Stykes King of Rattlesnake Hill

The drivers of the iROC K7 Creations Cup Series got their first taste of the division’s new low downforce package at Phoenix International Raceway.

Will Warstler, whose Last Car Loaded Motorsports team spent extensive time in the wind tunnel getting acclimated to the new aero setup, put his #6 Ford on the True Power Motor Oil Pole Position. Teammate Craig Stykes, in the #157, lined up to his outside.

Will Warstler won the pole.

When the green flag dropped, slipping and sliding quickly became the name of the game. Although a record-setting number of cautions slowed the pace of the online racing event significantly, the action at the front of the field was intense, with six drivers swapping the top spot over the race’s 125 laps.

Michael Chrobok, in the #7 HPP Simulation Chevrolet, led an event-high 39 laps, but tangled with Allan Young while trying to retake the top spot. Although his car suffered no damage in that incident, a late-race slip-up in the dogleg sent Chrobok’s car sideways, flat-spotting his tires and causing him to relinquish track position. Chrobok settled for 9^th.

Michael Chrobok (#7) tangled with Allan Young (#24) while trying to retake the top spot.

“I had a moment there with Allan Young, and I have to apologize because that was not intentional,” the Canadian sim racer said. “That threw us off our game a bit, and I made another mistake in the dogleg trying to hold on to my track position on the restart. The car just got out from under me when I made a move to the left. I think we still have a lot to learn with this new low downforce package. It was fun but definitely a handful. I’m happy to salvage a top ten out of tonight, and hopefully we can move on to better things at Fontana, which is the home track of our sponsor, HPP Simulation.”

With Chrobok out of contention, the seas parted for Craig Stykes, who secured his first win of the Cup Series season and locked himself into iROC’s version of the playoffs, the HPP Simulation Showdown for the Shifter.

Craig Stykes came away with the victory.

“Our night went better than I expected,” Stykes remarked. “With a field as strong as the K7 Creations Cup Series, I never thought I would come away with the victory! Phoenix has never really been a track I enjoyed, and with there being so many cautions, it really made track position important. I’m more of a long-run driver, and with all the short runs, I had to be more aggressive than I like. But, at the end of the race, the guys over here at Last Car Loaded Motorsports found ourselves in Victory Lane!”

Chris Westerfield finished second. Ty Hester came home third. Alex Bates and Travis McQuistion rounded out the top five.

The K7 Creations Cup Series’s sim racing returns to action at the two-mile D-shaped oval, Auto Club Speedway. To follow along with all the latest goings-on in the iROC world, visit RaceiROC.com.

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