into the lane having crossed the critical lap marker.

A tough night ended behind the wall early for Daniel Benefield

Fears rise for Synergy and Baldwin in late accident

With 29 to go, Brady Baldwin was spun around by Vermillion’s Tyce Hodge at Turn 9. This piled on significant pressure to the Synergy driver, who was 19th in the championship standings coming into the final round.

Baldwin would keep his cool to finish 24th on the road, securing himself enough points to maintain his place in the standings and secure a main game drive in 2025.

The beneficiary of the debacle was Orbit Drop Bear’s Tyson Broad, who slipped by with half his car on the grass to move up four positions.

Final stops line up the run home to pro

With 25 laps remaining, the lead pack began to peel into the lane for the final stops of the night. It would be a mixed bag of varying stop lengths that shook up the initial order.

Dylan Perera would pit from the race lead, and while he would hold onto 3rd place all the way to the chequered flag, he would still not secure enough points to make it over the cutoff line in the standings. With that, Perera’s Pro series aspirations would grind to a tragic halt.

Jobe Stewart and Denis Gataric had a similar fate, running home inside the top 10 in Winton but failing to make the cutoff line with attendance issues plaguing their respective seasons.

Tyson Broad would spin Andrew Dyson at Turn 9 with 20 to go, leaving Broad with a penalty that would drop him down the order significantly. The points loss from the penalty meant Broad would finish in a tied 20th place in the standings, but would lose out on the cutoff line on countback to Vermillion’s Ben Faulkner.

Broad sneaks down the inside of a spinning Brady Baldwin

Woods takes the chequered flag to claim third consecutive Eclipse win

Damon Woods took home the chocolates in Winton, crossing the line two seconds ahead of Jobe Stewart to claim his Pro Series entry.

Woods follows in the footsteps of his teammates, Kody Deith and Dylan Birse, in his guaranteed entry to the main game - despite having his seat pretty well secured in the regular points standings anyway.

The remainder of the top 10 would hold steadfast from the order after the second stops.

As always … honourable mentions!

Shawn McNamara and Andre Yousiff were the biggest movers of the afternoon, both moving up 17 positions respectively. The pair would also secure themselves main game seats.

Reyn Campbell moved up an impressive 16 positions from 35th to 19th, but did not make the cutoff line.

Kobi Williams made his way from 20th to 9th, which bagged him enough points to finish 9th in the overall standings.

Brenton Hobson was the biggest loser in this round, dropping from 4th to 30th. As previously mentioned, his season-long results were enough for him to finish 7th in the points race anyway.

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by Harrison Lillas

Sandown. I don’t know what your memories of this place are, but I get flashes of sitting on the couch with my parents, talking about the iconic cars and liveries of the past.

One of the single greatest things about this round is sitting around and listening to the inspirations behind the latest paint schemes inspired from years gone by. 

Perhaps it's the Tru-Blu Dick Johnson livery that won the ATCC title in ‘81 and ‘82. It might be the Castrol Perkins Racing Cars and their iconic schemes that continued on through into the times where I started watching car racing and loved to hate Russell Ingall.

One of the coolest things about Sim Racing now is that we have enough years that we can start to put together our own legacy of liveries. This can only happen with the support of long standing drivers and teams within our sport, and as the years continue to tick by, more of those legacies continue to be built.

Evolution Racing Team will be running throwback paints to their earliest generations of cars. One of their earlier schemes featured the first approved “Red Bull” logo in sim racing on board the “Maverick” scheme. Two of the ERT driver pairings will be showcasing this livery, with the Ethan Grigg-Gault and Brad Ryan driven #7, as well as that of Ian Ford and Daniel Hall’s #115 machine.

Retro ERT Hornets livery - Photo Courtesy of Beau Albert

Beau Albert has been there and done it all. Australia’s only multiple iRacing Pro Licence holder got his start with ERT. Since then, he’s taken on the world before returning to where it all began. His Sandown scheme will pay homage to where he first joined the team as one of its “Hornets” drivers in the yellow and black livery. Jake Blackhall will return to the highest echelons of supercars racing to

When you look up and down the grid, there will be some drivers moving towards the ends of their careers and thinking about the legacy they leave, whilst others drive forwards looking to forge their own. 

Last year

Two-Thirds of the championship behind us, the Sandown 500 marks the midpoint of the enduro cup, and the start of the run home for the championship contenders.

161 laps, an iconic venue, and the challenge of driver swaps always earmark this one on the calendar as a race that’s harder to win than most.

Last year James Scott and Shane Van Gisbergen would be one of the faster pairings, only to make contact with other cars several times and end up with penalties that would ruin any chance of an outright victory.

The call that won the race last year was the alternate strategy of Luke Rosella and Harley Haber to put them in position to benefit from a late race caution for fresh tires on Lap 129. They had to get aggressive from here, but they leveraged the tires and reasonable pace they had all day long to be in position when it mattered.

2023 Winners Luke Rosella and Harley Haber

This year

Enduro cup means you have to think about co-drivers, getting their time out of the way at the right time, minimum laps, maximum laps and fatigue management. The last hour of the race from last year exploded into life, incidents and action and it’ll happen again, maybe just not to the same level.

The strategy is such a crucial element of this race. You must clear a minimum of 54 laps per driver, with a maximum consecutive lap count of 65 laps. That makes the target lap for your final driver swap no earlier than lap 97. The big key with this one is if your co-driver starts, you are looking to swap them out at the end of the first stint, to set them up to run to 97. If your main driver starts, their target lap is 43 for their first stint. Fuel range is somewhere around 44-47 depending on saving, so keep your eyes on the guys who do opt for some saving at some point.

Critically with this all in mind, 65 laps is about one and a half stints. This leaves us with 2 awkward half stints to be done for a primary and co driver at some point in the race. If you have a driver pairing with extremely similar or quick pace this opens your options right up to running closer to a 50/50 split, perhaps even doing driver swaps every stint to get yourself completely away from the consecutive lap numbers.

Sandown from a racing perspective is all about pulling the trigger on a move and getting it done quickly. Best overtaking spots are Turn 1 and Turn 9. Both of these opportunities are followed by corners back in the other direction, so getting down the inside is followed by being on the outside for the next turn.

Strategy will be a key factor to the race this year

Ultimately passing takes a speed advantage, or a mistake to set the move up. Keep your eyes on this as the race progresses and drivers become less patient.

Sandown is also a place loved by the drivers, everyone has logged a lot more laps than the bulk of the other tracks on iRacing. Combine this with a short lap, qualifying is set to be the closest of the year.

Experienced heads tend to prevail at these races, so where does my next round of predictions (or commentator’s curses) go?

Jarrad Filsell and Brodie Kostecki

Cameron Dance (Partnering Tyson Broad)

Damon Woods (Partnering Griffin Gardiner)

Harley Haber (Partnering Fawzan El-Nabi)

Expect the order to be shuffled a bit for Sandown too. Enduro’s create this situation with shuffled fields. Jobe Stewart was on for a podium before an incident very late in the race trying to take 2nd last year. Dylan O’Shea took 2nd on track, before a post-race penalty for a Safety Car Procedure breach moved him down the standings. Keep your eyes for odd names to pop to the surface with odd strategies.

The Championship

This battle isn’t going away. Dylan Rudd finally gets the bulk amount of points he needed to keep himself in contention to win the title. Time is now running out to run back down his 94 point lead, but the chasing pack have already done it once!

Dylan Rudd still hangs onto his championship lead heading to Sandown

Andrew Gilliam’s win brings him back into mathematical contention, but requires a very strong finish to keep his hopes alive.

260 Points off the lead is Madison Down now, and his race to the title required podiums at both of last year’s enduro’s. He’s going to need that, and pace to the end of the season to be a remote hope, but it's not done yet and he will fight to the last lap. Of that I have absolutely no doubt.

Qualifying all kicks off from 7pm Friday 30th August when we find out who will drive off into the sunset and potentially divine their own legacy.

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by Scott Rankin

Madison Down came in clutch at Sandown on Friday the 1st of September, delivering a podium alongside Corey Shepherd in a crucial race for the championship title.

Taking full advantage of a difficult night for James Scott, Down Powered his Trans Tasman Racing #77 Commodore to a 3rd place finish, while title Rival Scott battled home to finish in 7th position after contact with the #89 Synergy Sim Racing Commodore of Fawzan El Nabi on lap 58.

Final results from Sandown see yet another swing in an intriguing 2023 championship battle, Madison Down now back into the points lead with a 27 point advantage over James Scott as we head to Mount Panorama Bathurst in under a months time. With everything to play for, it will be interesting to see how both teams fair at Bathurst, with high emphasis put on both primary & co drivers to deliver on race day.

Down will arrive at Bathurst hoping to build on a strong second place finish in the 2022 instalment of the great race, while Scott will look to turn around his Sandown struggles with a strong result.

It’s fair to also point out the success of both co drivers around this venue also, Corey Shepherd proving he can be the difference behind the the wheel of the #77, while Shane Van Gisbergen can bank on his knowledge and expertise around Bathurst, with plenty of success in his Supercars career as well as in the simulator.

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With Round 1 of the 2023 Pro Invitational Series only a matter a days away, we took a deep dive into some of the big hitters to keep an eye out for when the green flag drops at Sebring.

Jarrad Filsell

#1 on the door, Jarrad Filsell returns in 2023 as the defending champion after dominating the 2022 Logitech G Pro Invitational Series. Arguably one of the most intimidating & flamboyant drivers on the grid, there’s no doubting the ability he has to get the job done. Incredible every time he’s behind the wheel, it will take a massive effort for someone to overcome the Filsell juggernaut.

