World Grand Prix Championship 18 [RP/results]

by **Hodori Motorsports** » Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:34 pm

Soeshu, Hodori
BadApple Software
Another Monday, another shovelware game to localise and port to keep the lights on in the office and keep The Project moving along at its glacial pace. Waiting for the coffee to finish its first brew, Hakusa checked her twii.tur feed. And then let out a sigh.
“Morning, Kitten.” Pigeon, now with her hair bleached platinum blonde and dyed with red streaks, entered the break room and made her way to the fridge.
“Pigeon, who did you piss off this time?”
Pigeon shrugged. “Dunno. Probably nobody important.” Hakusa showed Pigeon her phone. After a moment, “Oh. Him. I guess I double-pissed him off.”
It really didn’t require much detective work to connect the 87 Pigeons that ran the Blue Flag Report to twii.ur user Pigeon_87.
“Guess I should respond.” Lunch secured, Pigeon sat down at one of the public terminals and logged in.

Blue Flag Report

@BFReport
- -@ItsGilArcher69

オカワイイコト

#MuchThreat : #ManyScary : #Wow : #HowCute : #MyCock : #SuckIt

As Hakusa transferred the contents of the coffee machine’s pot to one of the two cafetieres, grounds already apportioned, Pigeon switched accounts.

(Ov(Ov(OvO)vO)vO)

@Pigeon_87
- -@ItsGilArcher69

#WGPC : #TheyCrashYouWin : #HapiloppanGrandPrix : #PigeonsAreWonderful : #FiteMe

(Ov(Ov(OvO)vO)vO)

@Pigeon_87
- -@khakusa91

Whose inner goddess is useless now?

#WGPC : #HapiloppanGrandPrix : #SpecialDelivery : #PigeonGoddess : #GoddessOfPigeons

Dashoze, Hodori
Arada HQ
In her desperation to claw her way up the order and into the points, Sayono had made an ill-advised attempt at an outside overtake going into a turn. It had ended with her getting forced into the wall (oh crap, there’s one there). The suspension damage to the right rear left her with a badly crabbing car limping down the straight. Bringing it back to the garage was increasingly becoming unviable as an option, so she found somewhere safe on the approach to Chicken Bone Alley to pull off and park the wounded machine.

Since that day in that Nekonian maid cafe, it had been difficult to look her boss or teammate in the eye. Her recent underperformance in the past two rounds just made it harder and the debrief even more uncomfortable.

On the flight back home, she reread the message on her phone. From Arada, pertaining to the lineup for the upcoming domestic season and requesting her presence for the discussions. Checking the list of other CC’d recipients, it had also been sent to Okumura and some guy named Turakki Mayelli. examining the list more thoroughly, she saw all the other factory pilots, and noticed two more WGPC drivers; Valkyria and Mizushima.

Forgoing the traditional detour to Soeshu, taking the Super-Express high-speed line directly to Dashoze.

Entering Arada HQ’s lobby, the plinth near the entrance that traditionally displayed the most recent racing successes now showcased 208 and 210, hidden under tarps. From her brief forays onto social media, she had run across spy shots of the two prototypes, and once or twice found pictures of 208 and 210 running together. With both cars wearing the Obsidian Black GS paint versus the dazzle camouflage typical of pre-production models during that test, automotive journalists had tried scrutinizing a car they could not physically examine otherwise.

Stopped again at the security turnstile, the elevators on the other side. My badge is at home. In Soeshu. Again waiting for security to issue a new badge, this one a temporary loaner.

A conference room, on one of the upper floors of Arada Motorsports HQ. On a clear day, one could make out the nearby Dashoze Circuit.

At one end of the table, most of Arada leadership and a pair of white boards at the corners. At the other, pilots on Arada’s payroll and those specifically invited by Arada. One of the whiteboards, and the current topic of discussion, was Arada’s HGTC structure. GT600, two factory teams (No.16 Arada Motorsport and No.63 Reitoude Motor Sport) and a branch off the tree for customer teams. Lead pilot for the No.16 was Asao Nadakei, as expected. Second pilot for the No.16, pending confirmation of the offer, Erica Okumura. Lineup for the No.63, unchanged with Hokotai Kazuki as lead and Sayono Souzare as second. Lineups for the customer teams, No.3 Kojidari and No.111 SUPER OPTION, to be decided by themselves.

GT400, Nadakei Sport AYDP’s two cars and another branch for customer teams. No.55, Komuto Sugoni to reserve, Saya Kaseo to lead position and an offer for a Charyseine Valkyria as her copilot. No.56, Kaichiru Seyomaku out, Chiruno Saidema to lead, and an offer for Daryl Mizushima as copilot. Komuto Zabake retains his spot as reserve.

Formula Touring, four factory-backed cars and a number of customer teams. For the lead two-car Arada Motorsports team, the plan was for Okumura in the lead No.16 and Koshimuto Setaki to the No.17. For the two single-car teams, the plan was Sayono to Nadakei’s No.55, with Reitoude’s No.63 presently vacant, pending Mayelli signing an extension to stay in the seat and failing that, the results of Mizushima’s assessment. Displaced pilot Seyomaku was expected to land a spot among one of the customer teams.

Meanwhile, in a design lab in one of the lower floors, Chiruno Reitoude closely examined the compressor blades of a turbocharger unit, its casing carefully set aside. While lineup discussions were going on several floors above, Reitoude was autopsying the latest design candidate for the NVH/E160K 1.6-litre V6 engine.

The testing process was fairly simple: take the candidate, connect it to automated controls and a fuel supply, and simulate running the entire WGPC season up until the candidate failed, with a simulated 45 minutes of practice, 30 minutes of qualifying across four sessions, and then 305 simulated kilometers for every round. Repeat the process until the engine suffered catastrophic failure, and then pull it apart to see what broke and how. For testing input, the design team relied on Nadakei’s senses as a pilot to estimate appropriate engine inputs for most of the tracks. For simulating Dashoze, all the team had to do was put a candidate in a test mule and run a few laps.

As much as old woman Reitoude would like to be part of the discussions upstairs, she was far happier getting her hands dirty with automotive grease and cut and scraped by metal fragments.

by **Liventia** » Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:49 pm

CUTOFF

for Practice and Qualifying at Talbott Autodrome

by **Liventia** » Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:54 pm

Week 15: Practice

Conditions:      	Dry
Lap Record:      	00:01:40.071
Session Length:	75 minutes
Nation:         	LEN
Circuit:        	Talbott Autodrome

Drivers have 75 minutes to complete as many laps of the track as they like.

POS # ▍DRIVER                                     	FASTEST LAP	GAP TO LEADER
 1 76 ▍Adriana Kowalski                           	00:01:48.511	00:00:00.000
 2 28 ▍Sara Luna                                  	00:01:48.515	00:00:00.003
 3 12 ▍Anneliese Devereux                         	00:01:48.563	00:00:00.052
 4 25 ▍Gregori Krupin                             	00:01:48.656	00:00:00.145
 5 85 ▍Olivia Stone                               	00:01:48.664	00:00:00.153
 6 56 ▍Terho Talvela                              	00:01:48.668	00:00:00.157
 7 63 ▍Daryl Mizushima                            	00:01:48.699	00:00:00.188
 8 11 ▍Lane Carter                                	00:01:48.712	00:00:00.201
 9 46 ▍Kitti Armbruster                           	00:01:48.753	00:00:00.242
10 50 ▍Rudy Edwards                               	00:01:48.756	00:00:00.245
11 51 ▍R.L. Cruisin                               	00:01:48.863	00:00:00.351
12 14 ▍Sigur Bjarnason                            	00:01:48.902	00:00:00.391
13 72 ▍Charyseine Valkyria                        	00:01:48.934	00:00:00.423
14 52 ▍Sayono Souzare                             	00:01:48.982	00:00:00.471
15 27 ▍Dario Nülkeschläger                        	00:01:49.204	00:00:00.693
16 22 ▍Jasmin Kranjska                            	00:01:49.226	00:00:00.715
17 71 ▍Rustom Ibuna                               	00:01:49.298	00:00:00.787
18 77 ▍iBen Toralmintii                           	00:01:49.659	00:00:01.148
19 47 ▍Erica Okumura                              	00:01:49.867	00:00:01.356
20 42 ▍Alex Dimitrianov                           	00:01:50.131	00:00:01.620
21  7 ▍Abdoulaye Goita                            	00:01:50.258	00:00:01.747
22 19 ▍Dom Falepeau                               	00:01:50.437	00:00:01.926
23  8 ▍William Archer                             	00:01:50.630	00:00:02.119
24 94 ▍Ryker Lane                                 	00:01:50.670	00:00:02.159
25 23 ▍Cocoabo #23                                	00:01:50.679	00:00:02.168
26 37 ▍Niklas Schonbaum                           	00:01:50.706	00:00:02.195
27 82 ▍Kinu Luminna                               	00:01:50.997	00:00:02.485
28 41 ▍Jean Mercer-Daly                           	00:01:52.902	00:00:04.391

Week 15: Qualifying

Conditions:      	Dry
Lap Record:      	00:01:40.071
Qualifying Type:	Two-Tier
Nation:         	LEN
Circuit:        	Talbott Autodrome

POS # ▍DRIVER                                     	FASTEST LAP	GAP TO LEADER	FASTEST LAP	GAP TO LEADER
 1 37 ▍Niklas Schonbaum                           	00:01:43.822	00:00:00.002	00:01:41.088	00:00:00.000
 2 77 ▍iBen Toralmintii                           	00:01:43.833	00:00:00.014	00:01:41.101	00:00:00.013
 3  7 ▍Abdoulaye Goita                            	00:01:43.846	00:00:00.027	00:01:41.110	00:00:00.022
 4 11 ▍Lane Carter                                	00:01:43.820	00:00:00.001	00:01:41.141	00:00:00.053
 5 76 ▍Adriana Kowalski                           	00:01:43.848	00:00:00.028	00:01:41.224	00:00:00.136
 6 56 ▍Terho Talvela                              	00:01:43.826	00:00:00.006	00:01:41.231	00:00:00.143
 7 14 ▍Sigur Bjarnason                            	00:01:43.836	00:00:00.017	00:01:41.234	00:00:00.146
 8 51 ▍R.L. Cruisin                               	00:01:43.824	00:00:00.004	00:01:41.283	00:00:00.195
 9 71 ▍Rustom Ibuna                               	00:01:43.832	00:00:00.012	00:01:41.308	00:00:00.220
10 50 ▍Rudy Edwards                               	00:01:43.819	00:00:00.000	00:01:42.746	00:00:01.658
11 82 ▍Kinu Luminna                               	00:01:43.854	00:00:00.035		
12 25 ▍Gregori Krupin                             	00:01:43.861	00:00:00.041		
13 42 ▍Alex Dimitrianov                           	00:01:43.867	00:00:00.048		
14 85 ▍Olivia Stone                               	00:01:43.870	00:00:00.051		
15 23 ▍Cocoabo #23                                	00:01:43.889	00:00:00.070		
16 46 ▍Kitti Armbruster                           	00:01:43.889	00:00:00.070		
17 27 ▍Dario Nülkeschläger                        	00:01:43.903	00:00:00.084		
18 22 ▍Jasmin Kranjska                            	00:01:43.927	00:00:00.108		
19 28 ▍Sara Luna                                  	00:01:43.931	00:00:00.112		
20 12 ▍Anneliese Devereux                         	00:01:43.965	00:00:00.145		
21 19 ▍Dom Falepeau                               	00:01:43.973	00:00:00.154		
22 47 ▍Erica Okumura                              	00:01:43.991	00:00:00.172		
23 52 ▍Sayono Souzare                             	00:01:44.035	00:00:00.216		
 – 63 ▍Daryl Mizushima                            	00:01:44.101	00:00:00.282		
 – 72 ▍Charyseine Valkyria                        	00:01:44.204	00:00:00.384		
24 94 ▍Ryker Lane                                 	00:01:44.283	00:00:00.464		
25 41 ▍Jean Mercer-Daly                           	00:01:44.686	00:00:00.867		
26  8 ▍William Archer                             	00:01:46.155	00:00:02.336

by **Diarcesia** » Sun Dec 13, 2020 10:49 pm

Liftoff for Fitten
Week 15: Practice

As Fitten came around the hairpin at Turn Seven, Sara activated the team radio to announce that the car continued to grip the ground nicely. The Mark II's handling had only improved since its introduction.

"Affirm, conditions for the car are nominal," replied Emil.

"This should help us in getting through this weekend. As requested, I am continuing to work on the tires to gauge their lifespan here."

"Thank you, Sara. I'm glad we chose Tropicorp for this season. Their stuff is top notch."

And so the qualifying session ended. While one of the matchups to look for in the points battle is between Toralmintii and Talvela, there is another going on between Luna and Edwards. As for the latter pair, the qualifying results weren't in dispute. Luna fell way short of getting in the top 10 and was forced to start at P19 in a callback to earlier races in the season. And Edwards, who is tied with Talvela for the second-most points so far, logged the fastest lap to advance. He was well on his way to a front or second row starting place until a mishap put an end to those hopes and had the slowest qualifying lap in an otherwise tight competition for the pole.

