The NASCAR season is postponed eight weeks due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but iRacing is flourishing. Particularly, the ERSCA Pristine Auction Series which took over the virtual Atlanta Motor Speedway last night. The race went green for the distance and was full of storylines. Big movers, consistent threats, and tire management. No bonehead moves (that I’m aware of) like we saw the past couple weeks. No, this was peak racing. Pure speed and strategy, baby. Atlanta is known for great racing, more specifically great finishes, and Joe Francis executed his strategy perfectly to clinch the race in the final laps. I’ll recap all the action and whatever else comes to my mind below.
No NASCAR, No Problem
Okay, so that heading is a lie. No NASCAR is a problem. Luckily for a racing junkie like me, ERSCA has my fix through the coronavirus pandemic. Although, precautions were taken last night as fans were not allowed in the grandstands to watch last night’s race. Ticket owners have been contacted and offered a six-pack of Mountain Dew as compensation. Meanwhile, on track, all 133 laps went green. Nick Masse and Josh Adams were factors early on but fell back due to pit-road related issues. Joe Francis, Tate Lightle, and Scott Crump traded the lead around in the final stages of the race. However, it was Francis who won the chess match by executing his pit strategy perfectly and conserving tires for a late run. His teammate Zeeshan Deura was one of the big movers on the day, starting 28th and finishing 9th.
What We’ve Learned so Far
This league is wide open. That’s all I know for certain about ERSCA Pristine Auction Series. The mile and a half tracks are where the pack separates itself. Last night we saw drivers rise and fall simultaneously along the ticker in real-time. There were some who were more consistent one way or the other, but no one seemed to really dominate Atlanta. After the first few races, Masse and Adams emerged as early championship favorites. Now, I could probably add two or three other names in the conversation easily.
The amount of talent that is in this league is immense and It’s really anybody’s ball game. There’s so much to speculate on in terms of who the favorites are. It’s still early though and let’s be honest, my opinion doesn’t mean crap. I know nothing about driver performance evaluation. I do know a lot about drinking Busch beer and watching racing though so I can confidently say that ERSCA is canon.
Top 5 Power Rankings
Bit of a shakeup in the order this week, but still absolutely clueless in how I’m determining these.
- 1. Josh Adams
- 2. Scott Crump
- 3. Nick Masse
- 4. Tate Lightle
- 5. Joe Francis
Victory Lane: Joe Francis
“Going into this race I was fairly confident in how I can run at Atlanta, It’s been one of my favorite tracks since I joined iRacing. That being said, it was not my favorite conditions. I always preferred something a little slicker. In this case, it was cold and tight which meant single file runs. After a couple of practice sessions, I still felt pretty good about the car, it was tight but not too tight. I qualified fourth and was able to hold onto that for the early portion. Then 20 laps into the run I started to catch the leaders. Gaining confidence over the run I tried to measure up to the competition running right behind the top three, I was not going to force the issue but I took every opportunity I had to get around them. Just running upfront in ERSCA is a challenge and a privilege.
Later on in the race when pit stops were coming up I saw some drivers pitting 10 to 20 laps before we ran out of fuel. I decided to stay out and go as far as I could. The pit stops came and went and I took it pretty easy. I ran a full-length race a few days beforehand and what cost me a chance to win was missing pit road. I was perfectly fine with giving up a little time if it meant I didn’t get a penalty. On the final run, I pitted with 45 to go knowing that it was going to be extremely tight on fuel. Eventually crossing the line with .7 gallons of fuel left and seeing the checkered flag. I would like to thank Josh, Tate, and Scott for being tough but clean racers. Zeeshan for putting GSR together at the last minute, The Flying Aces for hosting nightly races with great competition, and Strictly Stock motorsports the larger team I race for.”
Follow us on Twitter @bellyupracing and check out other great racing articles by the Belly Up Racing team