Trans Tasman Racing

TTR undoubtedly are one of the most fierce teams in the Logitech G Pro Invitational Series. Brady Meyers & Madison Down lead the way for the team last season on the wins list with TTR well represented within the top 10 of the championship by seasons end. As a team they are relentless. They love to win and have shown they can do just that time and time again. Never count out a Trans Tasman Racing car. Sebring was a happy hunting ground for TTR in 2022, 2023 will be no different.

Brady Meyers

Not only is Brady Meyers a Sebring winner, But a winning performance at Phillip Island in the final round of the 2022 Logitech G Pro Invitational Series sets him up perfectly heading into the opening round of the 2023 season at Sebring. With runs already on the board at Sebring previously combined with his season ending performance, Meyers will be one of the hot favourites to take out the opening round of the championship.

Andrew Gilliam & Pursuit Sim Racing

On his day, Andrew Gilliam of Pursuit Sim Racing can be on of the best drivers on the Logitech G Pro Invitational Series grid. His talent combined with the experience of the Pursuit Sim Racing team will prove to be vital Not only at Sebring but across the whole season. Returning in 2023 with a larger presence, Pursuit will definitely be looking to make a mark on the 2023 series not only with Gilliam but the whole team.

Jake Burton & Jarrad Filsell

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Using the track

Bell Isle being somewhat the concrete canyon of iracing there is not a lot of room for error. Running the car as close as possible to the walls to open up the corner entry and exits. Overstep the mark and you can find yourself in the wall.

Tyre life

With there being lots of slow speed corners good drive traction and side bite is crucial. set the car up to aggressive and you could find yourself battling to keep the car of the walls.

Strategy

There will be a variety of different strategies on race day but Gaining track position over the competition after the final pit stop will be key for getting a good result at the end of the race.

Traffic

Managing traffic from lapped cars, incidents and lap 1 chaos, will be one to be very mindful of as it could end your race very quickly if caught up in them. car placement is crucial because there is no runoff only concrete walls either side which will make it tricky to navigate through any sorts of traffic.

Qualifying

0x's and cars on slow outlaps will be things to watch out for in qualifying. Setting a banker lap early will make sure you have a time on the board at the end of qualifying and not left with no time from being borked from other cars and getting 0x's from making mistakes and pushing too hard at the end of qualifying

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Its time. We’ve outlived the real-world ZB Commodore by two years, but the time has finally come. 

Originally announced in December 2013, the engine production for the Commodore ceased as of the 20th of October 2017. Whilst the V8 Supercars chassis and engines lived on until the end of the 2022 racing season

The bigger bodied, wider curved rear end of the ZB Commodore has been with us since the Season 1 2020 update (released in December 2019), and whilst I may be a Ford fan, I must admit I feel a very profound sense of loss to see the tail end of the Commodore.

We’ve already crowned our champion, so now all eyes turn to the “Battle for the Bubble”.

The Vermillion eSports driver of Zach Rattray-White will be the centrepiece of this battle yet again. There’s been some brilliant speed across the journey, and the improvement has been a sight to behold, but he’s yet to make a finish inside the top 10 and this will likely be his goal heading into the final round. Consequently, he also would do enough with a top 10 to finish in the automatic qualification spots.

Mathematically only 4 drivers below the cut line are still in contention for qualification, but realistically its a “must win” scenario for both Brenton Hobson and Marcello River who sit on 1288 points. They both are required to outscore all the drivers ahead of them by 116 points, and that’s before we get into the complicated situation should Shawn McNamara and Tom Freer both manage to move their way into being the bubble driver.

Brenton Hobson joins Marcello Rivera as long shots at making the top 20 with only one race to go

The story for McNamara and Freer is a lot easier of a task. McNamara sits 12 points adrift of Rattray-White, and Freer is only 18 further back for a target of 30 points to 20th. Getting into the on track scenarios this looks like 3 spots to tie it up for McNamara and 8 spots for Freer and is likely to be a big focus of the discussions tomorrow night.

Ahead of the bubble and still required to put points on the table sit 7 drivers. Adam Briggs, Josh Anderson, Blake Worboys, Jake Burton are a part of the calculations but realistically just require to hit the 75% marker to put points on the board. Ian Ford is the next driver in the equation and he will require a mid to high 20’s position to lock himself in.

Here’s where we stop looking at drivers that are “all-but” locked in. Beau Albert sits 92 points ahead of the bubble and Jake Moloney is only 38 points ahead of McNamara’s total. 21st is all Beau Albert will require to be locked in for 2025, but Moloney will require a 7th place finish.

I know there’s a lot of data to cover there, but for 2025 it becomes a lot more important than it's ever been. We’ve finally got confirmation we’ll be moving over to the Gen3 chassis, and we begin to encounter the new variables. There’s always a trick to be found with new cars and you don’t want to take a run through the gauntlet of the qualifying series in a new car if it can be avoided.

The picturesque and historic Spa hosts the finale for the 2024 Season

How about the location to bid adieu to the Commodore? We’re off on a spa vacation…. Sorry Circuit de Spa Francorchamps… Bugger, I’d already got my headphones in and put my feet up.

2022 Results

Qualifying  - Marcello Rivera 2.17.498
Race  - Jarrad Filsell
Format  - 39 Laps - 273km

2023 Results

Qualifying  - Jarrad Filsell 2.16.593
Race  -  Jarrad Filsell (post race penalty promoted James Scott to the win)
Format  - 39 Laps - 273km

2024 Format - 35 Laps - 245km

Both races that we’ve run at Spa have finished with winning margins under half a second, which shouldn’t be surprising given the drafting nature of the track.

Last year there was a bit of controversy as Filsell received a 15 second penalty in the opening laps for contact with Brady Meyers for the race lead. He elected not to serve the penalty across the duration of the race in a hope of challenging it post race. That didn’t work out and began a long slide through the remainder of the season that saw him return to the stewards box multiple times, and eventually be forced to the qualification series for this year.

The 3 biggest things about Spa are:

1. Big Lap
2. Big Speeds
3. Big draft trains

There’s so much opportunity to get some fuel saving if you can’t make your way forwards and the front of the field is going to form into its usual draft train aspect. You don’t want to lead early.

From the mid section of the race you’ve got to be position well when the strategy starts to open up.

Stops will start around Lap 13, but you could go very late as well with a lot of ease to catch and pass cars.

As for my predictions? Well… its pretty easy. The guy who’s won the race on the road and has been the fastest driver this year comes in as the favourite. Since we were here last 18 months ago, Jarrad Filsell went on a downhill slide into a redemption year. He’s my pick again just based on his dominance.

I’d be very nervous in Zach Rattray-White’s shoes, and he will know he’s going to have a camera on him all night long. He’s had a fun race already this week where he’s let the hair down and that's probably what he needed to set himself up for a big Wednesday night.

Shawn McNamara has got to pull something out here. The big issue with that is he’s a quiet consistent driver, not one for the big occasion and big performance when it’s required. His pace is still great, but this could be the last time we see him in the Logitech Pro Invitational Series if the younger talent coming through eliminates him from the qualifying series next year.

I’ll see you all Wednesday night for our final race of the season, but I’m not done with content for the year.

We’ll be live as usual from 7.45pm Australian Eastern Daylight Savings Time to send off the Commodore in spectacular fashion.

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by Scott Rankin

Round 2 of the Motorsports Australia Logitech G Pro Invitational Series took centre stage around the Phillip Island circuit on Wednesday night with Jarrad Filsell & Jake Burton taking a share of the victory’s.

Qualifying got underway at approximately 7:50pm AEST for a 20 minute session to set the grid for the opening race of the evening. Qualifying was hotly contested amongst the field. Trans Tasman Racing set the pace, locking out the front two rows of the grid with Madison Down leading the way from teammate Jake Moloney. Filsell would line up as the first non TTR driver in 5th position onboard his SSR commodore, followed by Rehan Liyanage from Pursuit Sim Racing close behind in 6th position. With just .214 of a second separating the top ten, it was clear it would be a extremely competitive night of racing.

A clean getaway for Down would ensure he maintained the lead of the race heading into turn 1 on the opening lap with Burton making an excellent jump off the line to slot into second position behind his TTR stablemate. Robert Gibbs was caught in controversy early, finding his way off the circuit on the exit of turn 1 rejoining the track in front of Bradley Rattew who would sustain damage from the incident. Gibbs would later pick up a drive through Penalty for the contact.

Madison Down & Jake Burton continued to control the field early, Jarrad Filsell trailing behind in the final podium place. All would come unstuck for race leader Down shorty after though, finding his way off the circuit in uncharacteristic fashion on entry to the final corner on lap 8, ultimately ruling him out of contention for the race and round victories.

Jarrad Filsell would be the first of the heavy hitters to make his way to pit lane for his compulsory pit stop, followed by Synergy Sim Racing teammate James Scott on the beginning of lap 10. Burton would continue on for a handful of laps, making the call on lap 12 to make his visit to pit lane rejoining into effective 3rd position behind James Scott & leader Jarrad Filsell with little under 12 laps remaining.

Burton set out to make his ground early, making a bold move on James Scott on the beginning of lap 13 on the inside at turn 1. Contact was made sending James into the infield, the contact being deemed a racing incident as Burton set off after race leader Jarrad Filsell.

