Time Trial League - Rd 21 - Dubai

With the Jeddah track only just finished and passing the FIA checks on the eve of the Grand Prix weekend, it was right to not rush into recreating the track in GP4 until it was fully complete. Plus Prblanco has been busy all year creating other new tracks for us to test ourselves out on, let alone putting in great performances in this league. 

But I'm glad for the replacement, the Dubai Autodrome, which has been released by F1Virtual for some years now. It also resides in the middle east, and it was a resounding favourite option from the competitors for this round. 

The track features some high-speed corners, some challenging mid-speed corners and a couple of slower ones too. There's a good bit of variety, as well as undulation. Sector 1 is about high speed turns, there's no lifting between turns 2 and 5. Turn 7 is not great for keyboard users, a curved braking zone into a tightening corner, the CC-line is unforgiving for running wide here. Turn 9 offers some different lines onto the longest straight on the track, before a tight hairpin at the end of it. There's another couple of tight turns in 14 and 15 which offer different lines and techniques, and before you know it, there's one corner left before you're over the finish line. 

Let's get into the laps...

Thanks once more to Carl_gpgames for all these great videos. 

Carl is the only one using a wheel this round, the rest of us confined to using the keyboard. 

0:14 - It's Kerley who takes the top speed honours into turn 1, but we're all within 3 kph of each other, so it's pretty negligable. Turn 1 is down hill, quite fast, and you basically want to aim for a good exit for the flat-out sweeping turns coming up. So you can't afford to be too aggressive, but certainly those who are braver in here will reap the rewards. Although I'm heading into turn 1 first, it's Gildoorf who gets a better exit and leads the rest of the pack around turn 2. By the time we get to turn 4, Gildoorf and I are pretty tied together, but starting to build a gap to the pack behind. As usual, Prblanco is keeping us honest, 32bobo32 is not far behind him, and Kerley is slightly ahead of Carl. 

Gildoorf is able to maintain much more speed through turn 6 than the rest of us, without compromising his approach to turn 7. There's no dramas to report through here. 

0:38 - Sector 1 times have been set, and Gildoorf and I are clearly ahead, setting low 29s. Prblanco is just in the 29s, with 32bobo32 setting a low 30. Kerley is just keeping Carl behind him at this stage. 

1	Gildoorf	00:29.274	+0.000
2	Fongu	00:29.377	+0.103
3	Prblanco	00:29.906	+0.632
4	32bobo32	00:30.210	+0.936
5	KerleyF1	00:30.598	+1.324
6	Carl_gpgames	00:30.653	+1.379

As you flick through turn 8, you can stay on the inside, or you can sweep out wide, all of it is dependent on how you want to approach turn 9. I decide to keep it fairly tight on the inside, getting the power down early, and running as much exit kerb as possible onto the long straight. Gildoorf opts for a wide exit, and benefits from 20kph head start on my down the straight. The four runners behind all maintain their order through here, but Carl gets a better exit than Kerley and moves up a place by the end of the straight. 

0:53 - Speed trap time, and its Prblanco with the highest speed here. 

1	Prblanco	313.0
2	Fongu	311.5
3	KerleyF1	311.4
4	Gildoorf	311.3
5	Carl_gpgames	311.2
6	32bobo32	310.8

The rest of us are pretty similar, all within 1kph of each other. Although I'm slow onto the straight, I am marginally faster than Gildoorf by the end of it, but it's clear I have lost ground. Hard on the brakes into the right handed hairpin, and I take a bit too much speed in, running wide on the exit - almost reminiscent of all Max Verstappen's divebombs on Lewis Hamilton, though not that extreme. 

None of us really make the apex, but again, we're lining up for turn 11, which is tricky. It's tempting to take lots of speed through here, but as the track drops down hill, it can easily throw you over the kerbs and over track limits. It's Gildoorf who has more confidence to push on the exit here. Kerley misses the apex, running the corner wide, and on the wheel you'd have more confidence to carry more speed, but on the keyboard there's always a risk it will make you go wide and Carl takes full advantage to pull out a gap.

1:11 - Sector 2 times are set as we approach turn 12. 

1	Gildoorf	00:37.328	+0.000
2	Fongu	00:37.350	+0.022
3	Carl_gpgames	00:38.338	+1.010
4	32bobo32	00:38.363	+1.035
5	Prblanco	00:38.555	+1.227
6	KerleyF1	00:39.319	+1.991

Gildoorf and I are extremely close in our sector times once more. Just as close are Carl and 32bobo32, Carl really having a great sector, but both are a second slower than the leading duo. Prblanco is not far behind, but Kerley has dropped a second to Carl in this sector alone. 