In contrast, a few names impressed this Saturday. Niklas Schonbaum, smarting from his retirement at Happiloper, took pole position for TAS Alliance by besting iBen Toralmintii by a razor-thin 0.013 seconds. And then there is Abdoulaye Goita. The Reçuecian has been considered one of the trailblazers in his country's racing scene with his WGP2 championship at his debut, and his name is certain to carry more weight over time. Of course, there was the obvious. He is one of the more competitive drivers in the field, with a reputation of skillfully piloting his Viska car for several points finishes and a podium. Analysts were quite confident that Abdoulaye is more likely than not to win this race, putting him ahead of Edwards and Toralmintii.

Fireline's Adriana Kowalski was in a lot of pressure going into the latter half of the season. With the team's woes seemingly behind them with their new director at its helm, it had surely helped complement Kowalski's abilities and land her a P5 starting spot in tomorrow's race. Expect to see more of Valentian racing at its finest there.

Back to Sara Luna, her Sorlovian car had a bit of a lull in form coming out of the finish in Happiloper. Some mechanical troubles forced her to start her qualifying lap relatively late. She was frantically trying to maximize the remaining time and praying that her handful of laps would be good enough. It looked like every moment of her laps would do just that, until a momentary slip in concentration resulted in an understeer and her going wide in one of the corners. With this substantial slowdown in lap time, her race would be focused on another recovery drive if she is to keep her championship hopes alive.

"It's a shame that I couldn't keep up with the best," she said after the session. "We have our up days and our down days. This is one of the down days. I could have tried harder, concentrated better... but it's a lesson learned. Surely, my team will discuss about this later and make some corrections before the race."

Her words seemed to convey a little more than she intended, since that's where she hinted that there were some additional things happening in the background. It was speculated that her car (called Fitten by Sara) had some components reaching end-of-life that weren't replaced on time and was overlooked. No confirmation was made as of this writing. Of course, assessments can be read wrong in between races.

That said, Luna was adamant that she took responsibility in what she called another subpar performance. "The truth is that even though I didn't have the best tools at the time, my results show that I was not giving my 100% today."

She added that overall, she thought highly of her team and the car they made in general. "It was a steep learning curve stepping into the WGPC, but despite the bumps along the way, we were able to clear them. We left no stone unturned in trying to achieve that. Today, I fell short, but it could have been worse. What I can promise is that Fitten and I will make it up tomorrow. The season is not yet over."

Luna will face a huge hurdle tomorrow as she tries to win in Liventia from P19, in a racetrack known to be more difficult to overtake than some others. Should she do it, it will continue to be mathematically possible for her to take the drivers' championship even if Toralmintii maintains his starting grid position and takes both second place and the fastest lap.

"You better believe I will," said Sara's son, "I'll be good and save some for Violet, just as you say."

"I hope so, too," said his mother.

Zac saw one of Sara's eyebrows raised. Did he have anything to add?

"Uhh... all is good, mom, really. I really hope you're not mad because of it!"

"Yes, I know that," she said with a knowing look at him.

"So, uh, I have this."

Sara allowed herself to wait for Zac to show what he wanted to show. She swallowed to clear her mouth.

"I was going to give this, but...?"

"Yes, you'll be fine, Zac."

Zac's eyes widened. What? No! This was the real deal! This was more than anything he could have ever hoped for!

"I mean, you know, I'm not sure if what I made is really bad, but I hope it's not!"

Sara paused for a moment, a tear fell down her cheek.

"Something's wrong, mom?"

"It's nothing, Zac."

The tears were back. Zac would have a hard time at the present to coherently articulate it; she was far more emotional than he had expected. Sara flung her arms around her son and hugged him tight. He was glad to feel this touch. When he learned of the terrible, terrible moment that he wouldn't be able to see his real dad again, it was this hug that served as his refuge.

"I'm so sorry, baby," she said, not looking at him for several seconds. "I love you so much."

"I love you too, mom," he replied, still clinging tight to her. "I want to be with you forever."

"Me too, but—" the day will come when I'm no longer here. She stopped herself from completing the sentence. Not now. After all these years, her kids need to feel connected to her, to spend time with her, to get to know her. She never wants them to lose their mother, too.

She released Zac from the hug and looked at his bright eyes. "I will be here."

PRYFURIUM (The Chiyginian Prime) - The automotive company Pryfors Bilar (PB) is anticipating to proceed with forming its own WGP2 team after the conclusion of the current Diarcesian WGP3 season, according to public statements received by The Chiyginian Prime.

FILE PHOTO: Pryfors Bilar headquarters, September 26, 2017. THE CHIYGINIAN PRIME/Chris Melville

The team, should they start racing in the WGP2, would serve as the Aurun automaker Viska's junior team. Successful drivers from this outfit could see themselves promoted to the Viska WGPC team. While the PB WGP3 team is yet to claim a victory, they were able to finish in the podium places in several grands prix and are running at sixth overall in the constructors' championship leaderboard.

According to anonymous sources, talks are also ongoing for Air Kalactin from Northwest Kalactin to be one of its major sponsors. It is likely that PB would avail of the Monarchy's incentives for teams competing in international competitions for the first time.

PB has not commented on the Air Kalactin talks.

by **Hodori Motorsports** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 8:12 am

The Blue Flag Report
Posted by 87 Pigeons

Yall better watch yourself on Sunday coz if @OffishWillArch8 crashes I'm coming for u

@ItsGilArcher69

There you go @BFReport. A Preston crashing right into OCTAW. You happy now? Youre really lucky William walked away 4m that or else shits goin down

@ItsGilArcher69

You. Pigeon. You're also on my shitlist.

@ItsGilArcher69

You seem upset. How cute~ <3. Maybe you should spend more time channeling your inner goddess to get William Archer better results instead of being angery on twii.tur all the time.

And no, I’m not happy. Firstly, it turns out that shipping for over 170kg of meatballs is expensive, especially since they have to be kept frozen. Secondly, there was this stupid promotional campaign by Lord High Fuckass of the Dipshits, HTN.
Okay I lied seeing someone climb out unharmed from a crash did make me happy, which was expected given that at least Preston engineers are competent enough to design a worthwhile survival cell (Ask JMD). What made me even happier was seeing one of my distant babies giving Archer a present.

Now, for our usual disclaimer:
The Blue Flag Report is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by the WGPO, the WGPC, or its media partners. It also doesn’t pretend to be a serious news outlet, unlike HTN.

So let’s see how the carbon splintered in…
Round 8: Hapilopper

Pos No  DRV  Driver                    LNC  BFP  MBP
 1  28  LNA  Sara Luna                   2    2    0
 2  25  KRU  Gregori Krupin              4    4    0
 3  50  EDW  Rudy Edwards                4    4    0
 4   7  GTA  Abdoulaye Goita             5    5    0
 5  71  IBU  Rustom Ibuna                6    6    0
 6  11  CRT  Lane Carter                 6    6    0
 7  94  LAN  Ryker Lane                  7    7    0
 8  12  DEV  Anneliese Devereux          8    8    0
 9  85  STO  Olivia Stone                9    9    0
10  76  KOW  Adriana Kowalski           11   11    0
11  42  DIM  Alex Dimitrianov           16    3   13
12  27  NUL  Dario Nülkeschläger        19   19    0
13  72  VAL  Charyseine Valkyria        22   22    0
14  46  ARB  Kitti Armbruster           25    8   17
15  52  SZR  Sayono Souzare             27    7   20
16  82  LMN  Kinu Luminna               28   28    0
17  47  OKU  Erica Okumura              33   10   23
18  22  KRA  Jasmin Kranjska            34    6   28
19  63  MIZ  Daryl Mizushima            37   37    0
20  19  FAL  Dom Falepeau               51    4   47
21  37  SCH  Niklas Schonbaum           53    7   46
22  56  TAL  Terho Talvela              57    2   55
23  77  TII  iBen Toralmintii           58    2   56
24  23  C23  Cocoabo #23                69    7   62
25  51  CRU  R.L. Cruisin               70    3   67
26   8  ARC  William Archer            132    5  127
27  41  JMD  Jean Mercer-Daly          154   10  144
28  14  BJA  Sigur Bjarnason           155    1  154

Pos Constructor                        LNC  BFP  MBP
 1  Volkov Racing                        6    6    0
 2  Schkeksa-VSK Viska Racing           14   14    0
 3  Badai Angin Tim Motorsport          22    9   13
 4  Polaris Racing Team                 60   17   43
 5  TAS Alliance Racing                 61   15   46
 6  Race Eelandii V&T GP                76    9   67
 7  Fireline Motorsports                80   18   62
 8  Mattijania Racing Team              85   10   75
 9  WGPC Motorworks                    106  106    0
10  Tropicorp Racing Ælund             115    4  111
11  Preston Autos Grand Prix Racing    136    9  127
12  Nexus Racing                       161   17  144
13  SVJ Racing WGPC Team               180    9  171

This time, we’ll start with the bottom. Nülkeschläger and Luminna failed to make the race. JMD made it five laps in before retiring. Next out we have Toralmintii, making it to 20 laps complete (Be careful with that wall there). At 32 laps complete, Souzare (There’s a wall there, did you know that?). Next out is Bjarnason, managing to not be the first out with a lap 34 retirement. And then, at 39 laps completed, Archer (Hey watch out for that wall). Our final retirement here is Schonbaum, 42 laps complete. The next 15 drivers all made it to the finish, one lap down. Kranjska and Carter are the only two drivers here to complete the same number of lasp as the winner and not get on the podium. Cruisin is third, Edwards did not get enough Good and had to settle for second, and our winner is Sara Luna, at 52 laps complete.

As far as the Driver’s standings for the Blue Flag Cup go, the Lanes switch spots, Souzare falls to 15th after kissing the wall, Nülkeschläger doesn’t go anywhere in 12th, Luminna takes Armbruster’s old spot, Toralmintii slips back to 23rd, and JMD falls behind Archer. Bjarnason remains the single worst-performing driver here, completing one lap less than JMD at this point. For the Linco McPahan Unaward for Unreliability for Drivers, Bjarnason remains closest to that with a ten-lap deficit to JMD. With 100 laps remaining in the season, we have six drivers still capable of clinching the Blue Flag Cup. These drivers are listed with a nice blue colour in our standings.

For the Constructors, the top seven remain unchanged, though Polaris is one lap away from matching TAS Alliance. MRT and WGPC Motorworks overtake TRÆ, and Nexus suffered from a lack of Good and lose a position to Peston. SVJ continues to limp along, and manages to shrink their MBP deficit by 11 laps. 27 Meatball Points separate the two worst-performing teams in terms of laps completed.

As a closing thought, has anyone else noticed that the Hapilopper Grand Prix seems to have had the chequered flag dropped three laps early? Schedule says 55 laps, but timing says 52 laps complete.

Team Tarogama MotorSports ✓

@TTMS_Official_en
Proud to announce @Zaotani_Tegiza as the Fan's Choice #iROS driver for Round 2

#TalbottAutodrome : HGTC : FormulaHodori

Tegiza Zaotani

Hometown: Saemicha-kae, Hodori :: Age: 34
Sponsors: RAY-MU Motor Oil, A.mu's Project, Kawashiro Industries :: Fun Fact: Tegiza Zaotani is one of the few Hodoran racing drivers to also hold a road license.

Biography: Born and raised in a small town in central Hodori, Tegiza Zaotani started her racing career driving inexpensive, lightly-modified kei cars around the Saemicha Racing Park at 14. At 19, she began racing in the Kadegu Cup spec series, using heavily modified, mid-engined rear-wheel drive 200PS racing machines based on the front-engined front-wheel drive 64PS Dekijika Kadegu kei car. Three years later for the season of Hodoran year 164, she began racing in what is now the GT400 class of the Hodoran GT Championship in its inaugural season, driving the four-door Tarogama S224KZ for the now-defunct Deyoze Racing team.

For the season of Hodoran year 166, she began driving for Tarogama customer team Gazanarikeyu Racing in what is now the lead GT600 class. After a number of years racing under the ENSADRINK banner, she moved to the main Tarogama factory team for the season of Hodoran year 170. A successful, though winless, season the next year saw her taking the championship crown in the GT1 class. The following season, held in Hodoran year 172, saw an unsucessful championship defense, with Zaotani and copilot Mizeno Zabane losing out to the Reitoude Motor Sport pair of Hokotai Kazuki and Koshimuto Setaki by eight points.

The next two seasons were ones of frustration, as she finished the season of Hodoran year 173 6th in class, and the season of Hodoran year 174 9th.

In the season of Hodoran year 175, in addition to her GT600 duties she began racing for Team Tarogama MotorSports in domestic open-wheel, winning the championship in her first season with two wins. This open-wheel foray proved more fruitful than her GT600 season, where she finish 7th and only graced the podium once.