Further down the order cracks where starting to show, young gun Rehan Liyanage & Dylan O’Shea came together on lap 14, an incident that would make it difficult to recover for the remainder of the night. Moments later, Josh Anderson would find trouble down at Miller Corner, making a trip onto the grass while attempting an overtake on James Scott. Contact insured on Anderson’s re join, finding the rear quarter panel of Luke Rosella, sending him into the barrier on entry to Siberia. Josh would later be penalised for the infringement.

Jake Moloney & Richard Hamstead would be the final drivers to pit, entering the lane on lap 22 handing the lead back over to Jake Burton. Moloney’s masterclass strategy call would see him rejoin in behind burton, charging home to collect a strong second place finish. But it would be Jake Burton taking the honours for the opening race, winning just his second race in the Motorsport Australia Logitech G Pro Invitational Cup. Gilliam would round out the podium in 3rd followed by Brady Meyers in 4th & James Scott close behind in 5th

Winning in race 1 gave Burton an opportunity to capitalise off pole position in race 2 with the progressive grid formats, sharing the front row with Jake Moloney. A difficult getaway for Burton was met with a perfect launch from Filsell, jolting to the lead by the time the pack reached turn 1. Moloney’s hard work was undone early, teammate Brady Meyers finding the rear of his TTR stablemates Mustang into turn one, sending both off the circuit and out of contention for the race victory.

Carnage continued on the run down to Miller Corner, race 1 winner Burton coming into contact with Wayne Bourke, sending the Dr Epoxy SSR Commodore into a spin. Burton would later be met with a penalty for the accident, dropping him down the order for the time being.

Andrew Gilliam capitalised in the early stages, climbing his Pursuit Sim Racing Mustang into contention behind race leader Jarrad Filsell to sit comfortably in 2nd position followed closely by 9ine 5ive SimSports driver Ric Kuznetsov.

Miller Corner again became subject to yet another accident, Rehan Liyanage escorting Bradley Rattew off the road on lap 3. Unable to stop on the grass, he’d find his way into Damien Johnstone, ending what was already a difficult night for the SSR driver.

The opening round of pitstops were the next major timeline across the 23 lap distance. As opening pitstops began, Adam Briggs of Synergy Sim Racing found himself in trouble, an engine expiring on lap 14 entering Siberia bringing out the first and only safety car of the night.

Once the field cleansed, The remaining cars required to complete a compulsory pit stop re joined the field with Jarrad Filsell still holding the lead. Dylan Rudd’s impressive drive forward saw him hold down second, along with Gilliam sitting in 3rd for the re start.

Filsell lead the field away comfortably into turn 1, waiting late to make his jump. As the field approached turn 4 on lap 19, trouble would strike again, Luke Rosella finding his way into the rear of Jake Moloney, sending him into a spin & setting off a chain reaction that saw multiple cars involved. Moloney would manage to rejoin the race, although damaged.

The battle at the front was tight on the closing laps, Filsell continuing to hold down the lead from Dylan Rudd. Ric Kuznetsov climbed his way into third looking strong alongside his 9ine 5ive SimSports teammate as they challenged Filsell for the race victory. Seasoned veteran Filsell held his nerve, holding onto a well fought victory, putting his championship title defence back on track. Rudd & Kuznetsov would follow Filsell home on the podium, a brilliant result for both drivers and their 9ine 5ive SimSport team. Richard Hamstead would come home in 4th, followed by Brady Meyers who rounded out the top 5.

Jarrad Filsell would take the round honours for the Watercraft Performance Centre Phillip Island Super Sprint, setting the tone for his championship fight back. Brady Meyers consistent performances would also see the TTR stalwart climb to the championship lead heading into Spa.

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The Logitech G V8PRO Invitational Series is set to ignite the virtual racing world with Stage 2 of the Road to Pro, scheduled from January 21st to 23rd. This Pre-Qualifying phase will see 136 registered drivers competing to secure one of 45 coveted spots in the upcoming 4-round Qualifying Series.

Drivers will push their limits at the renowned Zolder and Barber Motorsports Park circuits, with sessions running nightly from 8 PM to 12 AM AEDT. Participants are allowed to set a time in one server per track each night, and their fastest lap times from each track across the three nights will be combined to determine overall standings. The top 45 drivers with the lowest combined times will advance to Stage 3, bringing them closer to a place in the prestigious 2025 V8PRO Invitational Series.

The entry list features a dynamic mix of returning competitors and fresh talent. Notably, several drivers from the 2024 Logitech G V8PRO series are reattempting to qualify in 2025, including Shawn McNamara, Brady Baldwin, Thomas Freeman, Brian Borg, Dylan O’Shea, Jacob O’Reilly, Tyson Broad, Andre Yousiff, Tao Soerono, Jobe Stewart, Matthew Bowler, Hayden Veld, Marcello Rivera, Wayne C Bourke, Damien Johnstone, Tom Freer, Brenton Hobson, Michael Talijancich, and Kurt Stenberg. Their return underscores the importance to reclaim their positions and make a significant impact in the upcoming series which will be the first held with the new Gen 3 Supercars.

Early test sessions indicate that times will be extremely tight during Pre Qualifying

In addition to the returning drivers, several co-drivers from the 2024 season are stepping into primary roles, aiming to secure their spots on the 2025 grid. Notable inclusions are Lachlan Caple (ERT), Damon Woods (Eclipse Simsports), Kody Deith (Eclipse Simsports), Dylan Birse (Eclipse Simsports), Andrew Dyson (DPR), and Emily Jones (TTR). Their previous experience as co-drivers provides them with valuable insights and a competitive edge as they transition to lead roles.

The field is further enriched by the participation of real-life Supercars drivers. Andre Heimgartner, who competed as an enduro cup wildcard in 2024 alongside Brad Jones Racing teammate Macauley Jones, has registered for Pre-Qualifying. Fellow Supercars star Richie Stanaway is also looking to return, adding a layer of real-world racing expertise to the virtual competition. Super2 drivers Jobe Stewart, Bradley Vaughan, and Reuben Goodall also bring additional professional racing pedigree to the field.

Eclipse Simsports

Evolution Racing Team

Trans Tasman Racing

Vermillion Esports

Synergy Sim Racing

9INE5IVE Simsports

Fishy Motorsports

Blackout OPR

DPR

Frog Leap JUICD Racing

Pacific Esports Racing

Phoenix Racing Team

Sideways E-Sports, will have three cars vying for places in the field as will numerous other 2-car teams. Meanwhile several single-car teams and privateers fill out the rest of the lineup. This highly talented driver pool will be fighting for a mere 45 spots in the Qualifying Series, promising intense competition and thrilling action on the timesheets.

Check out the full driver linuep at the button below:

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When we rolled out from Watkins Glen a few new things were in the air and a few questions were to be answered. Was the new damage model going to have the impact we suggested or perhaps the changes to the kerbs would be a bigger impact?

Qualifying came down to the last few moments as Ethan Grigg-Gault would nab pole on his final lap of the session, 1.08.083 being the lap he needed. This would be three quarters of a second slower than last years pole time and that would speak the loudest about the changes to the track conditions.

However, when it came time to fire the beasts down into turn one for the first time, Grigg-Gault would not find the traction at the rear axle he was looking for out of the #7 Evolution Racing Team machine.

Jake Burton would take the lead on lap one and settle into a comfortable rhythm out front, but in behind places would swap regularly inside the top 10.

When you go racing at a track that has the feeling of a high speed street circuit, something is always going to go wrong. Unfortunately for Synergy Sim Racing it was Jordan Ross getting into the barriers, and arriving back on track directly in front of Michael Talijancich. This would double down on the misery for Synergy Sim Racing with “Tally” and Jobe Stewart beginning a new mechanical relationship with SSR prior to this round. Talijancich would retire from the session at the conclusion of lap 1, Ross would attempt to get the car repaired and continue for points.

Lap 5 would make it a trio of SSR worked on cars with issues as Tom Freer would make contact with Brian Borg and find himself in the barriers and with a missing front end, and front wheels.

Jake Burton jumps away from the start to lead into turn 1

The next phase of the race on the restart would kick off an immense amount of “Go slow” battles as fuel games would be the critical part of the midpoint of the race. The entire field had checked off one of the two required compulsory pit stops and this was about shortening the final stop for track position.

Unfortunately for SSR the troubles would continue, but not until lap 24 and 25 when Brenton Hobson would lose all vision from in the server and be parked on the inside of the loop, followed by the #07 of Brady Baldwin in the fence. This would bring out Safety Car number two of the night and the fuel games would kick into overdrive.

Jarrad Filsell would underfill his car slightly to gain the track position, and Jobe Stewart would also opt for a touch less fuel than the bulk of the field to jump to 2nd. James Scott would also elect to add less fuel than those around him and jump from 9th to 6th place in the lane.

The quiet achiever to this point of the race would be Luke Rosella, starting from pit lane all the way to 22nd at the Safety Car restart. Thomas Freeman would also make big gains, from 40th on the grid to 24th at the restart.

Another tame run would commence, some looking to burn the extra fuel and make track position, others being a lot more tame. If you thought this race would settle down, no way, you haven’t been watching the same Logitech Pro Invitational Series I have for 2024 and the race took a huge turn with another SSR car being eliminated through the biggest incident of the night on Lap 48.

Fawzan El-Nabi would try and get to the inside of Scott Gamble at the esses, after a hole was opened by a move from Thomas Freeman at turn one, but El-Nabi would miss the apex of turn 2, tag Gamble and put himself in the fence, ripping a front left off his car in the process. From here he would be a passenger across the grass and back across the track in front of Tao Soerono, tripping up Robert Gibbs and leaving Jacob O’Reilly nowhere to go when he arrived at the crest at speed.

