9/27/12 Racers Island - Drift Car Series - Round 5 @ Garage track

The Racers Island drift series continued at the Garage track, a narrow track with plenty of wide and sharp turns. Ten drivers showed up and were ready to test their skills on this difficult circuit. Brave Ashbourne is leading the overall season standings in front of Yuriko Nishi by 20 points, but not all is played yet and there is plenty of time for the drivers to catch up! For today's qualification, Ashbourne managed to grab the pole in front of Yuriko Nishi who trailed him by 0,094 second.

Mathieson and Braham

Here are the results of the qualification:

Pole Position. Brave Ashbourne  17.649
P 2. Yuriko Nishi,  17.744, -0.094
P 3. Doll Kabuki,  17.821, -0.171
P 4. Shaft Laval,  17.892, -0.243
P 5. Eddie Mathieson,  17.903, -0.254
P 6. Biggs Braham,  17.955, -0.306
P 7. ZeuStorm Resident,  17.998, -0.348
P 8. domilyon Resident,  18.275, -0.626
P 9. Nella Boccara,  18.412, -0.763
P 10. 01010100 Resident,  18.454, -0.805

Starting grid of the B race

As there were ten racers, the decision has been taken to do two races, with the top 4 racers automatically qualified for the main race. The 25 laps B-race started with few changes, but that didn't last long as Braham took the lead on the second lap in front of Mathieson, while Zeustorm, Domilyon, Boccara and 01010100 fought together for the third position. These two groups battled each on their own for several laps, and the first development came on lap 8 as Boccara was able to detach herself from the group and take a bid for third place. Meanwhile, Braham stayed closely in front of Mathieson for the lead of the race. The order wouldn't stay for long, as Boccara, after a costly mistake, gave up third position to Zeustorm who had previously managed to let Domilyon and 01010100 fight each other behind him. The last position change of the race came on lap 17, where 01010100 shook off Domilyon for good to secure fifth place. Despite pushed hard, Mathieson didn't manage to catch up to Braham for the first place, but it was good enough for these two to move up to the main event of the day!

Close battle for the B race

Results of the B race

1st. Biggs Braham, 25 laps. Total Time : 454.778
2nd. Eddie Mathieson, -1.280 seconds.
3rd. ZeuStorm Resident, -12.969 seconds.
4th. Nella Boccara, -1 laps.
5th. 01010100 Resident, -1 laps.
6th. domilyon Resident, -1 laps.

Main event starting grid

The 30 laps main event was ready to take place, and even before all drivers crossed the start line to officially start their first lap, action happened! Indeed, Ashbourne suffered from a brain cramp and forgot to start at the same time than everyone, which made him lose the lead to the benefit of Nishi who finished the first lap leading the race, in front of Ashbourne who managed to come back to second place in front of the other four drivers, Mathieson, Braham, Kabuki and Laval, who battled with each other for the third place. Mathieson made a bid to keep the third place to himself as he managed to shake off the three other opponents behind him on the second lap. Ashbourne, despite missing the start, definitely didn't seem to have any problem on the track once he got started as on the fourth lap, he passed Nishi for the lead. On the 7th lap, Braham became another element that broke from the battle from the back and reduced the gap between himself and Mathieson for the third position. Unfortunately, his attempt to reach Mathieson caused him to do a few mistakes and brought him back into the battle for fourth place with Kabuki and Laval. Meanwhile, Ashbourne continued to expand his lead in front of Nishi.

Close racing in the A race

Close to the halfway point, on lap 14, Braham managed to get away again from Kabuki and Laval. He remained however far behind Mathieson, who himself got engaged in a battle with Nishi for the second place. The battle would rage on for several laps and Mathieson became victorious on lap 18th. At the same time, Kabuki managed to fortify her position on the 5th place, only to lose it two laps later due to a few costly mistakes. Nishi found herself to have trouble keeping up the pace at the end of the race and effectively lost third position to Braham on the 24th lap. Her problems wouldn't stop here, however, as a few other crashes on lap 26th brought her down to fifth place, which was previously regained by Kabuki over Laval. A close battle would ensue between Kabuki and Nishi until the end of the race, however the positions remained unchanged. Ashbourne crossed the finish line for his third victory in five races this season.

Ashbourne, Mathieson and Braham on the podium

Results of the main race:

1st. Brave Ashbourne, 30 laps. Total Time : 536.649
2nd. Eddie Mathieson, -7.626 seconds.
3rd. Biggs Braham, -11.437 seconds.
4th. Doll Kabuki, -12.929 seconds.
5th. Yuriko Nishi, -13.463 seconds.
6th. Shaft Laval, -15.820 seconds.

Kabuki and Laval

It may sound cliché, however this race is another example of why races are not set after the first turn. Nishi, despite leading the race early on, fell down to fifth place by the end of the race. Braham, who was battling at the back of the pack, managed to move up to third place over the course of the race. While having multiple people fall behind in a race is uncommon, it is nevertheless possible and as such a driver should never lose hope. Those steady laps made behind the racers in front could end up paying dividends if a major crash happens to one of them, or even better if they crash together! On this note, racers and readers, stay positive and never give up in your endeavours!