Season 3 Race 1: United States Grand Prix West Race Edit

Season 3 Race 1: United Stated Grand Prix West Press Clippings

Nergal Happy to Maintain Winning Streak
With Leonard McGee’s win at Long Beach, it marked the third consecutive season in which Nergal won the first race. Indeed, no other driver or team on the grid has won a season opener since the sport’s inception. “We’re happy that we’ve always had a strong start to the season, even if things haven’t always gone our way throughout,” team principal Jim Robinson said. “Our race didn’t go as well as it could have with McJergens’ retirement, but a win definitely helps to dull the ache.”

Koenig-RTK Strong Out of the Gate
No one knew exactly what to expect when Koenig-RTK rose from the ashes of L’equipe Duchamp. Doubts have been silenced, however, as the team rounded out the podium nicely at Long Beach. “They surprised me, I have to say,” Cory Sylvester of Centurion GP Racing said after the race. “I thought the team would have teething troubles, but they’re right there setting the pace. This is going to be an incredible fight this season.”

Season 3 Race 1: United States Grand Prix West Race Summary

As predicted, the weather did not change drastically from the day before. A cloud-covered sky loomed ominously over the beach. As such, the Nergal cars chose to start on Primes. Wright went with a riskier strategy, going out on Options. Meanwhile the Koenig-RTK and Centurion cars had to start on the Primes on which they qualified.

Season 3 Race 1: United States Grand Prix West Qualifying

Qualifying was a cloudy affair, with rain threatening the entire weekend. Due to the lack of stringent pre-season testing of setups, all teams opted to run their default configurations for this race. Additionally, Koenig-RTK continued the tradition of their predecessors by being the only team to not run KERS.

Season 3 Race 1: United States Grand Prix West Storylines

Costs, Time Cited in Lack of Testing – In general, the season begins with a testing period, giving the teams a chance to fine tune their planned setups for the season. However, this season’s test session was surprisingly short, with only a half of a lap at Laguna Seca designed more to test qualifying rules than chassis setups. The teams brought home some data, but how will this affect them in their first race of the season?

Everything New Is News Again – The season is about to begin, and a series of new regulations, a brand new team, and two new drivers are going to make this the most interesting season yet. Koenig-RTK Formula D promises to carry on strongly in the wake of L’equipe Duchamp. And to balance out the existing field, new gearbox regulations and the new qualifying session will keep everyone on an even keel. Who will take advantage of these new rules and come out on top in the early season?

Fifth Team Interested in Championship – News has come out recently that there is a fifth team interested in taking part in a limited number of races during the season. Their identity has not been disclosed yet, but reports indicate that they will enter only a few races towards the middle and end of the season in order to test their car for a season 4 bid for the championship. More news on this as it develops.

Season 3 Race 1: United States Grand Prix West Introduction

Change has come to the Formula D World Championship. L’equipe Duchamp is gone, replaced by the very German car company that supplied its engines for two years. Now the teams must qualify to earn their grid positions, forcing them to think strategically and drive carefully or risk having to start from the pitlane. Gearboxes are more resilient but more vital than ever, and every team has a different idea on how best to make use of them. With all of these changes in mind, however, the teams return to a track not seen since the very first season. Long Beach, with its incredible straights and winding corners, will prove to be a trial by fire for four teams who performed very limited pre-season testing. Who will deal with the changes best as the United States Grand Prix West begins?

Long Beach Track Analysis

Season 1 Race 2: United States Grand Prix Race Summary

After racing in Australia, the teams had a much better grasp of the types of wear and tear their cars would have to endure. However, Long Beach, California is a much different track than the one in Melbourne. The track has two incredibly long straights that can be taken flat out, but these straights are punctuated by incredibly tight turns. The cars have to be set up to handle engine strain as well as rapid gear shifts.

Season 1 Race 2: United States Grand Prix Storylines

Kings or Jesters? – Half the field stalled on the grid in Melbourne – the same half of the grid whose engines originate from German sports car company Koenig. Both L’equipe Duchamp-Koenig and Centurion-Koenig GP Racing claim the power plants were properly installed. Koenig alleges that both failures were due to software mapping errors but questions of mechanical resilience still linger, especially considering the engine’s documented fragility in pre-season dynamometer runs (both L’D-K and C-KGP rate their engine durability at 1). It remains to be seen whether Koenig’s confidence in their customer engines will prove to be folly when they are subjected to the brutal front straight at Long Beach.

McJergens Justice – Both Wright FD and Centurion have legitimate gripes with Nergal GP after the last race. After the racing incident in the first lap between Mic McJergens and Darren Richardson retired the Centurion car prematurely, the team honchos were calling for a penalty that never came. Likewise Nergal’s entry into this year’s season zipped past Wright’s car at the finish line, denying Wright what would have been the first win in their first season. Will these two teams make life difficult for Nergal and McJergens in the California heat?

Centurion Given Thumbs Down – After their race ended on lap 1, Centurion GP had to resign themselves to fourth place. However, in a late-arriving decision from the stewards, the total points they received from that position were halved. A spokesman claims that this is to encourage drivers to keep their cars intact and in the race, and that historically a points value of 0 would be issued to a car struck with a DNF. Centurion’s response to this is unknown at this time, but word on the paddock is that they’re struggling to come up with fixes to keep their car intact during the USGP.

Season 1 Race 2: United States Grand Prix Introduction

The season has only begun and already the stakes are high. The Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit has long been a place where racers cut their teeth at the season’s start. Drivers eager to prove the merits of their cars and their skill jockey for position through the tight turns and fast straights. This season was no exception, with one retirement and a split second finish. With Nergal GP Racing taking the lead, how will the other teams respond? Will early rivalries form, and will the shortcomings of the cars keep the drivers from pushing each other to their limits? The answers to these questions may soon be answered as the drivers travel to Long Beach for the United States Grand Prix.