Before the Safety Car could be called Madison Down and Ethan Grigg-Gault would also make contact that would lose both of them a few spots. The spot would be redressed, but the loss of spots would net Down a 5 second penalty that would end up applied to his post-race time.

Jarrad Filsell would be unleashed with 14 laps left to run and from here the fuel games would stop for the first time. The pace and aggression would both somehow find a way to ratchet up another notch with this final run being for all the marbles.

Kurt Stenberg opted for fresh rubber at the final Safety Car and would be the only one of 5 cars to do so and make significant ground. Stenberg left the train from 21st and would drive back to 15th.

The final drama of the night would happen to the Pole Sitter as Ethan Grigg-Gault would continue his lack of luck in the race. He would turn in fractionally too early at the chicane with 2 laps to run, breaking the left front off the car and making for his second retirement of the season, combined with his race finish with a damaged car at Sebring.

No one though would be able to hold a candle to Jarrad Filsell who would make it two race wins on the trot!

Filsell en-route to his second straight race win

Right now the Speedcafe Lobs Esports cars are going from strength to strength, and the big question of the season is going to become “What will it take to stop these guys?”. Jarrad Filsell wants to redeem himself for 2023, and could the circuit where the biggest chunk of the drama from last year become the place where he becomes our championship leader?

Ethan Grigg-Gault has been quick, but unforced errors have been his biggest enemy. Damage in all that transpired at Sebring was not necessarily his fault. Too early on the downshift at Phillip Island certainly was, as was his contact with the barrier with the end in sight at Watkins Glen. Its the 1% ‘ers that are stopping Grigg-Gault from regularly being on the podium and right now see him sitting just inside the qualifying bubble at 19th.

Next time out is Road America and a more traditional Supercars circuit. This will be a place where everyone has a tonne of laps and could lead to a return to the status quo in terms of the pecking order.

As usual, the only way to find out about the action will be to tune in to the race from 7.45pm on July 3rd!

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by Scott Rankin

The Sandown 500 took place last Friday night with much interest as to which team would challenge the all-conquering Lobs Esports squad, and championship runaways of Dylan Rudd, Jarrad Filsell and James Scott.

In the build-up to the annual Sandown 500, it had been confirmed by Lobs Esports that James Scott would have a change in co-driver with Anton Depesquale standing in for Ryan Wood in car #088. Meanwhile, another early season championship contender in Ric Kuznetsov of 9ine5ive Sim Sports would be joined by Brody Sentence, replacing Bradley Rattew in the #888. Talk in the paddock that the Evolution Racing Team had been very fast in the build-up and looked most likely to challenge Lobs esports.

In Qualifying, it was Scott who claimed the pole from 2023 winner Luke Rosella, whilst the rumours proved true about ERT, claiming third, fourth and fifth on the grid ahead of the Filsell/Kostecki car, whilst Interlagos winner, Gilliam was next. Filling out the top 10 were Burton, Gardiner and championship leader, Rudd.  

Rattray-White continued to impress in the Vermillion machine, slotting himself and Faulkner just outside the top 10, their team cars looking well sorted in the lead-up. Meyers, Grigg-Gault and Madison Down would be disappointed in their qualifying, outside the top 10 and making their night a little harder.

James Scott was good enough for Pole in the #088 Commodore

As the race started, the majority of the main drivers took the green flag. It was a relatively clean getaway, but all hell would break loose at turn four, with Brodie Kostecki making a move down the inside on Hayden Veld, resulting in heavy contact with the wall and the #053 rebounding back into the traffic. This resulted in heavy contact with the #06, #47 and #17 , causing many cars to sustain damage and trapping a number of cars on the inside line, meaning the #143, #36, #115, #28, #2 and #72 all had to come to a complete stop and wait for the field to pass before they were able to manoeuvre out of the incident.

At the end of lap one, it was the #55 who led the way, in front of the #088 and #21. Burton had been a huge beneficiary from the lap one incident, now running fourth before a slow down on lap 11 would drop him back to sixth. The Gilliam and Rudd entries quietly made progress. Meanwhile the #94 with Kostecki at the wheel was handed a drive through penalty after contact on the opening lap, hampering their strategy. As battle packs began to form, it became clear that the Lobs and ERT cars were in a league of their own as the race settled down.

It only took 4 turns for the chaos to ensue on Lap 1

On lap 36, the TTR Mustang in the hands of Leigh Ellis would bring out the safety car, nicely fitting into most team's strategies. The vast majority of the field would pit and swap drivers, mostly with the co-drivers now at the wheel.

On the restart, Stanaway at the wheel of the Lobs Esports #55 would lead them away, but it was the TTR duo of Meyers/Warren, Burton/Jones who made progress in the pits and vaulted up the order. Warren at the helm of the #22 caught Depasquale napping in the #088 on the restart and made an authoritive pass down into turn one.

Back further in the pack, drivers were starting to fight for position, whilst their main drivers sat nervously in the garage hoping their car would arrive back at the end of their stint in one piece.

On lap 47, the TTR machine with Ethan Warren the wheel made another great pass into turn one, taking the lead from Stanaway before an error on the following lap saw Stanaway re-take the lead and battle each other into the final corner, resulting in the #55 being spun in front of the field. Further back, Lutzu and Birse were doing a tradesman like job in the #93 and the championship-leading car of the #990.

Strategies were starting to emerge as there were a host of co-drivers that could fulfil their requirements if they short pitted during their stint, and made it to the critical lap 82, when they would hand back to their main drivers for the run home. Other teams with more even car speed between drivers elected to keep their co-drivers in to the end of their stints. The short-stop strategy was more risky between laps 50 and 82, meaning if there was a safety car, it would have not played out well. However, luckily for those teams, no safety cars fell in that time, which meant we were in for a great run home.

Brett Loxton at the wheel of Wayne Bourke's Synergy Sim Racing Commodore

At lap 82, many main drivers got back in their cars, and the race began to take shape, with the #94 of Filsell/Kostecki taking the lead, followed by the TTR #22 and the #088, still in the hands of Depesquale.

Alternative strategies had the Borg/Dyson #017 and the SSR #88 sitting 5th and 6th prior to a major moment in the race where the Lobs Esports championship contender #088 would blow an engine. This would throw strategies up in the air as everyone came down the pit lane, and put their main drivers back in or completed a fuel stop.

This Safety car would re-set the field. And when the dust settled, it was Kostecki #94, Rivera #21, Meyers #22, Gardiner #93 and Rosella #55 filling out the top 5 positions. The #900 had done a fantastic job to this point, sitting well inside the top 10 at the restart. As racing resumed again, three lapped cars sat between second and third place in the train, frustrating Meyers and hampering his ability to go with the #94 and #21 once they went green again. A five second gap opened once Meyers was clear of the lapped cars, but sporting front damage, his car was now vulnerable to the chasing pack of Lobs cars, featuring Gardiner, Rosella and Rudd.

Rosella was able to get past the ailing #22 on lap 117, whilst Rivera was keeping well within fighting distance with leader Kostecki. At this point, Madison Down had struggled all night and was still running outside the top 10, whilst the #900 of Yousiff/Foord continued to impress, running seventh late in the race, just ahead of the also impressive ERT cars of Grigg-Gault, Gibbs and Albert.

Lap 118 was the critical lap where cars could pit and make it home, but would anyone take this early opportunity to complete their pit requirements? Damien Johnstone was the first to take this opportunity on lap 120, but the majority of the field raced on.

A chaotic run to turn 1 at Sandown

With 35 laps to go, the ERT #21 of Rivera pitted, attempting to undercut the leader, Kostecki having to go long as they needed to complete a driver swap, it was beginning to look like their strategy may not pan out. Gardiner finally managed to get past Brady Meyers and started to set off after his teammates of Rosella and Kostecki, at this stage Lobs were running 1st to 4th.

Further back in the field, Dylan O’Shea and Jobe Stewart were battling for position, some of the racing getting the attention of race stewards, Jobe receiving penalties, whilst O’Shea had his progress halted by the battle.

At the front, the race started to heat up. We were all waiting for the strategies to play out and the field to cleanse, and with 23 laps to go, Kostecki arrived in the pits to hand over to Filsell, their driver strategy different to most and dropping them down the order. As the field did cleanse, it was expected that the #55 of Luke Rosella would assume the lead, but a slow stop and contact with his teammate dropped him down the order. Meyers in the TTR machine still doing a great job to stay in contention, effectively still in 3rd position with only 20 laps to go.

But the effective leader was Dylan Rudd from Gardiner. The top two cars had broken a small gap on the chasing pack, Filsell on a charge! With 15 laps to go, Filsell finally managed to get past Meyers, setting off after his teammates, and ripping into the 4 second margin. Race leader Rudd, looked to give up his lead with 14 to go so he could save fuel behind his teammate, and consolidate his championship lead.

The top 10 with 10 laps to go was:

1. Gardiner/Birse
2. Rudd/Lutzu
3. Filsell/Kostecki
4. Meyers/Warren
5. Grigg-Gault/Ryan
6. Rosella/Stanaway
7. Gilliam/Golding
8. Anderson/Rizzo
9. Moloney/Shepherd
10. Down/Liyanage.

With only 7 laps remaining, an incident between O’Shea and Rattray-white claimed an innocent bystander in Jake Burton, capping off a torrid night for the #8 TTR Commodore.

