Qualifying report:

The Watkins Glen Cup layout provided yet another close qualifying session with Synergy Sim Racing’s Jarrad Filsell setting the benchmark late in qualifying with a 1:07.250 snatching pole position from his teammate James Scott by .087 of a second.

Dylan Rudd put on a impressive display in qualifying, slotting his 9ine 5ive SimSports Commodore into third, followed by Trans Tasman Racing’s Madison Down in 4th & Dylan O’Shea rounding out the top 5. Ethan Grigg-Gault would line up in 6th, followed by Jake Burton, Meyers, Freer & Anderson rounding out the top ten for the 77 lap encounter.

Race Report

As the green flag waved it would be Dylan Rudd leading the field into turn 1, closely followed by the SSR duo of Scott & Filsell as they prepared to charge up the hill & through the esses for the first time. Madison Down was lucky to escape early chaos, slight contact between himself and Dylan O’Shea on the opening lap saw the driver of the #77 in trouble through the first stage of the esses complex. Wrestling the car back into control, Down would escape with only a few positions lost.

Dylan Rudd would continue to lead the way through the opening laps as drivers settled into a rhythm throughout the early stages, still being trailed by the SSR duo of Scott & Filsell who chose to sit back and let Rudd dictate the pace of the race.

It didn’t take too long for trouble to brew in the train though, with lap ten holding the key to one of the major incidents of the night. An attempted move from Andrew Gilliam at the beginning of lap ten on Madison Down would set off a chain reaction behind, causing a bottleneck through the Esses on the run to the Bus Stop. Entering the Bus Stop Pursuit Sim Racing’s Jobe Stewart would collide with Jordan Ross’s Synergy Sim Racing Mustang who in turn would take Tom Freer & Jake Moloney out in the same incident. Stewart would find himself penalised for the infringement, while all 4 drivers involved would go on to have a difficult night as a result.

It was still smooth sailing at the front of the field for the time being, Dylan Rudd continuing to lead the way from James Scott & Jarrad Filsell.

Dylan O’Shea came out on top for the time being in his battle with Madison Down on lap 12 for 6th, shutting the door on Down through the Esses as he set his sights on moving forward. O’Shea received a return of serve from Madison Down no little than a lap later, Down placing a perfectly calculated move into turn 1 leaving O’Shea little to no reply. O’Shea tried his best to crowd the apex making Down’s exit difficult, but found himself dropping slightly down the order as a result.

Jake Burton also made a move on lap 13 over Ethan Grigg-Gault into turn one, promoting himself to the tail of the podium, a position from which he could battle for the race win.

James Scott made his move for the lead on lap 14, Filsell following suit into the bus stop shuffling Dylan Rudd onto the back of the podium. The two SSR teammates Scott & Filsell re taking control of the race for the point in time.

Cars continued to follow one another line astern before the first round of pit stops triggered by Ethan Grigg-Gault on lap 35. Rudd would be the next to follow on lap 37, with the remainder of the lead pack consisting of Filsell, Burton, Scott & Down transiting the lane at the completion of lap 38. Down & Burton lead the race off pit lane, with both Scott & Filsell opting for a unusual strategy call taking all their required fuel in the first stop, placing them down the order as they resumed the race.

Lap 40 provided plenty of carnage, Jordan Ross finding the rear of Richard Hamstead’s Trans Tasman Racing Mustang on the run up the hill to the Esses, sending both drivers for a wild ride into the barriers. Ross would revive a penalty for the incident which saw both the #29 & #143 mustang’s in the pits and out of the remainder of the race.

Jake Burton & Madison Down continued to control the field from the front in the middle portion of the race, while James Scott & Jarrad Filsell were making easy work of the midfield, slicing & dicing their way back through the field.

O’Shea pitted from inside the top 10 on lap 57, which would prove to be the catalyst for the remainder of the field to start taking their final compulsory pit stops for the night.

Down, Burton & Brady Meyers pitted from the front of the field on lap 59, rejoining the field in 10th, 11th & 12th a mere 30.5 seconds away from the race lead as they waited for the pit cycle to be completed in the coming laps.

Dylan O’Shea suffered a scary moment on lap 62, being turned around at high speed into the Esses at the hands of Josh Anderson, luckily, O’Shea didn’t find the fence, somehow missing both guard rails in one of the great saves of the 2023 season.

Filsell entered the pit lane on lap 64 to complete his pit stop cycle, rejoining the race out of contention. It soon became clear there had been a strategy blunder within the Synergy Sim Racing stable when James Scott completed his final stop laps later. A pit stop glitch for Scott only compounded the issue at hand, finding himself rejoining the race in a lowly 21st position and well out of contention for the race win.

Down made his move for the lead on stablemate Jake Burton on lap 71, making his move into the bus stop taking control of the race with only a handful of laps to go. Logitech G Pro Invitational Cup commentator Steven “Sandman” Clarke summed this moment up by stating -“ Well, no team orders here, Madison Down has gone and pinched it”. This move was short lived, Burton firing straight back at Down the following lap, in a replica move to the one Madison produced a lap prior.

This battle would continue all the way to the chequered flag, Down applying the blow torch to the back of the #8 TTR driver Burton, in what is one of the great battles of the 2023 season so far. Burton withstood the pressure, denying Down of victory.

Jake Burton crossed the line taking his second race victory of the season along with reinstating himself as the championship leader heading into round 6 of the championship at Red Bull Ring, Austria.

Madison Down continues to collect points with another podium finish in second place, along with Ethan Grigg-Gault finalising the podium places. Andrew Gilliam drove another impressive race to claim 4th, Dylan Rudd rounded out the top 5. The remainder of the top ten consisted of Brady Meyers in 6th, Robert Gibbs 7th, Scott 8th, Rattew 9th & Mathew Bowler Rounding out the top 10.

The championship battle remains tight at the top with Burton in control followed by James Scott in 2nd only 24 points behind.