Tegiza Zaotani will be representing the All-Hodori Formula Touring Championship during the first iROS

03

Fan's Choice Driver

Motorsports_Accomplishments:

2 total Driver's Championships (1 GT600, 1 FT)

6 total Race wins (1 GT400, 3 GT600, 2 FT)

27 total Race podiums (5 GT400, 20 GT600, 2 FT)

HY165: GT680 Drivers championship 3rd place

HY167: GT800 Drivers championship runner-up

HY171: GT1 Drivers Champion

HY172: GT1 Drivers championship runner-up

HY175: Formula Touring Driver's Champion

works? · by **Abanhfleft** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 8:45 am

GUILLERMO RODOLFO ARCHER ✓

@ItsGilArcher69
- -@BFReport

日本人の後ろに何を隠そうとしていますか？私には通訳がいないと思いますか？ (1/3)

#WGPC18 : #HapiloppanGrandPrix : #BlueFlagReport : #BlueFlagBastards : #BlueFlagSickos : #TryingToHideBehindJapanese

GUILLERMO RODOLFO ARCHER ✓

@ItsGilArcher69
- -@BFReport

So u think its cute 2 wish potential injury/death 2 a driver just so u can get ur karma? That what gets u up & running every day? (2/3)

#WGPC18 : #HapiloppanGrandPrix : #BlueFlagReport : #BlueFlagBastards : #BlueFlagSickos

GUILLERMO RODOLFO ARCHER ✓

@ItsGilArcher69
- -@BFReport

Suck my cock? That the best u can do? Tabloid hacks insult me with much worse. Shit blogger & even shittier human being u are (3/3)

#WGPC18 : #HapiloppanGrandPrix : #BlueFlagReport : #BlueFlagBastards : #BlueFlagSickos : #YouGottaDoBetterThanThat

GUILLERMO RODOLFO ARCHER ✓

@ItsGilArcher69
- -@Pigeon_87

#WGPC18 : #HapiloppanGrandPrix : #PigeonsAreShit : #DontMessWithAnArcher : #YoureNotReadyForMeOrMyEmojis : #IWillFiteYouIRLM8

Top Speed is a long-running car magazine show that has been broadcast in the Democratic Republic of Abanhfleft since 2000. The show has gone through many formats and hosts over the years, with the current format being a group of celebrity car enthusiasts getting together on all sorts of wacky and crazy challenges and generally pushing both their cars and each other to their absolute limits. The show has been generally praised in the country for the natural chemistry between the four presenters, who are united in their love for cars and going fast despite their different backgrounds. And along with their car challenges, the show also tackles the latest news in automotive and motorsports worlds through their Top Speed Top News segment. The following is an excerpt from the Top Speed Top News from the latest episode of Top Speed:

Carlos "Gibby" Gibson (host of Top Speed): Guess who's back? Yep, it's none other than Guillermo Archer himself. The two-time Abanhfleft Racing Truck Series champion and winner of the Rookie of the Year award for NSSCRA Season 9 is back on social media again as he's begun attacking the Hodori-based account Blue Flag Report after the latter went on twii.tur hoping for a double DNF for Hapilopper's Preston Autos Grand Prix Racing Team. Now gentlemen, this seems to be a completely random target for Mr. Archer to be going after given that Blue Flag Report appears to be mostly concerned about the WGPC. Thoughts on this one?

Ibrahim "Ibra" Ahmadinejad (Fleftic Major League of Baseball Hall of Famer): Look, before we say anything else, I think it's just fair that we put the whole thing into context. Okay, so on the build-up to the Hapiloppan Grand Prix, HTN, the Hap national network—or at least I think it's their national network–launched a promo where people had to guess which driver was going to be the first one to crash at the wall beside the corner aptly named "Oh Crap, There's a Wall".

Hristo "Chris" Haralampiev (retired Rosenpfelblatz City football player): Jesus Christ, that was a real thing!? I always thought that shit was just a meme. And someone in Hapilopper actually approved this shit?

Draco "Rako" Novoire (former president of Abanhfleft): You better believe it, Chris. But you also gotta remember that stock car racing is way bigger in Hapilopper than open wheelers, I believe. I mean, you know what they say: open-wheeler fans watch because they love to see the absolute pinnacle of automotive engineering; stock car fans watch because they love to see crashes.

Chris: That sounds awfully elitist of you, Rako.

Rako: Shut up.

Ibra: Anyway, so HTN launches this campaign, and of course there's some outcry about it. Not just from abroad, though. Marty Lewis himself, team principal for Preston Autos GP, has publicly ridiculed the campaign himself, calling it "absolutely tasteless" and that if any one of his drivers ever crashed into OCTAW, he's going to hand the bosses of HTN their asses. Or words to that effect. Anyway, this Blue Flag Report sees this promo, is understandably miffed about it, and so takes to twii.tur to vent their anger. They also take the time to wish for a double DNF for Preston by crashing into the wall.

Rako: Oof! No wonder Gil got triggered. That is his son William we're talking about here, or at least he's one half of what we're talking about here. It's Papa Gil to the rescue once again, isn't it?

Gibby: Yep. Remember the last time someone on social media mentioned William in a post? Yup, it's Gilly boy versus the Jags all over again.

Rako: Geez, what did that guy from TJUN-ia, the social media manager, Carlisle or whatever, what did he say about William say again? It's gotta be something bad, right?

Ibra: It was nothing like that, actually. The guy just mentioned that the Jags have got no quarrel with William, who was in WGP2 at the same time as NSSCRA 9.

Chris: Man, talk about grasping at straws. I know Gil himself said that he wants to bring some actual rivalry to NSSCRA, but I'd never thought he'd manufacture one out of whole cloth altogether.

Rako: I mean, I kinda actually relate to him a little bit. When you become a dad, you sometimes get all defensive about your kids. I'm thinking Gil saw William's name in the thing, and it just triggered the guy. Not saying that that's actually happened, I'm just putting it out there as one version of events that could've possibly happened.

Gibby: You know what, that might actually explain the second part of this ongoing saga. We've got another twii.tur account, @Pigeon_87, the person writing for Blue Flag Report itself, talking about, and I quote, "channeling my inner bird goddess" to cover both the HTN execs and the Prestons in bird shit. So of course the bird goes onto Gilly boy's shit list as well. It's all an absolute shitshow if you ask me, but what about you guys? What's your take on it?

Ibra: Well, it's sort of inevitable, don't you think? And I mean that in two ways: first, the fact that William Archer is now a bona fide WGPC means that it's inevitable that Gil is going to rear his ugly head in that particular series; it was just a matter of when and not if he's going to start off another twii.tur war. Gil's still feeling shortchanged by Qiang not biting on his twiis at all at the tail end of last season, so now he's got another target to practice on, so to speak. Secondly, someone is always going to be saying something bad about William, rightfully or no, and that's going to put Papa Archer into Gaëtano Bernardeschi mode. Things just converged to put all of us in this particular situation where now we have to talk about yet another spat on social media instead of the truly important things, like the fact that the Chadwick Frodo just got a new facelift!

Gibby: Oh, but it gets better. So William Archer crashes right at OCTAW, just when it looked like Preston was set for a good little 2-3. Papa Archer goes on twii.tur and immediately slams Blue Flag Report for pulling the good ole karma trick. Here's BFR's reply, and according to our resident deep learning machine translator, the twii says, and nobody correct me if I'm butchering this, "Okawaiichoto" which apparently translates to "How cute".

Rako: Ooh! They did not just do that!

Gibby: Oh, but they did. And why the fuck are you smiling, Chris?

Chris: Nothing, just remembered that whenever Archer's target starts to speak another language, that's when you know the fight is on. Remember when that Jag guy went all Spanish and Gil went Spanish right back? You just know Gil's not gonna back down now that this BFR dude's just switched to Japanese.

Ibra: But check out those hashes though. Does that really sound like something who actually cares about Gil would say?

Rako: I mean... yeah, sure, they're completely weaksauce, and Gil will probably completely demolish 'em in one single twii, but he's also gonna treat that as the opening salvo. By the look of things, both Gil and BFR smell blood in the water, it's just a matter of who's going to back down first. If it's just the start though, sure as hell it ain't Gil.

Gibby: All right then, gentlemen. Final verdict?

Rako: Look, I get where the fuck BFR is coming from with their initial twiis. I don't like the shit HTN tried to pull with the "They Crash, You Win" promo and fucking painting a fucking bullseye on the damned wall. I think everyone in this studio can all agree with that sentiment. But BFR and Pigeon_87 or whatever also didn't know that they were going to get confronted by Papa Gil Archer, and to that all I can say is... good luck.

Gibby: Right, moving on then. Ibra, what was that you just said about the Frodo getting a facelift?...

by **Hapilopper** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 9:41 am

Talbott Autodrome, Talbott, Liventia
Qualifying for the Grand Prix of Liventia
Rudy Edwards was feeling good. He had just set the fastest time in the first session of qualifying, and was feeling even better about his chances for qualifying on the pole for the next day’s Liventian Grand Prix. As he sat inside his Preston PGP-01 between the two sessions, he looked at a couple of monitors, which were conveniently placed in between the halo of the car. The first monitor showed the timing charts for qualifying, while the second monitor showed a video feed of what was going on at the track.

Everything had gone well for him during the weekend. It seemed like anything he had wanted to do with the car, he could, and he was convinced that in 15 short minutes, he would be climbing out of the car as the polesitter for the Liventian Grand Prix, and the odds-on favorite to win the next day, possibly doing something magnificent for his World Championship hopes.

He had no idea of what was to come during the second half of qualifying. As the monitors were put back, new tires put on his Preston and the car’s stock-block V6 was fired up, Rudy got ready to head out to set what he felt was going to be a pole run. He had no idea that disaster was about to break loose during his run. Nobody could foresee that catastrophe was about to unfold.

His first run was a 1:42.746, over a second quicker than his run in the first half of qualifying. That seemed like that made sense, the track had gotten quicker during the run as the surface was rubbered down and he got more comfortable with doing banzai beer runs during qualifying. But he still felt like there was more in the car. He pulled in, put new tires on, and waited for a second.

As he sat there and waited, Marty Lewis walked over to Rudy’s car.

“How much more do you think you can get out of that?” Marty asked with a smile on his face.

“Quite a bit,” Rudy replied. “We’re just getting warmed up, pal.”

Marty chuckled as he moved back as Rudy headed back out onto the circuit. He wouldn’t make it back to pit road under power.

As he completed his out lap, Rudy went for broke. In sector one, he was outpacing everyone. He was running quicker than Toralmintii, Goita, Carter, Talvela, Schonbaum, all of them. Rudy had entered a special zone only reserved for the finest of fine drivers in the multiverse, a zone where everything ceases to exist but for the track, the car, and where to go and where not to go. Through turn seven, turn eight, nine and ten, everything seemed absolutely perfect. Eleven and twelve, just the same. Rudy glanced at the wheel to see a purple light flash as he left turn twelve.

He was on pace to be the fastest man on track. He didn’t know by how much, he just knew that he was the fastest at that point. There was no change of expression on his face. The purple light flashed for a few seconds then went out. He remained steadfastly focused to the track and the right place to move at the right time. The correct line. The exact braking point, down to the exact millimeter.

3. 2. 1. BRAKE! DOWNSHIFT! DOWN TO 1ST! GUN IT! 2ND! 3RD! 4th! BRAKE!

Nothing could go wrong for Rudy at that point. Nothing else other than completing the lap, getting the pole position and staking his claim as the top driver in the Grand Prix world ran through his mind. Through turn 16 and 17, he knew there was just a few more turns to go, he had to get them exactly perfect, and the pole position would be his. Almost subconsciously, he pushed a button to enable the DRS system on his car. On cue, the top flap on the rear wing folded up, granting Rudy less drag to give him a higher speed on the long straight between turns 17 and 18. He’d press the button again before turn 18 to put the flap back and give him the drag he needed. But as he hit the button, he realized something had gone wrong.

Maybe it hadn’t been set up properly. Maybe it wasn’t correctly configured. Or maybe something had sheared away. But when he looked in his mirror, he realized that when he hit the DRS button, the top flap of the wing had flown off completely. For all intents and purposes, he had no rear wing. He realized the pole was gone. And he realized that he was on a course for disaster.

“OH CRAP, THERE’S A WALL!” Rudy screamed looking straight towards the runoff at turn 18.

Rudy flicked the car hard to the left, sending it spinning, but it was too late. It all felt like it was all in slow motion, and he realized that this was going to hurt. This was going to suck. So he put his head down, closed his eyes, clasped his arms against him, and braced for impact.

BOOM!

The car nailed the wall on driver’s right with sickening force. With impact, the car pirouetted into the air and helicoptered around, landing on all fours in the middle of turn 19. Marshals started waving yellow and red flags immediately while others rushed to see if the Hapiloppian driver was OK.

Meanwhile, Marty, watching the monitors on the pit gantry, was horrified with what he had seen. He started keying the mic frantically.

“HOLY SHIT! Rudy, you OK? Rudy? Answer me!” Marty yelped over the radio.

Rudy opened his eyes and looked up to see the trail of destruction that led to his car. There was debris everywhere. The car had been demolished, but the survival cell had remained intact. He looked over to see marshals running over to check on him and started hearing Marty screaming in his ear.

Struggling to breathe, Rudy keyed his mic.

“I’m fine,” Rudy struggled to say. “I’m OK. Rear wing broke.”

With that response, Marty breathed a sigh of relief, then looked at the monitor, which was showing a replay. Sure enough, as Rudy had said, the rear wing snapped as the DRS was enabled. Relief turned to frustration, and Marty turned around to look at his mechanics. He was curious as to whose ass to kick first. There was no reason for a rear wing to fail like that, and he wanted to know exactly why something like this could happen.

Rudy climbed out of the car and stared at it. The car had been, for all intents and purposes, written off. The entire right side of the car had been totaled. Instead of taking the pole for the Liventian Grand Prix, Rudy would be driving a backup car, a car he had no experience in.

This car, the car he had just demolished against a wall, was the car he had scored three straight podiums in. He had won Nekoni in this car. He had finished 2nd in Filindostan and Hapilopper City. And now it was toast. A total write-off. If he wanted to do well the next day in Liventia, he would have to work extra hard. And that stung at him more than a little bit.

by **TJUN-ia** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 10:20 am

WGPC18 - Round 9
Liventia Airways Grand Prix of Liventia
Talbott Autodrome, Talbott, Liventia (So close to the end...