Gibbs applied the pressure to Madison Down to break into the top 10 in the closing stages, whilst Filsell was setting the time sheets alight, slashing the gap to the leaders, he was leaving nothing on the table. The Battle for 6th in the closing stages was still on, Gilliam misplacing his car attempting to pass the ERT #7, almost succumbing to Anderson.

But after 500 kilometres, it was Victory for Gardiner and Birse, their first in the Pro series and finally delivering on his potential. The #93 would lead home a Lobs Esports 1-2-3!

Griffin Gardiner crosses the line in first position

Rudd is firming as championship favourite heading into the final few rounds, getting the upper hand on Filsell with a mature and well deserved 2nd place. Further back, some notable drives from the TTR #22 of Meyers/Warren who have it their all, SSR #89 of Loxton/Bourke, ERT #2 of Gibbs/Caple and others, but it was all about Lobs Esport and their epic stranglehold on this year’s championship!

We move on to Bathurst on only a couple of weeks where Lobs look ominous, but anything can happen at the mountain. Bring it on!

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Its back….The moments before lights out for 2024. Tension builds. Old rivals renew their commitments to being first past the flag. New colours for some, new faces too, but the same old passion, commitment and hard work got these guys here. Time to settle it on the track.

Last year

To sum up 2023 - leading the championship seemed like a curse, the battle for the title was a constant see-saw of multiple drivers getting to the lead, then getting involved in something they probably shouldn’t have.

The enduro’s all of a sudden changed the script. Luke Rosella & Harley Haber drove a masterclass on a night where the Co-Drivers got a real working over. For the first time, I really felt myself asking the question “Are the series’ irregulars going to decide this championship? Could someone employed for 2 rounds a year be a defining factor in a 10 round title?”

Who could forget the final stanza of Bathurst. 1000km of racing condensed into about an 80km sprint. Scott v Down v Meyers. Who could forget?

Then to polish off the season, some made their strategy and rulebook comprehension shown where others failed to do so. Who’s taken that learning in the off season? Who studied up prior to 2024? When the drivers encounter those high, high pressures this year who will be transformed into diamonds, and who will be left standing on the side of the road.

But that's the thing about the past, it doesn't matter anymore and the next result is the only one worth thinking about.

A Bathurst finish worth of the great race in 2023

2024 points of interest

5 Rookies will be making their debut at Round 1:

• Andre Youssif - Altus Esports Australia
• Michael Whiting - Fishy Motorsports
• Connor Nixon - Vermillion Motorsports
• Jacob O’Reilly - Vermillion Motorsports
• Zachary Rattray-White - Vermillion Motorsports

5 drivers previously used in a Co-driver role will also be making their full time debut as well!

First, the obvious point. Vermillion Motorsports has come out of nowhere and put together a well functioning Supercars programme. First attempt and they immediately put 3 drivers straight into the series.

Second, what a start to the year for Jarrad Filsell. Some might look at the Lobs Esports driver as a bit of a villain after multiple trips to the stewards’ office last year. Turning over a new leaf? Maybe…. But maybe being forced down the route of the Qualifying series brought out a renewed energy and vigour. Either way, he’s in form for Round 1, maybe the extra laps have helped to find the hundredths of a second required to be at the front.

Jarrad Filsell swept the 2024 Qualifying Series

Time for some numbers!

3 seasons - 3 starts from Sebring

2022

4 cars covered by less than 6 tenths of a second created a phenomenal finish won by TTR’s Brady Meyers, with TTR teammate Jake Burton running out of fuel within touching distance of a win.
2x TTR cars in the top 4

2023

TTR’s Madison Down and Brady Meyer’s were separated by 4 tenths at the line. 2 years in a row 2 TTR cars in the top 4 separated by 3-4 tenths of a second.

Conclusion? Trans Tasman always get their campaign off to a flying start from Sebring!

Additionally, and for me the key factor, paint has been swapped on the final lap inside the top 10 on both trips to the old American Airfield.

I’d be keeping my eyes out for probably a strong run from the NineFive crew as well. Shawn Mcnamara picked up a golden ticket and Griffin Gardiner was also on song - Qualifying with only 3 rounds from the Qualifying Series.

What about Madison Down? He’ll be here defending his title. He’s won just about every bit of Supercars silverware you possibly can. He won this race last year. Odds on favourite, but not by much. I had to know, what keeps the motivation kicking?

“I’m just competitive. I love the challenge of extracting every last bit of pace and the satisfaction of executing better than anyone else. We all love to win and hate losing so even after 15 years of sim racing I still want to be at the front fighting for wins.”

LOBS Esports is going to be one of those topics that gets discussed a lot - lets look at their driver roster as the team makes their debut.

• James Scott
• Jarrad Filsell
• Dylan Rudd
• Luke Rosella

A number of drivers with a tonne of talent means this team will regularly be competing for wins. Something else to keep in mind is going to be their relationship with some of the best options in terms of potential Co-drivers. We won’t know for certain until we get to Sandown, but there are already rumours circulating this is where Brodie Kostecki will be driving…. Given everything going on for him right now that may not materialise, but keep your mind open and anything can happen.

Something of note is that the LOBS Esports drivers left a very tenuous relationship with Synergy Sim Racing as well. Ultimately that leaves Synergy in a weaker position and means that the target for team Synergy moves down a half step. Could this moving around in the driver and teams market play out on track? When its no longer dealing with a “team car” anything could happen… I’ll certainly be keeping an eye on this as it develops!

With that in mind, its going to be a bumpy ride! Tune in to see all the action from 7.45pm AEDT on Wednesday 13th March as 2024’s Logitech G Pro Invitational gets underway!

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by Scott Rankin

The concept is simple for the newest addition to the Logitech G Pro Invitational Series calendar, on a Wednesday night prior to the biggest race of the year we send all of the codrivers in the Trueforce Enduro Cup into battle for a 32 lap sprint at Bathurst. The prize? A golden ticket that resembles a coveted spot on the 2025 Pro Invitational Series grid. 

With everything to play for and nothing to lose, the night was destined to be action packed from the outset. A strong field of talented codrivers took to the track with a unique opportunity to put their skills on show without all of the main game drivers present. 
 
Qualifying kicked off with style as the favoured names quickly made their way to the pointy end of the timesheets. Early on it was evident that Lobs Esports and Trans Tasman Racing were going to be the main teams to beat with many of the other teams fighting to match their speed over one lap. A slew of unforced errors started to appear as the drivers who are not likely to be qualifying for this weekends Bathurst 1000 showed elements on inexperience under the pressure of a fast paced 20 minute session.

With the chequered flag falling it was Brodie Kostecki on top of the time sheets followed by Rehan Liyanage of TTR, Dylan Birse from Lobs Esports, Corey Shepherd from TTR and Sebastian Varndell from Vermillion Esports in the top 5.

Sensationally, Kostecki would be among a list of drivers served penalties for indiscretions during the session which would see the odds on favourite starting from the back of he grid. Others to be pinged by the stewards included fellow Lobs Esports driver Richie Stanaway and Trans Tasman Racing's Leigh Ellis.

Liyanage leads the field down into turn 1

With the front row now all to himself, Rehan Liyanage secured the Playseat Pole Position and converted a great launch off the line to lead the field into turn one. Just behind, him, Sebastian Varndell undid his tremendous efforts in qualifying to stall the car from 4th on the grid and narrowly avoid being collected by multiple cars as he sat motionless on the main straight, falling to the back of the field.

The first lap was packed with excitement as drivers tried to get up to speed and into a rhythm as quickly as possible with some drivers taking the opportunity to make some early moves and gain some track position. Everything appeared to settle at the front until Liyanage made a tiny mistake at the chase and ran deep under brakes and relinquished the lead to Dylan Birse. 

Lap two proved to be ever more thrilling than the first as Ryan Wood who started 9th made a move at the cutting and jammed up the cars behind of Kobi Williams and Dylan Perera who brilliantly went side by side at Reid Park forcing the #777 wide all the way to McPhillamy Park where Lachlan Caple managed to squeeze past and Seth Brown showed a nose and somehow they all came out the other side unscathed. 

The pace was hot and battles ensued throughout he field. The #94 of Kostecki was on the charge after starting from the back of the field and by lap 6 was already pushing towards the top 20. Contact between himself and Ross Rizzo at Forest Elbow shuffled the #36 down the order and caused a handful of cars to bunch together coming down Conrod Straight, culminating in another incident at the chase which saw Cameron  Jones turning the Fishy Motorsports entry of Michael Angus. Both Jones and Kostecki attracting penalties for their roles in the incidents.

One lap later at the final turn Kyle Stokes made an error and sent Brodie Sentance off the road and earned himself a 10 second penalty which was only worsened 2 laps later when Chad Lewis spun Richie Stanaway at the chase which also collected Stokes and caused significant damage to his Synergy Sim Racing Mustang. 

A huge shunt at the top of the mountain brings out the first safey car

The Logitech G Aston Martin Safety car made it's first appearance of the night on lap 11 after Sebastion Varndell bumped Jamie Stovold at Reid Park and sent the SSR #707 careening into the outside wall in one of the biggest impacts we've seen in the history of the series. Simultaneously Kostecki's night got even worst after yet another incident  at Turn 18 earned him a drive through penalty that he would carry until after the safety car period. In what proved to be a tough lap for Lobs Esports, Dylan Birse who was the race leader seemingly missed the safety car call and failed to head to pit lane and found himself trapped behind the safety car, leading the race but as the only driver in the field who had to still make a stop to get home.