The overall running order is:

1	Gildoorf	01:06.602	+0.000
2	Fongu	01:06.727	+0.125
3	Prblanco	01:08.461	+1.859
4	32bobo32	01:08.573	+1.971
5	Carl_gpgames	01:08.991	+2.389
6	KerleyF1	01:09.917	+3.315

As we round turn 12, there's very little to differentiate between the leading duo, with 32bobo32 very much in contention for a podium finish as he's right behind Prblanco now. Carl has extended his advantage over Kerley. 

1:22 - Into turn 14, and if I was on a wheel, I'd angle the car into the bend, braking in a straight line, do a tight turn and then accelerate out aiming for a wide entry into turn 15. Unfortunately it doesn't really translate on the keyboard, so there's very little to choose between my line and Gildroof's more traditional line, although he is quite wide through T14. 

32bobo32 is clearly behind Prblanco in the braking zone, but by the exit of the corner, he is clearly ahead. He too is slightly wide, but is able to carry the speed and momentum through the curve. These turns should really suit the wheel, but Carl has to tap on the brakes near the exit, when he probably could have been a bit braver. 

Into the final turn, and I'm a little too aggressive taking the traction control off too early, the correction taking me right onto the limit of the kerb, and that costs me time, losing any advantage I had around the middle of the bend. 32bobo32 has really found a big advantage over Prblanco through 14 and 15, and storms through turn 16 looking for a podium finish. Carl is neat and tidy, not far behind, whilst Kerley is performing all sorts of theatrics as he dances on the exit kerb. 

1	Gildoorf	00:27.448	+0.000
2	Fongu	00:27.550	+0.102
3	32bobo32	00:27.736	+0.288
4	Carl_gpgames	00:28.423	+0.975
5	Prblanco	00:28.426	+0.978
6	KerleyF1	00:29.443	+1.995

There's not been more than a tenth of a second between the top two in each sector, but it's Gildoorf who is setting all the purple times. 32bobo32 puts in an excellent third sector as we've noted, just a shade behind the leading duo. Carl and Prblanco are separated by just 0.003 seconds in this sector, a whole sector lost to the leaders in this sector alone and Kerley is a further second behind. 

1	Gildoorf	01:34.050	+0.000
2	Fongu	01:34.277	+0.227
3	32bobo32	01:36.309	+2.259
4	Prblanco	01:36.887	+2.837
5	Carl_gpgames	01:37.414	+3.364
6	KerleyF1	01:39.360	+5.310

Congratulations to Gildoorf for an impressive victory, I was able to keep him honest all the way around, but he fully deserves the win. Well done. The leading pair are over 2 seconds a lap quicker than the next competitor. Having said that, it looks like we were all pressed for time and we put a bit more than the others into it, as is the common theme in all the comments! 

Fongu: "just put half an hour into this, and one set up change. Pretty happy about this lap, was just getting into it"

Gildoorf: "Very glad to be back on top. Close fight for the whole lap, I'm surprised with purple for all sectors. 😀"

Carl: "Congratulations @Gildoorf to a very dominant victory and welcome back on the top step! 🍾🍾🍾"

A welcome return to the podium for 32bobo32, a fine final sector securing the four points ahead of Prblanco. Carl also finished the lap quite strong, you have to feel if there were a few more corners, he may even have finished up in fourth. 

32bobo32: "Today Blood donation..."
"...Yesterday night I collapsed from sleep on the sofa🥱💤💤💤💤"

Just 8 timed laps for Prblanco. 

Prblanco: "guess I got lucky in lap 6 😅"

Carl: "that's it for me, the kids don't let me"

After a few good rounds, Kerley struggled here in Dubai, but then he only did a couple of laps. 

Kerley: "I'm almost asleep on top of the computer ... This is the one of two laps."

Carl: "If you have a close look you can spot the rust on @Duffers' Mclaren 😉 🤣"

There's no changes to play for in the championship, but here's how it looks after 21 rounds. 

1	Fongu	170
2	Gildoorf	128
3	Prblanco	82
4	32bobo32	64
5	Carl_gpgames	51
6	KerleyF1	28
7	Duffer	20

Only one round left, it's been a very busy second half of the year, but there's one last chase for victory around the Yas Marina track.