)

You'd think that the nation that controls the WGPC would want to host the final race of the season but no, not in Liventia they don't. Welcome to the infamous Talbott Autodrome for the 2nd-to-last race weekend of the 18th World Grand Prix Championship, where it may as well be a prelude to a potential finally. We all know that either iBen Toralminti will win the title this weekend or this battle will go to Mattijana next week, so the pressure will mostly be on the Turorian to end the battle right here and to claim eternal glory for himself and Ælund.

As for TJUN-ian interests, Lane Carter is on a roll. 5th in San Marco, 4th in Hapilopper City and that is what we call "momentum". He's certainly been proving his worth over the last few races, but will the luck run out in the "home" race for the Motorworks team?

Friday - Practice
The Talbott Autodrome. Lane Carter has never raced here before or even heard of the circuit before this season, but he could understand why it was infamous when he arrived on Wednesday to Liventia. It was a fascinating circuit to look at on a map, with tight angles and unforgiving sections to be seen, but Lane couldn't know how bad it was for sure until he got out on track for Friday Practice.

Turns out, his suspicions were correct. Talbott was a peculiar beast to tame, but a challenge the Galarian rose to on Friday. His pace wasn't the best, that would go to Adriana Kowalski of all people, but being only 2 tenths back in 9th wasn't the worst outcome at all. R.L. Cruisin was down in 11th and Jean Mercer-Daly was 4 seconds down in last, with 2 drivers just ahead on the Galarian being Terho Talvela and...Daryl Mizushima.

Ah, Daryl. He couldn't quite explain it, but the Galarian always seemed to smile whenever he thought about his Inkhallen friend. Daryl did have a point in the e-mail he sent a few days ago: that maybe the lack of nervousness in Hap City was a sign the two of them were actually friends. Lane liked that thought and he liked Daryl as a friend, too.

Saturday - Qualifying (Two-Tier)
For the first time in quite a while, Saturday brought about a Two-tiered Qualifying session: Top 10 in Q1 contest pole in Q2. Simple as that. That meant Lane would have to make Q2 if he was to end up qualifying in the Top 10 once again and he knew he had the pace to do so, but would it be enough here?

This session would be tight, really tight. The differences in drivers often went down to hundredths and thousandths and not tenths with only Willaim Archer not setting a lap within 1 second of the pace (or 2, for that matter). To put things into perspective, Daryl lap was only 2 tenths off the pace but, if he qualified, he would only be starting in 24th. That's how tight it was. Carter would be up into Q2 after all, P2 by only a thousandth to Rudy Edwards and only a thousandth ahead of Niklas Schonbaum. Cruisin was .004 for the pace and Kinu Luminna missed out despite being only .035 behind Edwards. It was very tight but in the end, both Race Eelandii's made it in.

Q2 would be an interesting tale to tell. Everyone set the first lap but Rudy Edwards would have a terrifying crash whilst doing his 2nd, somehow managing to get out of the car after a big shunt on turn 18. The session would continue without the Hap driver, who will start 10th, and a major battle ensued for pole. That battle would be, surprisingly, won by Niklas Schonbaum, The driver from Siovanija and Teusland are yet to score a single point in the WGPC thus far, but that didn't stop him from claiming pole today. Only 3 other drivers were within a tenth of Niklas' time: iBen Toralmintii, Abdoulaye Goita (another surprise) and (you guessed it) Lane Carter. Adriana Kowalski will have Talvela for company on Row 3 with R.L. Cruisin ending up in 8th. Schonbaum, Toralmintii, Goita, Carter. That is a wacky Top 4!

The momentum the Galarain is having right now just doesn't want to stop. Lane is feeling better than he ever has in this series right now but he felt that it was a combination of both Daryl and the Galarian's form that has surely sweetened the mood. Lane knows he could be in contention for something tomorrow, but what will that be? I guess he had to find out soon enough, but he had more pressing matters to deal with. He had an email to send.

To: Daryl Mizushima (dmizushima@squidmail.sqr)
From: Lane Carter (lcarter@jagwire.tj.un)
Subject: RE(15): Letter

Hello once again, my good friend! It's nice to see you progress across this season and I'm glad to see you get your name up in the timesheets yesterday. I'm sorry you didn't qualify again, but you should be proud. It was very tight out there and your performance would certainly have been good enough to qualify on any other day. I have no doubt you will tackle Ljubala with that same energy and maybe that time, you will be more successful.

Speaking of Ljubala, I wholeheartedly agree about meeting up there! The final Saturday before the end of the season. Sounds very legendary and final, like the "Day Before" or something like that. In my ideal scenario, I want to go out of this season all guns blazing, like Will Archer in WGP2 S3, but I'm not sure if I could do that. I'll certainly try, though, and I know you will too!

Anyways, I've gotta prepare for racing tomorrow. Hope you cheer me on and I hope you're doing alright, too. I'll always be here whenever you need me, no doubt about that.

Kind Regards,

Lane Carter
Driver of #10 for Race Eelandii V&T GP

by **Auruna** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 11:52 am

Talbott Autodrome
Practice
After a fine week, Viska prepared for the next race weekend. Everyone was fresh and ready to go. The circuit was new for the team and they had to gather all the necessary data and learn the circuit.

While Artur is formulating a strategy at the background, Jöna is talking to Goita and Olivia before he heads to the pit wall. "Hope you had a fine week. I know it has been difficult for you, for the team, but we're still here to support you, alright? Now go out there, drive as you would and enjoy. Let's go."

Their practice went on pretty well. The times were slower than expected but hey, it's practice and a new circuit for the team. What's more important to them is the data, hoping to bring in more points this weekend, they're more serious than usual. Everything was ordered to be precise and the setups to be perfect. Trying to play into their strengths.

The session ended in a good note. The times didn't matter but every other thing were.

Time to strike back.

Qualifying
A two-tier qualifying, a familiar format to them, they have encountered it in WGP2. For this weekend, they would be trying to do their qualifying tow again, to benefit both drivers. It's a slightly complicated plan but they usually make it work. They wait for a while, they didn't want to head out first. Then it was time to go out. Olivia was sent out first then Goita. Fingers were crossed whether or not the plan will go well.

The two went to work with their hot laps. Their times were good but one of them was getting faster and faster. Goita shaving off a lot of time from his previous fastest laps while Olivia is seen struggling to keep up. They had to help her out. They called her in followed by a quick change to fresher softs to try and help her times. The session is ending, time is running out, a push to breach the top 10 was underway.

It wasn't enough and Olivia had to settle for P14. A lot of work to do for tomorrow's race. Goita, meanwhile, managed to get inside the top 10 and move on to Q2.

Q2 starts and the track surface was fairly grippy with a lot of rubber laid down. They send Goita out on mediums after a quick debate on the race strategy, considering their luck with the softs at the previous race, they later called him in for softs then let loose.

A quick message from Jan during the out-lap won't hurt a bit. "Alright, after that tyre debate... Mode 7, Burst available. Let's show them what you can do."

Goita starts his hot lap, DRS open, speeding through the pit straight until he reaches the first corner. Trusting his car, he brakes a bit later. This patter continues, a combination of man and machine at work, with the two trusting each other. He tackles the corners at speed, keeping his pace. The engine is screaming as Goita accelerates at the exits. "Come on, keep it up." Jan says off the radio as he closely watches Goita's lap. Another DRS zone at the straight after turns 16 and 17, he opens DRS followed by a surge of energy from the hybrid. He was flying.

Everyone was anxious to know his time as he rounds the final corner into the pit straight. Then he crosses the line.

It was his fastest lap around the circuit. Jöna looks at his monitor, looking for Goita's time. He saw it, his fastest time was a 1:41.110, two-hundredths of a second off of polesitter Niklas Schonbaum and it was P3, starting at the second row. No questions were asked about their luck, they just enjoyed the moment. The whole team was cheering.

Goita's race engineer was so delighted by his performance. "Yes! Starting P3 tomorrow, great job! You were like an eagle through a forest there. Sÿrä jaa, sÿrä jaa! (tl. Great work, great work!) Let's continue this tomorrow. Your call to aim for the win, etteremät!"

Qualifying
Completely disregarded practice to focus on qualifying, Kinu was hoping for things to turn around. With a car that didn't suit his driving style even with extensive setup changes, he could only rely on his luck which was bad for the previous weekends. His luck would get him close to the top 10 and grant him the chance to race. It was his time. Oh almost forgot to mention that he qualified P11.

The latter half of the season was his lowest so far but this time he could see the light, although it's a bit dim.

"Lukas, how did I do?"

"Time is 1:43.854 and that's P11. Good job."

"Whew... finally, my week was bad, was hoping it doesn't spill into the weekends. Thanks."

"And Dario's going to be racing with you from P17, good job to both of you."

"Ahh... I would like some coffee after this."

by **Squidroidia** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 11:59 am

Practice was a fluke and a half. 7th place in the session? In the dry? That was enough to make any driver excited for qualifying. Although Daryl was doing that good at practice in Talbott before iROS (Spoiler alert: No Motorworks drivers were involved in the race), qualifying was another story entirely. Once again on the dry surface of Talbott, Daryl faltered on the track and slipped back to reality. P24, 3rd out of the Motorworks vehicles. Qualifying and practice were hard-fought and close, however, so this wasn't really a surprise for him.

The real surprise, however, was Rudy Edwards slipping up hard in Q2. The Hap driver went from topping the timing sheets in Q1... To falling out entirely in Q2. He crashed into the wall like HE was in that Hapilioppian Grand Prix contest. You know the one, "They Crash, You Win"? The one the pigeon got mad at? Yeah, that.

Now a freaking TAS car got pole. TAS, the 8 point joke of this season, got pole position with Niklas Schonbaum and his #37 machine. Between this and Daryl getting his first points, the last few weeks of racing were wet and wild. And with the championship heating up, Daryl had to once again sit in the stands and watch Dario and Kinu sling their cars around. Mr. Mizushima was back to regular service.

As he logged his way back to the hotel room in Liventia, he got 2 emails. Of course, the first came from Race Eelandii driver Lane Carter. Like tradition, Daryl got back to work on typing out the email for his supposed friend.

To: Lane Carter
From: Daryl Mizushima
Subject: RE(16): Letter

Welcome back Lane! I hope you're doing okay - Qualifying and practice was as tight as sardines! I mean yes, I didn't do so hot in qualifying, but could you blame me? I have NEVER seen qualifying so tight in my short career! You were, like, 2 one thousandths of a second behind Edwards in Q1? Those are some NSSCRA numbers if I have ever seen them!

Speaking of NSSCRA, yeah the Pick-Ems! Pick-Ems were great during the Lannisburg race, and so did yours! It does help when we back the same guy in the form of Ishikawa, heh... We didn't do so hot for the Milford's Milkshakes 400, and with Ishikawa 22nd at the Fortress Run we're probably going to dip low again. But hey, it's a fun thing to do to pass the time! I hope the Jag teammates in Mercado and Stefan do well in Nuuk!

And yes, I am cool with one last meeting in Ljubala! If I don't qualify it will probably be one last sendoff before I head back home for the offseason and plan my route next season. Just one last chat before next season, before I get let go from the Motorworks team and we start from Square 1 again! I can't believe I actually got to this! I still am not good at racing, but this just shows how far I have gone since I wanted to do this.

Good luck in the race tomorrow, I will cheer you through the race! For now, see you in Mattijana!

-Daryl Mizushima
#63 WGPC Motorworks driver

The 2nd email... Came from Ishikawa. It was just his phone number and nothing else. He was probably up for a chat about something...

by **Vilita and Turori** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 12:00 pm

TORALMINTII FALTERS AS RACE EELANDII SHINE

Preston Autos Hapiloppian Grand Prix, Hapilopper City Grand Prix Circuit, Hapilopper City, Hapilopper :: iBen Toralmintii was a veteran driver who had experienced almost everything over the course of his racing career. He experienced all the highs and lows - from being a WGPC Motorworks driver struggling to keep pace with the well funded teams on the World Grand Prix Circuit, to being a two-time champion of the Nationstates Super Formula Championship. However, as the World Grand Prix Circuit descended on Hapilopper City the witty Veteran had to buckle down for something new. Entering the Preston Autos Hapiloppian Grand Prix weekend, iBen Toralmintii held a 24 point advantage over the second place driver in the World Grand Prix Championship driver standings, his teammate, Terho Talvela. While it was the largest lead a driver had opened up all season it was by no means significant as both Toralmintii and Talvela knew all too well. After all, Toralmintii nearly erased a deficit of 80 points on Talvela over the last three events of the WGPC 17 campaign. Such a gap made Toralmintii's less-than-one-race of points lead seem quite paltry at the same point in the season. Still, late in the week, the media started their chattering. Once one outfit did the math to realize that if iBen won the Race and took Fast Lap and neither of the three drivers behind him in points were able to finish in the Top 10... the questions never stopped. Can you do it. Will you do it.

