Jansson's the man at Silverstone
Technical failure is dreaded by any racing driver, but never thought of during the heat of battle. Even in the seemingly perfectly simulated world, technical issues beyond the control of the driver can strike at the most inconvenient moment. Primed to claim the Apex Racing League Touring Car (ARLTC) title at the Sebring season finale, Ross Balfour’s campaign was ruthlessly and unsympathetically derailed by technical issues. While Balfour was forced to the side-lines, Kieran Harrison sped through to pinch the crown at the final moment.
Nevertheless, a new year and a new season beckons for the ARLTC paddock. With all reset to zero once more, the drivers prepared for the opening round of the season at the home of British motorsport, Silverstone.
Silverstone is no stranger to dramatic tin-top tussles. Who could forget the 1992 BTCC championship showdown when an over-exuberant Steve Soper collided with John Cleland, allowing Tim Harvey to scamper to the title. Cleland’s assessment of Soper’s antics is etched in touring car folklore. “The man’s an animal!” Boasting a grid of almost fifty identical Audi RS3 LMS TCR machines, similar shenanigans to Plato, Soper, Cleland, Muller et al, are all but guaranteed.
Defending champion, Kieran Harrison, sent a firm message to the ARLTC field with a fine pole position to kick off the season. Fastest of the AM class drivers, was Bobby Thompson. As a regular BTCC driver in an Audi S3, the Englishman is no stranger to door to door combat. Less than two tenths off overall pole at Silverstone, early indicators suggest Thompson will be hard to beat in the AM category.
Race 1
During race one, Carl Jansson signalled his intent to mount a championship charge this season. From the second row on the grid, the speedy Swede charged past ARLTC superstars, Kieran Harrison and Jack Sedgwick, and won the opening twenty-minute contest. BTCC ace Bobby Thompson converted his AM class pole to a class win and finished ninth overall.
A comprehensive playbook is essential for any driver with ambitions of becoming ARLTC champion. Qualifying pace, consistent lap times and race craft, in isolation, aren’t enough. To win sim racing’s premier touring car championship, a combination of all these attributes is critical. A signature of the ARLTC recipe, is reversed grids. During the second and third races of a meeting, the finishing order from the previous race is partly reversed to set the grid. Therefore, those with championship aspirations must continually fight to the front through a piranha pool of rivals.
Race 2
After a shaky race one, former champion Wojciech Swirydowicz charged from eighth on the grid to victory in his Apex Racing Team Audi. However, the major headline was held for race one victor, Carl Jansson. Starting from twenty-sixth on the grid, Core Sim Racing’s Scandinavian star picked his way through the crowd to finish second. Two podiums from two races for Jansson, an ominous start for his rivals.
Ben Gregory took advantage of a strong grid spot in race two, claiming an AM class win and fourth overall.
Race 3
For the third race of the meeting, the drivers saved the best for last. Throughout the race, HM Engineering’s Norbert Leitner and 5 Star Motorsport’s Adam Hadfield locked horns. Neither driver looked keen to yield and inevitably, the battle reached its crescendo on the final lap. Despite exiting the club chicane with a seemingly unassailable advantage, Norbert Leitner hooked up his Audi RS3 and swooped to the outside of the final curve and onto the curb. As Leitner and Hadfield swept past the finish line, the naked eye couldn’t determine a winner. Incredibly, it was Leitner who pinched the win by a sticker’s width. Sixteen thousandths of a second to be precise.
Mark Woodhouse took the final AM class triumph of the meeting by edging out Marius Karlstad by six tenths of a second.
Post Race
Following the race, several of the ARLTC paddock gave their thoughts on the opening meeting of a sixteen-round season.
Kieran Harrison: “It was a bit tough today as the #1 car, I’d be expected to win but Carl was really quick today, but I had an OK day.”
Preben Walle: “This was a dogfight! It’s great to be back! After last season, there was no doubt that I wanted to return. Starting at Silverstone International, which is tiny, was always going to be mayhem!”
Damien Owen Harris: “I got halfway through qualifying and I was down in twentieth place. I thought ‘oh no! I’m really going to struggle here!’ But, the race turned out ok and things went my way.”
ARLTC is back for round two of the championship beside the banks of Elkhart Lake and Road America. Tune in to Apex Racing TV on the 21st of January for live coverage at 8pm GMT.