In the pit cycle, Ryan Wood undercut the cars around him in the lane with a shorter stop to jump to provisional race lead with a train to TTR cars behind him in Liyanage, Emily Jones and Corey Shepherd for the restart.

Birse lead away from the green flag and relinquished position to his team mate Wood soon after at turn two but maintained good speed for the next several laps of the race while the lead pack all kept each other in check. The racing throughout the pack largely calmed down as the long run to the finish meant many drivers were managing their fuel and tyres. 

Apart from yet another incident on lap 12 with Kostecki and contact for Eddie Beswick on lap 16 that earned a drive through penalty, the middle stint of the race stayed clean and green until another big accident on lap 22 saw the Safety Car back on the circuit again. Richie Stanaway and Dylan Perera fighting for position on the way to The Cutting ended up with both cars hard into the wall and Tye Delaney the innocent victim who became stranded on track and forced a full course yellow.

Wood and Birse lead the Trans Tasman cars down the mountain

Dylan Birse took the opportunity to come to the lane and take service and joined the queue in position 15 for the restart on fresh tyres for what would be a rapid 9 lap sprint to the finish. However the green flag didn't even last for a single lap as Birse, attempting a desperate move made a mistake at Skyline and sent Brodie Sentance hard into the wall which brought out the safety car again. 

Simultaneously a dramatic twist saw Rehan Liyanage race side by side with Ryan Wood into the chase for the lead and end up in the grass under brakes and deep into the sand trap sending him down the race order at the same time as the safety car was called, ending his chance at racing for the victory.

The restart order with only 6 laps to go had Wood leading with Jones in 2nd, Shepherd 3rd, Lachlan Caple for Evolution Racing Team 4th and Seth Brown for Vermillion Esports rounding out the top 5.

The sprint to the finish was intense with the experienced Jones piling on the pressure to Supercar driver Ryan Wood for the remaining laps. Shepherd sat patiently in 3rd waiting for an opportunity as the top 3 started to pull away from the chasing pack. With 3 laps remaining Jones appeared to have the faster car as Wood continued to defend but as the laps wound down opportunities dried up and Wood was able to hold on for a thrilling victory.

Ryan Wood takes victory and the Golden Ticket to the 2025 Grid

When all was said and done the top ten looked like this:

1. Ryan Wood (Lobs Esports)
2. Emily Jones (TTR)
3. Corey Shepherd (TTR)
4. Brett Loxton (SSR)
5. Rehan Liyanage (TTR)
6. Kenneth Latter (9INE 5IVE Simsports)
7. Brad Ryan (ERT)
8. Chris Coxhead (SSR)
9. Seth Brown (Vermillion Esports)
10. Lachlan Caple (ERT)

The event overall was a thrilling way to kick of the Bathurst 1000 week which is fast become a marquee event of the sim racing calendar. Saturday will feature qualifying, a Porsche Support Race and a Top 15 Shootout while the main event of 161 laps will take place on Sunday.

Make sure to tune in on both days via the ASRG Youtube channel or the Simspeed TV network to catch all of the action!

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Monza in Italy is the next stop on the calendar for the Supercars Pro Invitational Series and despite seeming like a fairly straight forward curcuit, this is one of the toughest to get right in the Supercar. We spoke to Hayden Harrision and asked him for 5 things that he thinks are vital to success in Round 4.

Being in draft

A key aspect to Monza is being in draft with the car in front of you. In qualy scenario this gives you massive gains on your delta down the straights. While in race mode this also helps with your lap time speed but also gives you the opportunity to save fuel as the car in front is punching a hole for you. Less fuel being used equals a longer stint and more variations in strategy on your opponent’s.

Car setup

Monza is known for its long straights which is why I’ve said being in draft is key. Another advantage you can gain from these long straights with your setup is running less rear wing. If you can manage to build a set that still has the desirable amount of downforce for the corners with less wing, you’ll be a rocket down the straight for big moves into the heavy braking zones.

Rear tyre life

The rear tyres will be your best friend at monza. Especially coming out of the tricky turn 1-2 complex. The nicer you protect your tyres coming out of these corners the better you’ll be in the long run with drivers having bad exits due to bad tyre life, their top speed down the end of the straight will be down on yours.

Surviving turn 1

Like every race at every track, everyone fears the lap 1 turn 1 bust ups. Monza is a whole different ball game. A long run into turn 1 leaves the options open for drivers bombing up the inside and causing havoc. Having good race craft in this situation will play key. You can’t win a race into turn 1 but you can definitely lose it.

Mastering the chicanes

Monza is a very easy track to go jumping over curbs in the supercar. There are multiple chicanes around this track that will penalise you massively with a slow down or an off track which will make you drive off pace if you start to rack to many up. Even if you get through these chicanes but are slightly off line this will punish you down the long straights. Making sure you get the car pulled up while using the right amount of curb is key to keep the flow and not letting the car behind gain anymore than what it already gets with its draft.

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With just two rounds to go in the Qualifying Series, drivers jumped back in the rigs on Wednesday night with one thing on their mind: securing a spot in the Pro Series. For many at the top end of the field, all that required was securing a solid haul of points to maintain their place in the ever tumbling championship ladder. For others … It was make or break.

Taking to the infamously drama-inducing Hockenheimring, drivers and teams would be all hands on deck to tackle 4.6km of curb hopping, sharp changes of direction, and excruciating traction zones. For these reasons, this circuit can feel perfectly engineered to all of the Gen3’s weaknesses. Who could possibly rise to the challenge of “The Hock”?

Let’s dive into the action from Round 3 of the Logitech G Pro Invitational Qualifying Series to find out.

Drivers jostle for position in Qualifying

Round 3 delivered another spectacular Qualifying Session.

It was championship leader Brenton Hobson leading the pack out of the lane for the first time. Hobson would run deep at Turn 8, invalidating his first flying lap, but he was far from alone. Less than half the field managed to set a valid lap time on their initial run.

Out of the 16 cars to set a lap at that point in the session, Birse would hold provisional pole with a 1:40.944. The Eclipse driver was closely followed by teammate Woods, just 0.197s away. The two would trade the top spot multiple times as the session progressed.

The hairpin was an absolute mosh pit as drivers looked to secure their own patch of track. The first of many incidents began with Jack Widdas, who crawled through the hairpin on the inside as Lachlan Caple, Michael Talijancich and Brad Rattew hurled into the corner on flyers. Caple would be forced to check up first, which caused Talijancich to make contact with him on the rear bumper. Rattew would avoid contact with all parties, but was severely impeded by the drama ahead.

The resulting impedance on Rattew at the hairpin would result in Widdas being handed his first 10 second penalty of the afternoon. He would receive another penalty for impeding a separate group of drivers in the stadium section later on in the session. 

The naughty list continued to expand as the session progressed, with Dylan O’Shea receiving a 10 second penalty for turning Dylan Perera at the Hairpin.

Andrew Dyson’s name would come up in the race control screen multiple times, culminating in a pit lane start for the DPR driver, while fan favourite Kurt Stenberg would find himself in the top 5 after finally returning to the comfort of his own setup.

With all of the chaos coming to a close in qualifying, the front row would be locked out by Eclipse with Birse and Woods. The top 10 behind them would line up from Brenton Hobson, Matthew Bowler, Kurt Stenberg, Wayne Bourke, Ryan Jones, Jacob O’Reilly, Hayden Veld and Brian Borg.

The action was frantic right from the drop of the Green Flag

The action starts immediately as the Green Flag drops.

As the revs rose like a pack of hornets and the lights went out in Hockenheim, there was a plume of tyre smoke arising from pole position. Dylan Birse dropped the clutch too quick, and was pounced on, ultimately two-wide with the Evolution Racing Team Mustang of Matthew Bowler on the run through Turn 1.

Adding to the Eclipse nightmare, Kobi Williams and Tyce Hodge came together at the exit of the first corner, with Williams spinning over the nose of one Vermillion car, and into the door of another in Andre Yousiff.

Chaos ensued further down the pack at Turn 2 with Brian Borg being put sideways by the Tyrepower Camaro of Glen Postlelthwaite. Thankfully for Borg, Sebastian Varndell was alongside him at just the right time to point the RaceKraft Mustang straight before things got nasty.

Spectators and drivers prepared for imminent drama as the Qualifying Series hauled toward the hairpin for the first time of the night. 

Birse was the first of the send-ers as he scrambled to regain positions after his treacherous run off the line. While he had the move done on Bowler with relative ease, he only narrowly escaped serious contact with the Synergy Sim Racing Camaro of Brenton Hobson at the apex.

Not so lucky was his SSR teammate of Brady Baldwin, who would end up pointing the wrong way in the middle of the track. He was turned by Corey Preston, who had all four tyres locked before the contact occurred. Just a few moments later, Preston would also spin the Xcelerate Sim Racing Camaro of Greg Favelle as he tried to drive all the way around the drama on the outside. Preston received a drive through penalty for the incidents.

Lap 1 hairpin dramas for Brady Baldwin who gets turned around

Safety car, boards and flags. Safety car, boards and flags.

Things looked to have calmed down as the drivers formed into a single file line by lap 3. That was until the 9ine5ive Simsport car of Daniel Benefield found himself parked up on the side of the road with a very sad looking Mustang - bringing out a safety car.

At the hairpin, Benefield would dive down the inside of Favelle, hitting him on the right side. Both drivers would find themselves on the slippery exit curb, which allowed Rattew to get a convincing run on the way out of the corner. However, as Rattew and Favelle inched closer together with slightly different lines, they would eventually meet at the same bit of track.