This was new for iBen. He had plenty of experience as the underdog. He had won both of his NSFC titles by coming from behind and taking victory in the final event of the season to claim the title. He had nearly done the same chasing down Terho Talvela during WGPC 17 winning the final four events of the season only for Talvela to escape with a narrow five point title win. Now, iBen was the favorite. All the attention was on him. Car #77. He wasn't letting the new perspective bother him. He was used to media attention. He just wanted to avoid some of the questions. He had a fast car. While the Hapilopper City Grand Prix Circuit was probably the track that would least match his driving style over the final three events, he still had confidence that he could achieve a solid result. He was comfortable with the teams 8th place run in Qualifying, as the AGP-003 was always built more for race day performance than it was for Qualifying prowess. He felt as long as he could avoid mistakes - either by himself or others, then a Top 5 finish and a solid points day was well within the cards. He just hated saying it. He hated having to listen to reporter after reporter ask him if he's going to win the race and set the Fast Lap to earn the title. At the start of the week he would address the question by mahaking sure the reporters understood that even if he did that, he wouldn't be champion unless three other drivers failed to score a certain amount of points. He would explain how unlikely the whole scenario was and try to deflect to other questions.

It didn't matter. As iBen was making his way up the grid to the #77 machine, the questions were still coming. "One Race at a Time. One Corner at a Time." had become his standard, canned response to the question. Once he got into the cockpit, all the voices subsided. It was just him, the car, and the crew. Yet on track, the stakes were a little different. One season ago iBen needed every point. Nothing could be left on the table. There was only one way to drive. To the extreme. Now, there was more at stake. He could sense himself backing out of a situation he may have normally been more aggressive in and taking spots on the start. Before long, his teammate Terho Talvela - who had started five spots behind on the grid, was in his mirror. The two started their march together up the field. Then, in the blink of an eye, the #77 car came to a halt. It was a hard impact and the race was over. iBen immediately tried to diagnose the situation. Was it mechanical? Was it debris? What was it? Immediately on the radio iBen was discussing with the Tropicorp Engineers as they reviewed the data to see what happened and to be prepared to advise the #56 if needed. Then, the track crew arrived at the car and urged iBen out of the cockpit. The gravity of the situation hadn't dawned on him until that moment. Then the field approached with caution and he saw both Rudy Edwards and Talvela near the front of the line. A visible sigh emitted from the Turorian's normally firm stance as he took of his gloves and walked toward the nearest opening in the fence line to head back to the paddock. He knew that this was likely to be his bogey track in the final stretch, but he hadn't banked on a DNF.

When iBen reached the paddock he met with the team as they continued to track Terho and the #56 team as they fought for position in the points. It was a stop-start event with a number of retirements but incredibly the Volkov Racing team had played the strategy perfectly and built up a monstrous lead over the field. At least, iBen though, at least its not Terho or Rudy. The Turorian watched on with excitement as iBen's Race Eelandii! Vilita & Turori Grand Prix driver R.L. Cruisin tried with all their might to hold off the hard-charging Preston Autos driver at the finish. Unfortunately, the Hapiloppian was able to cruise past the Vilitan to secure the runner up points and that would put him four points closer to Toralmintii in the standings. When the broadcast pulled up the live points at the end of the race, iBen's full race advantage in the points had been reduced to just 18 points with two races to go. He didn't put much thought into it really. All he had to do was go out, take it one race at a time, one corner at a time. If he could do that over the next two races at some of the most technically challenging courses on the circuit, he knew everything would be ok.

From there iBen turned off the broadcast and headed over to the Race Eelandii paddock to congratulate his friends and fellow countrymen on the teams shining performance with R.L. Cruisin holding on for for 3rd place and the final spot on the podium while the rookie Lane Carter came home right behind the Vilitan in 4th position.

IROS SURPRISES WITH EXCITING ROUND 2 IN LIVENTIA

Grand Prix of Liventia Race Weekend, Talbott Autodrome, Talbott, Liventia :: After the side-by-side excitement of close-quarters racing at the Tundra Falls Proving grounds to kick off iBen Toralmintii's Race of Stars series, many wondered if the trip to the technically challenging and difficult overtaking Talbott Autodrome would be the exact opposite - a follow-the-leader affair without much to keep viewers interested in the product. That proved to be far from the case as a thrilling Race of Stars played out following the opening practice session for the World Grand Prix Championship cars in town to contest their penultimate race at the course.

There were some rumors that a small pack of drivers hung back at the conclusion of the first round in Newmanistan after it was evident they would not be victorious for a chance to claim a top starting position in the race following the inversion from the prior events results. After 3 drivers had to revert to the rear of the grid due to a change in driver from the previous event, it was the Recuecn driver Abdoulaye Goita starting pole position on the grid for the second consecutive race. Perhaps with the drivers having gotten used to some bumping and tapping during the close racing in Newmanistan, the opening laps in Liventia were far more chaotic than expected. Drivers looked to enter turns double deep where there was room and were not afraid to use the bumper to move a driver in front of them out of the way - a Luxury permitted by the Race of Stars with some tolerance. By lap 3, however, the first casualty of the day became former World Grand Prix Champion Jessica Franssen who attempted to overtake Alex Dimitrianov but the two made contact damaging both cars. The iRoS Dart pit crew managed to fix up Dimitrianov's #42 but it was the end of the day for Franssen and the Blue iRoS machine.

After another chaotic restart where a number of positions changed the race stretched out with Goita re-taking the lead they had lost on the start from Centur Tiones until being caught by a hard-charging Terho Talvela with less than 10 laps to go. Talvela had not led long before the races second major incident slowed things to a crawl while crews removed the cars of Race #1 winner Frank Bronson and Everlong Contenders series point leader Maddie Alexander that had significant contact with each other before settling in a gravel pit unable to escape. It set up a two-lap sprint to the checkered flag with Talvela and Goita set to duke it out for the victory. The intensity of the battle as well as pressure from behind resulted in Talvela dropping from the top spot and slowing the field behind as positions changed hand once again with Talvela falling back to 6th place at the finish. WGPC15 Champion Ryker Lane had sights set on Goita but the checkered flag was out and Abdoulaye Goita cashed in on their pole starting position to win iRoS Round 2 at the Talbott Autodrome.

As for iBen, a few lucky breaks on the final lap when cars got together and off course allowed the Turorian namesake of the series to sneak up into the Top five, but overall he was hoping for a better start to his race week in Liventia. Still, any track time was good track time and iBen demonstrated the ability to navigate the 6.2km course without too much trouble along the way. Due to Frank Bronson's retirement late in the race iBen also inherited the points lead though only as a narrow margin above the two race winners Bronson and Goita. Aside from Bronson, the World Grand Prix drivers had taken the focus occupying five of the first six spots in the standings before Jeremiah Brooke led a quintet of NSSCRA drivers from 7th on back behind the Host Nation entry that Matthew Portland piloted splendidly on the day at the Talbott Autodrome. It would be the final Race of Stars event before the culmination of the World Grand Prix Championship season and it would allow the Grand Prix drivers to take focus not only on the end of their season but, in the off season, on preparation for the remaining iRoS events. With two of the three remaining Race of Stars events on Road Courses it would seem that the NSSCRA drivers were one step behind in the hunt to be crowned the first Super Star.

by **Valentine Z** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 2:15 pm

Post 19 – Adaptive Circuits.

As she made her way for the next race, Adriana certainly did not feel too good about the last race, she thought to herself. It was not because of her qualification results, nor was it because of the fact that she ended up 20th in the actual race. Rather, the concern was that she finished 20th, and that was actually the last place. It was certainly not because she placed last that got into her. Did only 20 cars made it through the ordeal, she thought to herself. "It was certainly that," she thought to herself. The track in Hapilopper was certainly much more different than the other courses that she has raced in, and the other racers have more or less experienced this the hard way. Aptly named "Oh Crap There's a Wall", this 90 degree turn, along with a wall jutting out, would have been the cause of many DNFs and retirements on that day. "Adriana, you have to be careful!" comes the worried crew chief and the staff around her. She could also pick up the signals and chatter from the other racers and crew, all of them filled with traffic on the turn. Niklas, William, Sigur, Sayono, iBen, Jean, that made it for a total of 6 retirements from this race, a handful more than the usual 1 or two that Adriana saw and was accustomed to. Perhaps they might have hit the wall as well, perhaps they have hit somewhere else. Adriana chimed in on the radio, asking if everyone was all right. She made it through the wall just fine, and was more or less worried about the other racers. The crew told her not to worry, and simply to continue along with her race. And at a 20th, that was more than enough to not catch a DNF. Clutching her helmet in one hand, she used her other free arm to help push the car back into the garage for the team. "Mam szczęście!" she said quietly.

Adriana was built differently for this, she thought to herself. Certainly much more different than the other racers, even if that would have been seen as an advantage. She was top-of-the-line when it comes to techniques, but she lacks the aggression that many other racers have. She was certainly not the one to overdrive herself, lest she feared that she might put herself in danger, or the other drivers around her. However, all of this has caused a massive performance dent on her for the good 70% of the races. Yet, somehow, even after all of this, the DNF does not get to her. She did not think of herself too highly if the recent races were anything, but it's still something. What could have been the cause? A good cause, but a factoring cause nonetheless? It was definitely her team, first and foremost. They have realised that they have neglected her on for so long and were finally making up to her by giving her all the support that she needs. The support she got was nothing short of amazing, which in turn propelled her through the races, or at least kept her afloat. She might not be winning the races, but she was certainly getting the experience, and that was more than enough for her. "Thank you, for everything, and for sticking with me," she said to the team after the race, "I know I might not be the best, but I will certainly try, and these two races ahead will determine whether or not I really mean that. I can do it, and I definitely can!" After this, Adriana wondered if the team would like to come back to Valentine Z for dinner.

Looking at the map, it seems a little daunting at first, but she was told that it was going to involve quite a lot of techniques. It certainly looks like something that would require lightning-fast reflexes and turning, something which Adriana is definitely very good at. After setting up at her lounge and having another heartfelt talk with Angeline and Angela, Adriana made her way to the garage, pusher her car to the crew, and started discussing on the task at hand. She would be the last for both the practice and qualifications, but being last here certainly was not going to be a show-stopper; she would get the course for herself, anyway, and doing best was something she was reckoning for. It does show for these past few races that as aforementioned, she was keeping disqualifications and retirements at bay. "Zbieram dane i robię, co w mojej mocy!" she thought.

She realised that it was not the sharp turns that were bothering her. All this time, all the data that she was getting - the course data, the accelerations, braking, turning, all of it have been more or less optimised. However, on the previous courses, it was apparent and proven that her machine touch alone could not handle the heavy-duty work, because the lack of aggression means that she was too afraid to deviate away from her calculated parameters. However, now Adriana knew that it was going to be all right for her. "All I need to do is... follow. Follow the numbers, and soon, they will come stacking up in my favor," she thought to herself. 1st for the Practice session, and 5th for the Qualifications. She was becoming the talk of the town at least for these 15 minutes. Qualifications are not everything, but she was certainly not going to be daunted by how the other racers have been constantly one-upping her. This would be the time for her to show the world that she is not a rusted-up robot, and was meant for great things. Cliched thinking aside, it was most certainly thanks to her team that she was able to do this; the support and callouts from Fireline have been nothing short of amazing, and couple that with Adriana doing well in these type of courses, it would have been more or less certain, or at least with a huge chance, that Fireline would be going places, and it would be good places. It was also seen as a double-benefit, for the lack of a better term: the team was certainly happy that Adriana was sticking around, and at the same time, Adriana was happy that they were not giving up. She double-downed and thought on that dinner thing. She was certainly not stingy, but it was a matter of if they have the time. Hopefully, they might.

Looking at her own data superimposed on the course, there was little to nothing wrong with her at all. She was operating as per normal, but it just so happens that she might have found her own calling and her niche - in extremely difficult race courses that requires a lot of finesse and skill. Even the hairpin-like Turn 7 did not slow her down that much, fully trusting the speed calculations and optimizations that she has done during the Practice in order to make use of it for the Qualifications. Turns 11, 12, and 13 might have been a little tedious due to them looking like seemingly straight lines, but in reality, they were sharp little turns here and there. Had she lose her concentration, these turns could and would spell doom for Adriana. Even with the determination and confidence on her side, it would certainly help for her to pay attention to them specially. As a result, she added a little more weight onto these turns, citing and indicating that they are important and not to be overestimated. "Tomorrow, my luck hopefully might change!" she thought to herself as she recharges herself.

by **Aboveland** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 2:31 pm

Terho swiftly unstraps himself from Resilience after practice, hopping out of the monocoque, trotting to the timing screens, having the briefest of debriefs with Edvin and Aada, and rushing to meet the rest of the drivers ready to participate in the second round of iBen's Race of Stars. To him, in amidst the intensity of the closing stages of WGPC18, iROS was little more than a side-quest activity and, depending on which side of the bed he woke up on each day, a nuisance. Usually, an event like iROS would instantly pique his interest and suck him in, but in the past few weeks--despite his sauna retreat in Iskajärvi, despite his will to ramble freely about his anxieties, and despite his still somewhat consistent performance--there had been little that managed to get his mind off of the fact he still has a chance, an increasingly slim chance, of retaining his drivers' title. However, after the first race in Tundra Falls--his first go at stock car racing-- he'd grown somewhat fond of the spec Hybrid Dart machine. Sure, on an oval there was little to discover about the chassis and the handling of the vehicle, but it had decent grunt and, at least in a NSSCRA type event, made for intense, close racing.

