Iowa’s Battle Royal

The NASCAR iRacing.com Class A Series brought excitement with them as online racing competitors made the trip to Iowa for Week Ten of their twelve week season. As if Iowa Speedway’s unique 7/8 mile oval did not provide enough setup nightmares for crew chiefs, the Chevrolet Impalas roared to life under the night sky for only the third time this season. History tells us when the lights come on, the action heats up — and this week lived up to those expectations.

Doyle (8) and Gottula (2) grew quite familiar with one another -- too familiar at times -- at Iowa. Here they trade a little paint in pursuit of Landon Huffman (5).

It was an eventful week for NiCLAS Division One points leader Kile Gottula, as he slots in second overall in the standings behind this week’s leader Reilly L Doyle. Doyle and Gottula became very familiar with each other throughout the week, as both made two starts – in the same two races. Gottula described the races as a “Battle Royal” as the two-evenly matched sim racers butted heads for a total of 280 laps. When the dust settled it was Doyle scoring 230 points for top honors, edging Gottula by a mere two points.

With 228 drivers taking to the track in Iowa, breaking into the top five was no easy task. Bobby Terrell put in a solid two races, scoring a top five in each start to slot into the third overall position on the week. Not all was lost for Gottula, as second place man in points Steve Ritter came home fourth, losing thirty points to the man out front. Another solid week was in store for Sandeep Banerjee, as the former NASCAR iRacing.com Series World Championship winner rounds-out the top five.

With only two weeks remaining in 2011 Season Four, California’s Gottula holds a 161 point lead over Ritter in the Division One standings. Current NASCAR iRacing.com Pro Series driver Robert Hall sits third overall. Although not necessarily running for points, Hall has put together a strong season with five wins and a dozen top five finishes to his credit.  Sandeep Banerjee seems to be in the mix every week, he currently sits fourth. Behind Banerjee is Rick Foutz who is in the midst of a very quiet, yet impressive season. Foutz has eleven top fives in his seventeen starts, and has put himself in a solid position with only a few weeks remaining.

Next week the NiCLAS is back to the grind at one of the fastest tracks on the schedule: Michigan International Speedway. Speeds could top 210mph as drivers barrel down the frontstretch at MIS for Week Eleven. Many drivers feel Michigan evens-up the playing field, with a good amount of draft, the setup doesn’t always have to be as perfect as at a track like Iowa. This means close racing, and surprise winners. We will have it all covered here at inRacingNews as the NiCLAS’ 2011 Season 4 begins to come to a close.

You may also like...

Recommended

iRacing Staff Member Profile: Production Associate Jake Poulin

Recommended

Cal State Fullerton’s Logan Clampitt dominates eNASCAR College iRacing Series at Nashville

Recommended

Audio Developer Blog – the Sounds of Rain

Recommended

eNASCAR College iRacing Series Race Preview: Nashville