Rattew tripped over the front of Favelle’s Camaro, jolting the Orbit Drop Bear Mustang to the left. Benefield was the bystander in that tangle, pit maneuvered into the barrier at high speed just before the right hand kink of Turn 7.

The early Safety Car opened the door for drivers to take to the pit lane and clear the first of two Compulsory Pit Stops.

Eclipse’s Damon Woods would drop right down the order to 37th, spending 50 seconds in the lane due to a pit lane speed infringement.

Matthew Bowler took the race lead over Brenton Hobson, while Vermillion’s Wayne Bourke sat just in front of a bloodthirsty Dylan Birse for the restart.

It didn't take long for the Logitech G safety car to be seen on track

Back to green … for now

Other than Vermillion’s Ben Faulkner looping ERT’s Jake Blackhall, the restart was relatively smooth sailing as drivers tried to settle back to normality. Brenton Hobson was one of many drivers wanting to stay out of trouble. With his championship status firmly up the pointy end, squabbles for extra positions were something he knew would be wise to avoid. He would concede two positions in one corner, as Bourke and Birse dived to his inside at the hairpin two laps after the restart.

Kurt Stenberg had dropped to 8th from his season-best start of 5th at this stage, but a minor lapse of concentration struck Stenberg at the hairpin on lap 9. Under pressure from Sebastian Varndell, Stenberg locked all four tyres, resulting in side-on contact with the bright pink Vermillion Camaro. While Varndell would manage to escape the contact with only a minor loss in time, Stenberg would spin around into the path of Tyce Hodge who had little time to react.

On lap 10, Birse launched his Eclipse Camaro down the inside of Wayne Bourke at the hairpin to claim second place. Two laps later, he would pass ERT’s Matthew Bowler for the lead at the same corner.

As the stint progressed, Bowler looked to be struggling once again on long-run pace. In the meantime, Bourke followed in Birse’s footsteps to pass the ERT driver in similar fashion on lap 13.

On lap 21, there was an incident that lasted for such a period of time … that it was still occurring as the commentators looked at the replays of its commencement. Dylan Perera was spun around at the hairpin by Dylan O’Shea in a fairly common pit-maneuver type of contact, and while the cars in the immediate vicinity of the incident were able to flow around the stationary Camaro, late arrivers weren’t so lucky. 

Perera stomped on the throttle in an attempt to get back into action, but immediately made contact with Michael Talijancich and then Andrew Dyson who T-boned Perera at the apex. Dyson was then essentially forced to push the Synergy Camaro all the way out of the corner. In that time, he lost multiple positions and was left with severe damage to the front of his car.

The drama continued for both Dyson and Perera two corners later. They were both victims of a late lockup from OPR’s Ryan Bettess at Turn 8. Perera learnt from his first lesson, staying off the track until it was clear this time around; he would also receive a drive through penalty for the long-lasting ordeal.

Birse, Bowler and Bourke fighting for the top 3 spots

The run home and more Safety Car chaos

With just over 15 laps to go, drivers began peeling into the lane for the last scheduled stops of the afternoon. Birse would be the first of the leaders to pit, while Vermillion aimed to go a tad longer with Bourke and O’Reilly.

Brenton Hobson had a heart-stopping moment when Hayden Veld made contact with his rear bumper, nudging him off balance in his travels to the pit lane. Hockenheim’s tricky pit entry had already caused similar incidents earlier in the race.

With the field cleansed and stops completed it seemed like a straightforward race to the finish until on lap 33, Corey Preston detonated an engine while working down the gears for the hairpin. Parking his all-white Mustang off the racing surface on exit, Preston would bring out the final safety car of the afternoon. It would also mark three consecutive rounds where an engine failure brings out a safety car in the Qualifying Series.

Dylan Birse, along with the vast majority of cars at the top end of the field, decided to stay out.

The lead pack would remain steadfast all the way to the line, and for good reason; most of them don’t require significant gains in the standings to secure a place in the pro series.

Corey Preston became the third driver in three races to detonate an engine and bring out a Safety Car

The hairpin’s curtain call.

Just when you thought it couldn’t be possible for another accident to happen at Turn 5; more paint was traded, and more panels were lost.

As Tao Soerono began to ease off the brake and turn into the corner, Glen Postlethwaite made a late defensive move on Tyce Hodge - resulting in a three-wide entry to the fabled collision zone. Soerono was just barely clipped by Postlethwaite’s Camaro, but it was more than enough to see the Vermillion car spun around on the exit in a pool of marbles.

Vysma found himself trying to power out of the corner on those same marbles just moments after Soerono’s accident. The Xelerate driver would cause an accident of his own when the inevitable loss of traction saw him stopped sideways on corner exit, before being collected by Dylan Perera.

Perera retired his car on the same lap.

The scrap for second place continued between Bowler and Bourke with just 4 laps to go; Bourke would find himself on top in that fight after Bowler got loose on the entry of the hairpin. Bowler’s focus was then diverted to holding off the blue Vermillion Mustang of O’Reilly.

The turn 5 Hairpin was the action spot on the track for contact at Hockenheim

Back-to-back Pro Series entries secured for Eclipse Simsport.

Dylan Birse ran to the line with a comfortable gap over Wayne Bourke to claim his golden ticket to the main game. Matthew Bowler would round out the podium in third, followed by O’Reilly,

Veld, Woods, Jones, Hobson, Borg, and Postlethwaite in the top 10 after penalties were applied.

While the battle at the front remained relatively stable, several drivers delivered standout performances by charging through the field.

McNamara was the biggest mover of the race, climbing an astonishing 24 places from 36th to 12th. Broad also impressed with a 19-place gain, finishing 15th after starting all the way down in 34th. Talijancich made up 14 places to secure 13th place.

As always, not everyone had a smooth run to the checkered flag.

Stenberg took the biggest drop of the day, tumbling 30 places from 5th to 35th after experiencing technical difficulties. Perera and Caple also suffered largely, losing 25 and 23 spots respectively. Preston’s race also fell apart on his tumble from 19th to 38th. These drivers will be looking to regroup and bounce back in the next round after a tough outing.

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by Harrison Lillas

After 3 rounds of scintillating action it's time to welcome a new member to the “tracks of the pro series” club. 

Picturesque Circuito de Jerez is located in the wine growing region of Jerez de la Frontera in the South West corner of Spain. Situated halfway between Gibraltar and Seville this mountainous area of Spain is a beautiful summer getaway location just off the Atlantic Ocean.

Temperatures this time of year start to build in the last days of Spring as the venue gets ready to host its round of the Logitech Pro Invitational Series. A Hot destination for hot racing, and a key moment during the series.

Speedcafe Lobs Esports driver Dylan Rudd has just assumed the lead of the championship, after Robbie Gibbs led the opening two rounds, and now has an 8 point margin back to Ric Kuznetsov’s Vermillion Motorsports machine.

However, the pack is coming, and coming fast.

The big key here is the changing Margins and I’ll highlight 8 drivers to really set the tone:

If the entirety of the Lobs Esports outfit have another strong race from Jerez it's very likely that they draw level with the Trans Tasman Drivers of Madison Down and Brady Meyers. That could be critical at this early juncture in the championship and gives them some leeway to have another off round.

On to the track!

It's a tricky little circuit! It has flow, corners that double back on themselves and the critical aspect of setup is the mid corner rotation. The corners are extremely long, and the load on the tire is immense. 

13 corners over a 4.42km lap, 8 to the right and 5 to the left.

Lots of run-off areas means the chances of a safety car go down, and we could end up with 3 races on the trot without one. 

250km of racing across 57 laps. Fuel tank range without saving is going to be 31 Laps, with some saving you could easily extend that out to 33 or beyond. It's a long stint, and it's not likely to happen.

Even stint length is 19 laps, expect undercuts to start from lap 15. If you’re in a big pack and you can’t make ground as the tires wear off (particularly if you’ve been able to look after the tires well).

Keep in the back of your mind whilst watching any car that hangs onto its tires. Why? Better long run pace gives you options. If you fall off on lap time by 0.2s per lap less than another car you can undercut them and not be punished by it.

Whilst on the topic of pit lane, pit entry here is difficult. Going over the white lines on the way in is one of the easier ways to kill a strong result. It's very tight, and on the surface looks simple… Until you get suckered in and have to serve a penalty. I’d expect at least 2 pit entry penalties, could easily be more.

Setup and driving style are basically a flat Phillip Island. Longer corners means setting the car in the mid corner is the focus and trying to drive as straight on the exit as possible on the exit. Drivers are looking to preserve tire in the curved acceleration zones out of the corners and that might be critical.

Corner entries to prioritise lap speed are actually wider than you might expect, that's an invitation to slice down the inside and get a move done. Could this result in a busy night for the stewards? We always hope not, but it is relevant to the racing regardless.

I’ve got Luke Rosella down to finally finish a race cleanly. He has a rear of grid start for multiple driving infringements from Red Bull Ring. Tough season surrounded by a new team and a huge opportunity. I’ll follow his night because driving from the back of the field proves a driver’s mettle. I want to see him tame it down a little, get things back on track and then press forwards again.

Brenton Hobson sits 10th in the points, but has run quiet races. The difficulty for Hobson is he relies on experience and staying clean to finish well. A newer track requires a bulk amount of laps he’s not capable of and I expect a worse finish as a result. Outside 20th, is my call, but if chaos breaks out expect Hobson to be the driver that comes out the other side.