The Abovian climbs into the Dart through the drivers' window, his contortions a staple of NSSCRA yet unknown in the refined world of WGPC, then buckles himself into the seat of the space-frame racecar. The belts are similar to those in Resilience, more akin to the straps in his rally cars, and before long he's out on the tarmac lined up in the middle of the pack. As he waits for the race countdown to begin, he ponders the setup of the event: multiple series champions, some even multiple-times champions in their respective series', dogging it out in a quasi-touring car on one of the trickiest race tracks of the WGPC calendar. In contrast to his recent attitude towards race days, he's calm in his midnight blue Dart: WGPC practice just a while earlier had gone quite well, and while he's supposedly at an advantage against the NSSCRA drivers participating in the race, he also considers his rallying expertise as a bonus. The NSSCRA guys can go round in circles, the WGPC drivers can turn left and right, but few of them--or so he thinks--can do both of them in style.

Little time goes by for his self love; he's back in a car with a foot clutch, less tricky to operate and more caveman than a finger clutch, and with a kick the midnight blue #56 car dashes off its grid spot. It takes him a few corners to get heat into his tyres, but already through the kink at turn eight his rubber is at optimal temperature; perhaps, a little bit overdone, which only enables him to hold a bit of a slide on the exit of the kink and to shave off speed by sawing at his wheel before throwing the car into turn nine, his exit wide and wild pushing Jessica Franssen off the track for a brief moment. He doesn't bother to check his mirrors for a hot-headed reaction, rather assuming that's what he's been given.

He'd, likely, assumed correctly; running just ahead of Mattijanan Alex Dimitrianov, who'd fallen into the clutches of the Vangazi driver, the race is stopped after contact between the two battling drivers puts an end to Franssen's run. The race restart, consequently, becomes a godsend. The Abovian commences his offensive, charging up the field and sticking to the ice-racing mantra of "rubbing is racing;" he sticks his nose up the inside of his rivals into the harder braking zones of the circuit, tapping, respectfully bumping, and sliding about the tarmac on a monumental push for the win. On lap 12, at the chicane of turn 11, he brakes early, and a slip-up by longtime leader Abdoulaye Goita opens the door for him to charge on towards the lead. For iROS, he has no spotter, and no radio communications of any sort. Only the roar of the Dart's engine, the whine of its electric motors, and the hearty chuckles of its driver fill the cockpit.

As the race trudges on, the Abovian building a steady lead over anyone for the first time in over a year, a sound at the front of the car begins to worry him. He's lucky to have heard it through the cacophonous groan of the Dart's powerplant, but it's the unmistakable sound of bodywork scraping against rubber coming from the front left of the car, showing its consequences on right turns as the Dart begins to understeer on turn in.

With just two laps left to go, the Dart becoming increasingly unstable under braking as his tyres start to overheat, the race is stopped after a significant incident further down the pack, setting up a two-lap duel to the finish between him and WGP2 champion Goita. Through the first complex of esses, Terho manages to barely keep his lead, the compromised handling of the stock car slowing his progress. With the race having been paused, his tyres have cooled down a tad, yet coming towards turn 18 at the end of the penultimate lap, he brakes hard for the chicane and the car pulls heavily to the right. He swerves instantly towards the left, riding the inside kerb of turn 19 and holding his position right up to turn 21; when the final lap is underway, the bodywork on the front right of the Dart flares up, the midnight blue paint chipping off the fold in the fiberglass. On braking for turn one, the vibrations worsen; it can only be a loss of tyre pressure which, by the closing stages of the lap, turns into a puncture, dropping him like a rock from first to sixth in a single lap.

Despite the setback, he's somewhat gleefully out of the car at the end of the race, congratulating Goita for his victory and, almost reverently, Matthew Portland's podium on his comeback event. He doesn't stick along too long for celebrations however, heading straight to shower off the pressure he'd been carrying since the start of WGPC Practice.

Once freshened up, he meets Edvin at the garage, slinging a rucksack behind his back and tossing Terho his helmet bag.

"Sixth again, huh?" Edvin remarks, smirking.

"Yeah," Terho replies, looking at the floor and rolling his eyes. "Three sixths in a row. I bet you I'm sixth in qualifying and sixth in the race, too," he adds.

As they walk out towards the lobby and towards the car park at the Autodrome, Edvin gently slaps the back of Terho's head, the moist droplets of water still clinging on his hair shaking off towards the ground and onto his shirt. "Deal," he replies. "I hope I lose this one."

The next day, after qualifying, Edvin breathes in through his teeth, his face a grimace more than a snarky smile. He really hopes he's losing the bet on race day.

by **Former Citizens of the Nimbus System** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 2:33 pm

Hapilopper City Grand Prix Circuit, Hapilopper City, Hapilopper
Preston Autos Hapiloppian Grand Prix; Chequered Flag

“Pause for five seconds, then null.”

“Gotcha, Baxen. Thanks, as ever.”

Olivia bows her head, slumping forward in the cockpit of her VSK as she comes to a halt in the pit lane. That could have gone better. Was just out of it for that second half of the race. Underneath the helmet, she smiles a little, recalling Jöna’s radio message of a few moments before. Still, at least the team believes in me. Got that much going for me.

She removes the steering wheel then stretches up, latching onto the DIADEM and levering herself out of the car. She glances around furtively, not unlike a tank commander appearing from the hatch into enemy fire; there are, fortunately, no snapping flashes this time, the press mercifully focussed on the front of the grid. Replacing the wheel, Olivia half-rolls from the car, landing to one side and jogging back to the Viska garage.

She glances down, a wave of sadness rushing through her. Imagination. Since when was the end of a race something to hide from?

Abdoulaye’s voice echoes in her mind. ‘thick skin’. I’ve never had that. I’m a lot of things, but… Olivia shakes her head. I can’t – how can you stop caring about what’s wrong and right, just like that? It’s not… She clenches her fist. Like that Maelstrom-damned wall! That target, just… Just taunting you every lap!

Olivia suddenly blinks, eyes unexpectedly moist. Is that how people outside the Wardship see us? Are we just names in a choreographed story – is a shocking twist all an accident is to them? She shakes her head again, more fiercely. No. No, that’s not fair, that’s… That’s stereotyping, that’s generalising far too far. That’s not fair. She pushes through the doubt: Viska value what I do; they’re not Nimban. It’s… People don’t go through so much philosophy and ethics like they do at home. They often don’t think about these things so much. That’s all. That’s all.

Olivia sighs. I don’t know. If I’d known what the WGPC would actually be like…

She almost starts at the alien nature of the thought. No. No, no, I want to be here. This is the highest level of motorsport in the world – if there’s anywhere I can prove what can I do, it’s here! Olivia nods. This is where I need to be. Right. Right? Right.

And yet, as she enters the garage, that feeling of disconcertion remains.

Talbott Autodrome, Talbott, Liventia
Grand Prix of Liventia; Formation Lap

Ryker rolls his fingers on the steering wheel, pulling into his slot on the grid as the familiar thrum of ecstatic energy suffuses his form.

Said slot is, of course, third to last on the grid. The energy suffuses him nonetheless.

He flicks at the buttons on that steering wheel, his HUD bringing up Coalescence’s systems in bright green accompanied by text. All still seems clear; his tyres are H-2s, hard enough to carry him through to an unorthodox one-stop but not so much as to doom him on this track with its twists and turns that distinctly do not suit his driving or his car. Just a more downforce-heavy MARS matrix for the earlier part of the race. Ryker grins. Thanks, Tiffany. Imagination, I love this team.

He arms the PAAS system, foot on the accelerator, hands gripping the steering wheel. Then he breathes, letting the energy dissipate, simmer just below the surface – below conscious thought, where it can be harnessed without harm. His mind is clear. Jean beside me and Coalescence around me. I’ve won from the back of the grid before; this is hardly the worst circumstance I’ve done it in. He shuts his eyes, just for a moment, as the first of the lights ahead of him flicker on, remembering his achievement – second place among the best of the world in iRoS only the last of those – and drawing on it, augmenting the energy. Success is a process. Just do like always.

The eyes open, flashing with imagination’s light. Onwards!

by **Lisander** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 2:39 pm

"Bring back home, Sissie. P20, but only +0.145. It's very good to have a close call. It shows our strength as a team." - Lasseps could be heard on radio. - "Niklas P3, going to second level! Back to the pitlane and course-correct to this pole position!"

That was great. Even if the end was near, and even with the bar set too high, TAS Alliance still bring some emotion.

"It will be hard, but I'm sure you can do, Niklas! It's not like we're bad. We're in WGPC after all, huh?" - she said to the radio.

Yeah, we're in WGPC. She thought about how awesome those months were being. She was on her room on father's house, writing resumes to be an intern in some car company just after that last Christmas, and now she was on board on the world stage of open-wheelers. And she would return to her own apartment, a cosy apartment in Downtown Kasandora, with the beautiful Kasan River being seen from her bedroom windows. Well, she would still have to pay 24 instalments, but the prize money of that season would be enough to deal with thirty per cent of that. Luckily, she would also have more money income in the following months.

Kasandora, Lisander
Five days earlier

She received the keycard for her house. Well, talk about automation. It was a state-of-art apartment building, with a modern kitchen, everything controlled by voice and LSiD. It was just like being in Nimbus. a stove and an electric-powered oven, an enormous counter and a big fridge, everything in black and platinum. What a shame, she was only cooking rice, chicken and vegetables. TAS Alliance had a strict dietary plan to keep the weight acceptable to racing.

"So, It's great to be part of your future, Sissie. I wish you a lot of luck in the next races! As we told on the phone, we're delighted with the offer your partners made for Horie Building to sponsor the next Bitten Heroes WGP2 car, so we added the kitchen as a form of strengthening our relationship. Think of it as a little gift. Let's look to the room now, you'll have a lovely view of the sunrise in Kasan River." - the realtor was a woman on her thirties, half-Asian. Her expressions were gentle and she was clearly flattering.

"Well, thank you, Mrs Shimura. It's very kind of your part. I'll report this to the directors of the team, as well as your kind service. By the way, apart from the kitchen, this apartment is still empty, right? Do you know somewhere I could buy a bed? Look, I have the basic I need here with me" - she pointed the handbag. - "A clean change of clothes, toothpaste and toothbrush, scent, makeup, creams and stuff like that. In my work, we're always travelling the world But I don't have a bed, neither an inflatable mattress, nothing like that. Can you help me to find a way to spend the night?"

"Thank you. Sorry about the bed, I haven't imagined you'll spend the night since your work involves a lot of travel. And I don't believe we will find a furniture shop open. But what do you think about a futon? They're popular between the Kikunomijin community, and you can buy one in most 24/7 shops. I can help you to find one if you want."

"This might be nice. At least is better than sleeping on the floor. I think Lourdina told something about that before, where she lived in Hodori. I'll accept the referral. Thank you."

The realtor sent the link to her mePhone. They looked to the options.

"I really don't know. Mind to choose me something? This will be paid by the team so feel free to point me the one you think it's the most comfortable."

"I suggest you this one. I have one exactly like this, and it's great. You can ask for some blankets too. They deliver in a maximum of one hour in Kasandora."

"Well, that's great. Thank you, Mrs Shimura. I'll trust you and buy exactly this one."

"Thanks! So, once more thank you for buying with us! Remember to register your LSiD and enjoy the apartment!"

"Okay, Bye!"

She was left alone on an empty apartment. Now those were changing times.

by **Liventia** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 2:41 pm

CUTOFF

for the Liventia Airways Grand Prix of Liventia at Talbott Autodrome

by **Liventia** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 2:46 pm

Week 15: Race

Conditions:      	Dry
Laps:              	49
Nation:         	LEN
Circuit:        	Talbott Autodrome
Event:                	Liventia Airways Grand Prix of Liventia
Safety Car on Laps:	
Cars on Grid:        	28

POS  # ▍DRV Name                               Team                               	Time      	Pts	Fastest Lap	
  1  7 ▍GTA Abdoulaye Goita                    Schkeska-VSK Viska Racing          	01:30:13.493	25		
  2 37 ▍SCH Niklas Schonbaum                   TAS Alliance Racing                	00:00:34.340	18		
  3 56 ▍TAL Terho Talvela                      Tropicorp Racing Ælund             	00:00:39.132	14		
  4 71 ▍IBU Rustom Ibuna                       Badai Angin Tim Motorsport         	00:00:52.910	11		
  5 77 ▍TII iBen Toralmintii                   Tropicorp Racing Ælund             	00:00:57.176	8 + 2	1:45.080	
  6 50 ▍EDW Rudy Edwards                       Preston Autos Grand Prix Racing    	00:01:00.171	6		
  7 11 ▍CRT Lane Carter                        Race Eelandii V&T GP               	00:01:05.116	4		
  8 82 ▍LMN Kinu Luminna                       WGPC Motorworks                    	00:01:07.584	3		
  9 76 ▍KOW Adriana Kowalski                   Fireline Motorsports               	00:01:23.401	2		
 10 14 ▍BJA Sigur Bjarnason                    SVJ Racing WGPC Team               	00:01:24.291	1		
 11 85 ▍STO Olivia Stone                       Schkeska-VSK Viska Racing          	00:01:30.231			
 12 51 ▍CRU R.L. Cruisin                       Race Eelandii V&T GP               	00:01:33.203			
 13 46 ▍ARB Kitti Armbruster                   SVJ Racing WGPC Team               	00:01:49.632			
 14 25 ▍KRU Gregori Krupin                     Volkov Racing                      	00:01:50.044			
 15 42 ▍DIM Alex Dimitrianov                   Badai Angin Tim Motorsport         	Laps Down: 1			
 16 28 ▍LNA Sara Luna                          Volkov Racing                      	Laps Down: 1			
 17 94 ▍LAN Ryker Lane                         Nexus Racing                       	Laps Down: 1			
 18 22 ▍KRA Jasmin Kranjska                    Mattijana Racing Team              	Laps Down: 1			
 19 27 ▍NUL Dario Nülkeschläger                WGPC Motorworks                    	Laps Down: 1			
 20 12 ▍DEV Anneliese Devereux                 TAS Alliance Racing                	Laps Down: 1			
 21 47 ▍OKU Erica Okumura                      Polaris Racing Team                	Laps Down: 1			
 22 41 ▍JMD Jean Mercer-Daly                   Nexus Racing                       	Laps Down: 1			
 23 52 ▍SZR Sayono Souzare                     Polaris Racing Team                	Laps Down: 1			
 24 23 ▍C23 Cocoabo #23                        Fireline Motorsports               	Laps Down: 1			
 25  8 ▍ARC William Archer                     Preston Autos Grand Prix Racing    	Laps Down: 1			
 26 19 ▍FAL Dom Falepeau                       Mattijana Racing Team              	Laps Down: 2			
DNS 72 ▍VAL Charyseine Valkyria                WGPC Motorworks                    	DNS			
DNS 63 ▍MIZ Daryl Mizushima                    WGPC Motorworks                    	DNS

Drivers' standings

Pos # ▍DRV Name                                Team [Engine]                                                            Tyres                              Pts
 1 77 ▍TII iBen Toralmintii                    Tropicorp Racing Ælund [Tropicorp Engineering]                           Tropicorp Racing Supply            101
 2 56 ▍TAL Terho Talvela                       Tropicorp Racing Ælund [Tropicorp Engineering]                           Tropicorp Racing Supply            87
 3 50 ▍EDW Rudy Edwards                        Preston Autos Grand Prix Racing [Preston Autos]                          Tropicorp Racing Supply            79
 4 28 ▍LNA Sara Luna                           Volkov Racing [WGPC Motorworks Engineering]                              Tropicorp Racing Supply            63
 5 94 ▍LAN Ryker Lane                          Nexus Racing [Paragon Warp]                                              In Motion                          52
 6  7 ▍GTA Abdoulaye Goita                     Schkeska-VSK Viska Racing [Schkeska Motors]                              In Motion                          45
 7 51 ▍CRU R.L. Cruisin                        Race Eelandii V&T GP [Tropicorp Engineering]                             Tropicorp Racing Supply            40
 8 42 ▍DIM Alex Dimitrianov                    Badai Angin Tim Motorsport [Badai Angin]                                 Solymok                            38
 9 71 ▍IBU Rustom Ibuna                        Badai Angin Tim Motorsport [Badai Angin]                                 Solymok                            36
10 47 ▍OKU Erica Okumura                       Polaris Racing Team [Polaris Trois]                                      Deyoze Tires                       32
11 11 ▍CRT Lane Carter                         Race Eelandii V&T GP [Tropicorp Engineering]                             Tropicorp Racing Supply            30
11 41 ▍JMD Jean Mercer-Daly                    Nexus Racing [Paragon Warp]                                              In Motion                          30
13 25 ▍KRU Gregori Krupin                      Volkov Racing [WGPC Motorworks Engineering]                              Tropicorp Racing Supply            27
14 22 ▍KRA Jasmin Kranjska                     Mattijana Racing Team [Nordija]                                          Tropicorp Racing Supply            26
14 23 ▍C23 Cocoabo #23                         Fireline Motorsports [Tropicorp Engineering]                             Tropicorp Racing Supply            26
14 52 ▍SZR Sayono Souzare                      Polaris Racing Team [Polaris Trois]                                      Deyoze Tires                       26
17 37 ▍SCH Niklas Schonbaum                    TAS Alliance Racing [Harlean 1]                                          Solymok                            18
18 85 ▍STO Olivia Stone                        Schkeska-VSK Viska Racing [Schkeska Motors]                              In Motion                          16
19 14 ▍BJA Sigur Bjarnason                     SVJ Racing WGPC Team [Johansborg Motor Collective]                       Solymok                            15
19 19 ▍FAL Dom Falepeau                        Mattijana Racing Team [Nordija]                                          Tropicorp Racing Supply            15
19 27 ▍NUL Dario Nülkeschläger                 WGPC Motorworks [WGPC Motorworks Engineering]                            Deyoze Tires                       15
22 12 ▍DEV Anneliese Devereux                  TAS Alliance Racing [Harlean 1]                                          Solymok                            8
23 82 ▍LMN Kinu Luminna                        WGPC Motorworks [WGPC Motorworks Engineering]                            Deyoze Tires                       7
24 76 ▍KOW Adriana Kowalski                    Fireline Motorsports [Tropicorp Engineering]                             Tropicorp Racing Supply            5
25  8 ▍ARC William Archer                      Preston Autos Grand Prix Racing [Preston Autos]                          Tropicorp Racing Supply            4
26 46 ▍ARB Kitti Armbruster                    SVJ Racing WGPC Team [Johansborg Motor Collective]                       Solymok                            3
27 63 ▍MIZ Daryl Mizushima                     WGPC Motorworks [WGPC Motorworks Engineering]                            Deyoze Tires                       2
28 72 ▍VAL Charyseine Valkyria                 WGPC Motorworks [WGPC Motorworks Engineering]                            Deyoze Tires                       0

Constructors' standings

Pos NAT ▍Team [Engine]                                                            Tyres                              Pts
  1 ABL ▍Tropicorp Racing Ælund [Tropicorp Engineering]                           Tropicorp Racing Supply            188
  2 SOR ▍Volkov Racing [WGPC Motorworks Engineering]                              Tropicorp Racing Supply            90
  3 HAP ▍Preston Autos Grand Prix Racing [Preston Autos]                          Tropicorp Racing Supply            83
  4 NIM ▍Nexus Racing [Paragon Warp]                                              In Motion                          82
  5 FID ▍Badai Angin Tim Motorsport [Badai Angin]                                 Solymok                            74
  6 V&T ▍Race Eelandii V&T GP [Tropicorp Engineering]                             Tropicorp Racing Supply            70
  7 AUR ▍Schkeska-VSK Viska Racing [Schkeska Motors]                              In Motion                          61
  8 NEK ▍Polaris Racing Team [Polaris Trois]                                      Deyoze Tires                       58
  9 MTJ ▍Mattijana Racing Team [Nordija]                                          Tropicorp Racing Supply            41
 10 ETN ▍Fireline Motorsports [Tropicorp Engineering]                             Tropicorp Racing Supply            31
 11 LIS ▍TAS Alliance Racing [Harlean 1]                                          Solymok                            26
 12 WGP ▍WGPC Motorworks [WGPC Motorworks Engineering]                            Deyoze Tires                       24
 13 SVJ ▍SVJ Racing WGPC Team [Johansborg Motor Collective]                       Solymok                            18

by **Hapilopper** » Mon Dec 14, 2020 11:09 pm

First, a word from our sponsors.

Rudy Edwards’ Apartment, Hapilopper City
Some time between before traveling for Mattijana
Rudy Edwards looked out the window of his 5th floor apartment down towards the streets of downtown Hapilopper City, which, as usual, was a flurry of activity. The sidewalks were filled with people looking for their destination – be it the local cigar shop, or the local deli which made a mean Reuben sandwich, or Blackstone’s Bar, one of many places where people congregated to watch a Hapiloppian sports figure compete internationally – be it Team Hapilopper, the nation’s new national football team, or the Hapilopper National Baseball Team, or Team Blue, Hapilopper’s world-renowned stock car franchise.

But something caught Rudy’s eye as he looked at a sign in front of the restaurant. Then something caught his eye as he spotted a billboard on a high-rise apartment not far from it. The signs featured pictures of him. The signs were advertising him. And it was then, it was starting to sink in. Rudy realized that if a few things went his way on race day Sunday in Mattijana, he would be the World Grand Prix Champion. But he needed the race of his life. He needed that kind of race he had in Nekoni, where he broke free from the pack and won his first career Grand Prix.

As he sat there, and it sunk in, Rudy got a little bit emotional. As a driver in the Hapilopper Championship Series, he had mostly toiled in the shadows of the Hapiloppian sporting landscape. Guys like the Stevenson brothers, the Hunnisett brothers, Chet Byrd, Brooks Benson, Jerome Hayden and Nathan Ellis were household names in the Dominion. If someone spotted one of those individuals on the street, they’d be mobbed by adoring fans wanting a picture or an autograph or both. Rudy and his brethren who drove open-wheel single seaters, however, could go down Hapilopper City’s busy sidewalks without anyone knowing who they were.

In fact, the only time any of them were really recognized was at a place like Andrew’s Pub in the north side of town, a dive bar owned by former HASCAR driver Andrew McPherson and frequented by diehard fans, drivers and those that worked in the motorsports industry. Occasionally, when getting a beer there, Rudy would get needled by McPherson or by any other stock car driver there, asking when he was “giving up those little sissy cars and getting in a real man’s race car.”

Nobody was calling those cars “little sissy cars” now. In fact, when Rudy walked into Andrew’s the day after returning home from Liventia, he was spotted by Frank Bronson, who heralded Rudy’s arrival with an offer to buy his drinks, and a toast.

“To Rudy Edwards, the next World Grand Prix Champion!” Frank shouted so everyone in the bar could hear. The toast was well received by everyone present, and as Rudy sat down next to Frank, he looked around and realized that Frank meant it.

“Rudy, I don’t know what’s going to happen this weekend,” Frank said to his fellow driver. “None of us do. But whatever happens this weekend, just know that you’ve done all of us proud. All of us that race cars here. All of us that wave the flag in racing. You’re going to get to do something that… a lot of us can only dream of. Drake Stevenson talks about it all the time. He talks about how he dreamt of being a World Champion. And he’s so proud of you. He’s over the moon talking about how we could have a champ. And that man is you.”

Rudy sat there for a long time thinking about what Frank had said. He had remembered talking to Drake Stevenson after winning in Nekoni. He remembered the joy in Drake’s voice when they talked after the race. All Rudy could do was smile at Frank.

“I… really don’t know what to say, Frank,” Rudy said. “I don’t know how this will turn out, but I’ll try my damndest to make it work. I’ve got a lot of work to do, too. It’s not entirely in my own hands. I’ve got to hope for crazy things to happen for me to win it all.”

It was true. Rudy trailed iBen Toralmintii by 22 points going into the last race of the season. Essentially, Rudy needed to win the race, and iBen needed to not score a point to have a realistic shot at the title, and even then, he needed Terho Talvela to finish 3rd or worse, and all that doesn’t take into consideration the two bonus points for fastest lap. There were all kinds of moving parts going into the final Grand Prix of the season, as far as points were concerned.

RUDY'S PERFECT RACE RESULT:
1st - EDW - 104 Pts.
3rd - TAL - 101 Pts.
9th - TOR - 103 Pts.
This scenario would give Rudy
Edwards the World Grand Prix
Championship, assuming
someone else gets fastest lap.

Sure, Rudy was the biggest longshot going into the Grand Prix. Many experts believed that the time was finally now for iBen Toralmintii to score his first World Grand Prix Championship. He held a 14 point lead over Terho Talvela headed into the season’s final race, which was plenty comfortable enough, in the eyes of many experts, to hang on for a championship. Rudy, meanwhile, was 22 points out from the lead, just barely enough to have a mathematical chance.

But anything was possible, and to say the very least, and if anyone could make up the ground, it was Rudy. Following the Grand Prix of Aboveland, the end of the first half of the season, Rudy sat 15th in the championship standings, 51 points out from the lead, a seemingly insurmountable edge at that point. But then, to borrow a sponsor’s somewhat annoying slogan, Rudy and Preston Autos “got good,” and went on a tear. The win at Nekoni dropped the lead to 30 points.

A Toralmintii win, plus a Rudy 2nd at Filindostan, moved the gap to 36 points. In Hapilopper City, the gap dropped to 18 points, and increased to 22 points with the last race in Liventia. Had Rudy not eaten it in qualifying for the Liventian Grand Prix, it’s plenty possible that the gap would be much slimmer. The chance of winning the World Grand Prix Championship might be more realistic.

But Rudy Edwards didn’t give a shit about “what could have beens.” He didn’t give a shit about what would have happened if something went differently. All he cared about was the fact that he had a shot in Mattijana, and while iBen Toralmintii or Terho Talvela was probably going to take the trophy at the end of the day, he was going to do all he could to make sure that the trophy was going to be his instead. All he needed to do was have the race of his life. He figured he could do it.

by **TJUN-ia** » Tue Dec 15, 2020 11:21 am

Sunday - Race
Another Sunday, Another Race Day and Lane Carter was ready. The Talbott Autodrome was ready to host the 2nd-from-last race of lane's entertaining debut campaign and he felt that he could do something from P4. Niklas Schonbaum was the surprise package on pole but with both iBen and Goita starting behind, who knows who was about to happen as the five lights went out.

To the surprise of many, this race would be...boring. Boring to watch especially, with no retirements to speak of. Unlike motorsports in U1 and U1, boredom is not usually an emotion you associate with motorsports at all so to have this race drag on with little action was...strange. Carter was trying his best to take advantage of the situation, but nothing would come of it. Terho Talvela would overtake him, as would Rustom Ibuna and Rudy Edwards, and in the end, the best the Galarian could manage was 7th, 2 seconds clear of Kinu Luminna. It may have not been the best race, but he'll take 4 points. If this was WGP2 Lane, he might be cursing himself right now. That's how far the Galarian has come in this season and that may not even be due to himself...