Will Jerez be where we see Brenton Hobson fall down the standings?

Ethan Grigg-Gault is a tricky driver to evaluate. When he’s good he’s winning races. When he’s average he fills out the top 10. Something about this track is just crying out at me that he is on for two podiums in a row. Where he is on the podium I am very unsure about.

James Scott and Jarrad Filsell should be talked about as a compare and contrast situation. Scott is Mr Qualifying at the moment and his races reflect his outright speed, but also a free track around him. We are yet to see him in a cluster of cars and making his way through. How he handles that will define his season.

Filsell on the other hand is Mr Race Pace. Rear of the field to front at Sebring before the race exploded, P2 at Phillip Island from pole (arguably his worst drive of the season), and
Red Bull Ring he was on a charge, fastest stint pace in the field whilst making overtakes. Supremely impressive, honestly at this stage I have him down to win the title, but boy is it going to be tight!

Do they round out the podium? Maybe. Trans Tasman’s pace at Phillip Island was better and that's our best judge for pace. One of this pair on the podium, the other inside the top 5.

Andrew Gilliam is my pick to be the outside threat. His strategy gamble at Red Bull Ring paid off and he improved his race at the cost of middle stint pace. He’ll do something different again for sure! I’d love to see another Gilliam podium, but that's a brave call. I’ll back him in this week though, 3rd it is!

Who are your driver’s you want to watch? Is there someone I haven’t mentioned?

Hit up the comments, I’ll be keeping an eye on this one and will keep a closer eye on your picks!

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by Scott Rankin

As the qualifying series draws to a close the field is slowly bringing itself into a more consistent lineup. Funny that. The law of averages eventually has the cream rising to the top, whilst those that snatched a result will continue their slide downwards.

With Emily Jones, Kody Deith and Dylan Birse all locked in via their wins, we also have 2 drivers that are locked in on points and don’t even require points from the final race. Jacob O’Reilly and Brenton Hobson are more than 190 points ahead of 21st place Tao Soerono. Now a win is normally worth 200 points, but with a win guaranteeing your spot you can only make up 2nd place worth of points, or 190.

So now we move to the analysis of the battle for the bubble. Who is in, who is out?

This is where the focus is going to be tomorrow night. The margins on the bubble itself are actually fairly large for 3 rounds, and that reflects the up and down nature of the series thus far.

Once you get over the bubble the points actually close up. 24 points covers 6 drivers from 22nd to 27th. So should Ben Faulkner and Tao Soerono both have bad nights, that 20th Points spot becomes exceptionally spicy! Anyone from the top 20 gets the final win, and that pushes the pressure point from being on Faulkner to Soerono. Expect the win to be a critical factor to this battle for the bubble!

Drivers that have the pace to be in and aren’t are plenty. Richie Stanaway sits 26th after missing a round, Michael Talijancich was a recipient of a Golden Ticket for 2024’s pro series and he’s on the outside looking in. Add to these names Dylan Perera (retirement in Race 1), Jobe Stewart (only made 1 race thus far), and Tom Freer (pedal failure at Hockenheim) and there’s actually a lot of drivers not going to make the series.

The win and in changes that script though. Realistically its only going to be the top 25 who are a feasible chance of pointing their way in, and anyone else is a mathematical and race result oddity. Can you imagine a world where Stanaway is able to make the final race and wins it? Who else can take that win from nowhere?

Well its Winton that plays host to the final round. If you had said to me this was the case in Gen2 chassis, I’d say we’re in for a snooze fest. Marbles, low aero and a car that moves around a lot more changes that significantly.

Chatting to Tyson Broad (18th in points) from Orbit Drop Bear and he’s been on struggle street this week with prep work for Winton. Early work on setups was a struggle for front end bite and he generally struggles at Winton in general. Could this be a driver that moves from inside the bubble to out?

Tyson Broad will be amongst the drivers desperate to stay inside the top 20 in points

Strategy and undercuts are going to be supremely important to this track where the tires never get a break. Clear air on that undercut will also be critical. With so much run off (albeit grass run off) and we might finally get our first race without a Safety Car… Then again, the tight nature is absolutely going to trend towards more paint traded.

The big key for the guys in the top 15 will be “get a clean result on the board and we’re good to go” whilst everyone else is going to scrap for their lives.

See it all play out tomorrow night from 7.45pm AEDT.

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by Scott Rankin

As we head to Austria at the Red Bull Ring for Round 3 of the Championship the drivers return to the wide open spaces and away from the ultra technical Winton Raceway. It's the first look at a "Grand Prix" circuit for the teams this season and that alone provides it's own set of challenges when driving the Supercar. We spoke to Jake Burton and asked him for 5 things that he thinks are vital to success in Round 3.

1. Braking

One of the unique factors of this track is the lack of complex corners. Just about every corner here is a long straight, followed by a tight corner and another long straight. As a result, every meter you can shorten your braking zone is worth so much here. You approach each zone with such a high speed that the initial brake application has to be super aggressive, and ensure you trail off before you make the tight turn-ins.

2. Defensive Racecraft

Being a wide track with long straights leading into long braking zones, your opponents have so many opportunities to use the draft and put a high percentage move on you.
Something to also consider, is the majority of passing spots here have a corner turning the same direction immediately afterwards. A proper defense here involves timing your shift to a defensive line, ensuring you don’t make the next corner too tight, and then parking the bus as hard as you can to ensure they don’t get an over-under on you.

3. Fuel Saving

This track is really easy to fuel save on. It has an extremely high full throttle percentage, and many long straights with powerful draft. As a result, if you aren’t fuel saving in traffic, you’re guaranteed to lose time in the pits.

4. The exit of Turn 1

Turn 1 is probably one of the most difficult corners to get right that I have ever driven in the Supercar. It’s tight, uphill, and leads onto the tracks longest straight. It’s the ultimate balance between picking the right brake marker, timing your turn in, using just the right amount of curb, and running just wide enough to not invalidate your lap time. Cut the curb too much, you lose drive on corner exit. Don’t cut the curb enough, you end up pushing wide and praying the outside curb will be the berm that keeps you on the road. When you get it right, it feels phenomenal.

5. The pit lane entry

Without question one of the hardest pit lane entries of any track we visit. On the way in, it’s a right hand entry parked right in the middle of two high speed right handers. The risk level is high, as you’ve got to cross the track and brake from the racing line. If you’ve got a car right up your backside, it can really affect when you choose to pit.

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With the 2023 Motorsport Australia Logitech G Pro Invitational Cup underway, the series turns its focus to Europe for the first time this season, as we journey across the seas to one of the most formidable circuits in the world, Spa-Francorchamps.

Located in Stavelot, Belgium, the Spa-Francorchamps circuit was first opened in August of 1921, establishing a 14.982 25 turn circuit consisting of public roads through the local townships of Francorchamps, Malmedy & Stavelot creating an incredibly fast, exhilarating experience for all drivers who were willing to conquer it. The circuit has undergone considerable changes in the post war era, now established as a permanent 7.004 kilometre circuit consisting of 20 corners including the famous Eau Rouge, Raidillon & Blanchimont corners.

This week, championship leader and TTR stalwart Jake Burton takes us through what it takes to master one of the most demanding circuits on the 2023 Motorsport Australia Logitech G Pro Invitational Cup calendar.

1. Setting a valid Qualifying Lap

Across a lap at Spa there are so many places where you’re penalized for exceeding track limits. There are sizable gains at La Source, Eau Rouge, No Name, Pouhon, Stavelot and Blanchimont in opening the steering and exceeding the track limits, but doing so in qualifying will invalidate your lap. Such a long lap means you won’t get many opportunities to set a time, so ensuring you do a fast lap but importantly, a clean lap, will prevent a disaster in qualifying.

2. Striking a balance with wing angle

Across the last 12 months, we’ve seen many drivers and teams starting to play with rear wing angle to develop a straight line advantage in their setup. Spa has many long straights where you could certainly benefit from running a low-drag setup, but also has many high load corners such as Eau Rouge, Pouhon and Blanchimont where you want maximum downforce. Finding the ‘sweet spot’ between drag and downforce will be critical to developing a fast but agile racecar around this track.

3. Using the draft

There is a huge gain to be found at Spa in tow. Up to 0.5 seconds in qualifying, which can mean the difference between mid pack and the front. It’s difficult to balance however, as in some of the faster corners later in the lap, being too close to the car in front creates huge aero-wash. The drivers who maximize the use of the tow, will be the ones who leave enough gap to not catch the car in front, but also not too far so there is no tow benefit. You also need to depend on the car you’re following being fast enough to pull you along and not make any mistakes - this will benefit larger teams.

4. Fuel saving

With so many long straights and braking zones, accompanied with a strong tow from the draft, fuel saving will play a big element in this race. Don’t be surprised if you see drivers not wanting to lead early in the race, as the draft is too powerful to drive away, and punching a hole for everyone else will just leave you swamped when it’s time to pit. It’s also critical that if you save fuel the whole race, you take enough to drive home from your last stop at full tilt. This is an easy way to get caught out and one that I’ve learned the hard way.

5. Defense

When it gets to the last few laps of the race, the draft is so strong that it’s pretty easy to pass even if you’ve got worse tyres and less pace. If you’re leading the train you’ve got to be ready to put your car in the right place and pull other people up at the apex and stop them from getting an overlap on the inside. It’s so easy to lose 2-3 spots in one corner by getting freight trained due to the long corners at this track, so not letting anyone get past will be key in the dying stages.

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