The champion of WGPC18 will be decided on the final race, with WGP2 S3 Champion Abdoulaye Goita picking up his first win over Driver of the Weekend Niklas Schonbaum, his first points coming in the form of a podium. Terho Talvela rounded out the podium and with iBen in 5th (with the fastest lap) and Rudy Edwards finishing in 6th, it will be a 3-way showdown for the title on the final day in Mattijana. The constructors was wrapped up for Ælund today, with Carter remaining in 11th and Race Eelandii slipping to 6th.

And so, the end of the road is nigh. Next week, we will know which nation will have the WGPC18 Champion among them: Turori, Aboveland or Hapilopper. As for TJUN-ia, their driver is only 2 points off the Top 10 - a feat no one thought was possible before the halfway point. Lane knew the reason why this change had happened - and he would be meeting him again next week...for one last time this season...

To: Daryl Mizushima
From: Lane Carter
Subject: RE(17): Letter

Hello once again! I see all the action from Saturday didn't carry over to today, but it's alright - points are points. I wouldn't be surprised if you fell asleep during the running and I hope the action will improve for the Championship decider next week!

It was very nice to see both of us competing in the PIck Em and I know we will improve from here. Both the JR guys and Ishikawa are doing well as of late and I hope the good luck continues across the season so that both of us can make the playoffs!

As for next week, I'm very much looking forward to our meeting and the eventual end of the road. I was looking back on my WGP2 days and I certainly wasn't a happy camper, always thinking I was letting everyone down all the time. I thought things would change but after 4 races, I was in that same mood and actively thinking I conned my way to a seat in this series. And then I contacted you. It seems strange, but I feel that you were the turning point and maybe you will feel the same about me. It was you who made me realise that I wasn't alone at all and I haven't looked back ever since. So, from the bottom of my heart, I would like to thank you for always being there for me. I know this started as me trying to help you, but I feel that you may have helped me even more and I will never forget that.

Sorry about that, just wanted to get that off my chest. I'll see you soon!

Kind regards,

Lane Carter
Driver of #10 for Race Eelandii V&T GP

by **Aboveland** » Tue Dec 15, 2020 12:11 pm

Talbott Autodrome
Talbott, Liventia
Race day

Drowning out the wail of the Tropicorp V8 and the constant whistle of its sequential turbos, the radio crackles to life, Edvin's excited, giddy voice coming through clear yet serious: "one lap remaining, this is your last lap," he says, attempting to keep his composure but letting his emotions slip through the message. "Gap ahead is six-point-four, six-point-four to Schonbaum."

Terho's body is pinned against his harness as he brakes late into turn one. The ceramic discs send a handful of embers flying away from the wheel hubs; the Calanian rubber, the softer compound he's opted for still in optimal condition, stays firm under braking despite the slight left. He's quick on the power towards turn two, this time braking early to power out from before the apex, past the exit kink and lifting off for an instant into turn three. Turn four is flat; six is a slower repeat of four, and on the exit of turn seven he blinks for the first time, takes a deep, quick breath, and replies to the message.

"Copy," he pants, regaining his breath but quickly going quiet again for the flat kink of turn eight and the hard braking for turn nine. The pressure on the brake pedal and his steering lock prompt the brake balance to shift backwards at the apex, and as he powers out towards turn ten the purple TAS Alliance car of his nearest rival scintillates in the distance under the clear sky sun. Towards turn 11, he glances down at his screen: his green delta is -0.7 seconds.

He's not quite in DRS range into turn 16, but his exit through 17 and the sheer grunt of the Tropicorp V8 sends him rocketing down the straight towards turn eighteen. Again, he brakes late, turning in hard as his tyres squeal and Resilience' rear axle settles supply over the tarmac. It dances past the kerbs of turn 19, lunges forwards for turn 20 and, with the aid of its winglets, stays glued to the track out of turn 21. Schonbaum's car ahead is larger than it had been the previous lap as Terho crosses the start/finish line in third place, his fifth podium and seventh top 10 finish of the season.

And the crowd--the TRÆ crowd--goes absolutely bananas.

Edvin, vibrating with excitement sitting in the pit box, runs towards the garage to join the mechanics, the engineers, the strategists, the PR managers--every single member of the TRÆ squad, Abovian, Vilitan, Turorian or whatever, in their explosive manifestation of ecstasy. He makes sure to turn the radio button on on his headset as he jumps into the rave, chants erupting in praise for Aboveland, praise for Vilita and Turori, praise for Tropicorp, praise for the drivers: a beautiful, diverse, multilingual cacophony. Both Terho's wild whooping and iBen's celebratory messages are also broadcast over speakers in the garage. For the second consecutive season, and for the third time in Vilita and Turori Motorsports' history up to its present day incarnation, the team have secured the constructors' title in a landslide victory over their nearest rivals with just a single race remaining on the calendar. At nine races into the season, their winning margin of 98 points is even larger than it had been in WGPC17, where their dominant performance had seemed exceptional rather than a recurring theme.

At the end of their inlap, Terho parks Resilience right behind the third podium board, next to Goita's winning Schkeska-VSK Viska machine, and stands next to his navy machine in anticipation of iBen's arrival. Once the Turorian has parked his own AGP003 behind the line of cars, Terho trots to meet him. iBen stretches out his hand for a chummy handshake; Terho complies, but brings the Turorian in for a back-patting hug, before turning back towards the team and leaping backwards into their outstretched arms as he calls iBen to the garage to join in.

Amid the commotion, Edvin pulls on the belt strap of Terho's suit and pulls him down to the ground. "Look!" he says, pointing up at above the garage door between Terho and iBen's names, his arm wagging around as he's thrown about by the crowd.

Terho stares up at the banner, his expression at first blank, his body then succumbing to a hearty belly laughing fit. "It's so crude!" he exclaims, bringing his hand to his mouth. "And... con-gar ...-tulations?"

Edvin returns the laughter. "I had to commision it last night!" he yells. "I didn't want to jinx the win at first--"he pauses, as someone elbows him in the stomach and he glares to his side, "--but I wanted to have it just in case! Some local printer did it."

A moment after, Terho spots the other two podium sitters making their way up to the balcony, and he sifts his way through the jumble of people to join them. His champagne shower, the first in a few weeks, is reserved entirely for the team watching from down below. As he raises the bottle to the TRÆ contingent before he takes his sip, he sees Edvin's eyes glisten, their shape warped by the champagne covering his glasses.

As Terho drenches himself in what's left of the bubbly, he smiles at the Liventian sky. My work here is done, he thinks to himself, finally at peace.

by **Squidroidia** » Tue Dec 15, 2020 12:47 pm

Inkopolis, Squidroidia

Daryl was back home. At least, for now. Soon the Squidroidian race car driver would embark on the final race of the season in a little known country known as Mattijana. Well, at the time it was little known - Before he embarked on the WGPC journey of his life, nobody had heard of Mattijana, they only knew about the nations neighboring themselves. But a lot could change in just the course of a few weeks. He knew Mattijana a bit more now - At least from the MRT team in the WGPC as well as a certain Houston Sawyer defeating a certain Mattijana superstar on one of the tennis world's biggest stages...

Flipping on his TV in his father Yusuke's house, the news was as vibrant as ever on the sports front - When he was karting the only thing they cared about was the football - From the Calamari Wanderers to minnows like OVFC. As the sports section began, however, the first thing escaping from the reporter's lips was that of the World Grand Prix Championship.

"The 18th season of the World Grand Prix Championship will end in Mattijana in a few days time, and even though local talent Daryl Mizushima hasn't got a chance of winning the driver's title, the season will come down to the wire as 3 drivers will fight for the right to be crowned champion."

The way the reporter said his name gave Daryl goosebumps. He hadn't checked the news from the area when he scored his first points in Hap City, as at the time he was losing his mind over his 9th place finish from his hotel room. He was getting known in the area for sure, even more so when he was announced to join the Motorworks team. In racing terms he was getting a bit overshadowed by Shigeru Ishikawa in NSSCRA, but there was still a bit of love for the young gun in open wheeled machinery.

The future was getting bright indeed. He had the experience from last season under his belt to throw on a couple simulations and also going to the Lao Long 380 in the Sherpa Empire was going to help as well. He was certainly going to have a better time next season. With nothing else to do before he was to fly to Mattijana, he had one last email to send to his partner Lane.

To: Lane Carter
From: Daryl Mizushima
Subject: RE(18): Letter

Well hey there once again Lane. I think we're nearing the end - If everything takes hold this will be our final email of the season! Cod, time flies when you're having fun! And this was just 18 emails too... I wonder how long we could have kept this chain going if this happened throughout the season! It would easily be around 20 or so... Maybe 40?

But yeah, NSSCRA Pick-Ems are doing well on my neck of the woods! Just checked before the news and it turns out we're actually tied for 4th so far this season! I know you had the better run in the Kermania Fortress, but hey, it's cool! Keep it up and you'll be set in the Playoffs! Well, unless that Dagan gets back to her winning ways. Just saying.

This season has been a real fun one indeed, despite my constant times not qualifying. I couldn't have gone through this without you Lane. But I won't be done just yet after the checkered flag drops in Mattijana, oh no. I'm actually going to get to drive a stock car in the Sherpa Empire. Yeah yeah, I was enticed due to the fact that the winner was going to drive a car during the NSSCRA race the week after that, but it is hopefully going to be some offseason preparations before I get back into the swing of things. If you want to sign up too, that's also cool! I'm pretty sure the Jaguar guys can tell you about that like Shigeru did to me.

But yeah, this is it. Final email for the season. I hope to see you after qualifying Mr. Apple Man. I did put those apples into good use... I actually planted the seeds there in a farm in Sawayama with some of the locals and used the rest for apple cider. It just tastes very good, trust me. But yeah, I have gone a long way since that embarrassing race in Aboveland. Now that Tavela has a shot at the title, I'm fine with everything that went on since then. Thank you for changing me as a race car driver, and although I won't be taking a real break until after Lao Long at minimum. So yeah, see you after qualifying Carter, and if I don't make the race... Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Until the lights come out again,
-Daryl Mizushima
#63 WGPC Motorworks driver

works? · by **Abanhfleft** » Thu Dec 17, 2020 2:08 am

WILLIAM JESSPER ARCHER ✓

@OffishWillArch8
- -@ItsGilArcher69

Cut it out Dad. Last few races of the season. It's not worth it.

#WGPC18

GUILLERMO RODOLFO ARCHER ✓

@ItsGilArcher69
- -@OffishWillArch8

And let em get away w/ wishing potential injury/death 2 u? Never gonna happen Will.

#WGPC18 : #BlueFlagBastards : #BlueFlagSickos : #FuckPigeons : #DontMessWithAnArcher

All William Archer really wanted to do now was to forget about the Hapiloppan Grand Prix and move on to the next track. Crashing into Oh Crap, There's a Wall was most definitely not part of his race day plan, especially not when he was in the running for a podium place alongside the other Preston driver, hometown hero Rudy Edwards. Rudy wasn't able to complete the fairy tale and win at his home grand prix (that honor went to Sara Luna) but at least he still finished P2 and gave himself a fighting chance to maybe snatch the championship from the veteran competitors iBen Toralmintii and Terho Talvela. William had long ago junked any hopes and/or dreams he might have harbored about lifting the WGPC Drivers' Championship trophy over his head (his two race wins in non-championship events notwithstanding) and knew that he was going to have to play the rear gunner to Rudy now, but unlike this point in the year last season, William had absolutely no regrets at all with having gone into WGPC and driving for Preston. There was no doubt in his mind that he was going to go back for a second season. The only real concern that he had next season was if he would be able to find a seat as he quickly as he had this season. It wasn't that out of the question, but on the other hand the supply of drivers compared to the demand of seats had meant that many deserving drivers were forced to sit out the season, like William's former UrGa teammate Taras Matviyenko.

William Archer just wanted to forget about Hapilopper and move on to the next race. But Hapilopper, it seemed, was not done with him just yet.

William had noticed that mentions of him on social media had increased during the weekend, and when he went on twii.tur, he saw that it was because his father Guillermo had taken it upon himself to pick a fight with a blogger from Hodori called Blue Flag Report because of comments by the latter about wishing both Prestons would crash because of HTN's "tasteless" "They Crash, You Win" promo. William didn't particularly care for the promo itself, but once again his father just had to take things just that little bit too far. William had gone on to twii.tur himself to dissuade Gil but the man was deadset on embarking on another social media spat, citing the possibility that William could have been injured or killed in his crash into Oh Crap, There's a Wall as his casus belli against Blue Flag Report. Of course William knew that the impact that he actually sustained that day in Hapilopper was nowhere near able to cause him any harm thanks to the high safety standards of WGPC, but Gil was truly determined to make the most out of this spat.

William decided to forget about the whole thing and concentrate on the Grand Prix of Liventia. The first two sectors were one of the best track segments that he had ever seen, but the third sector was sadly made up of the bane of William's existence: straights and hairpins. Such a shame, really. The Talbott Autodrome would have been one of the better circuits in William's opinion were it not for that Sector 3. Oh well. Hopefully the rest of the circuit would make up for what he knew would be an absolutely abysmal Sector 3.

William had always said that he saw no need to take stock in the results of practice sessions, but here in Liventia the first fingers of doubt were beginning to creep into his mind. Even on his qualifying practice program he was more than two seconds behind the fastest drivers on the grid in this particular track. Normally he wouldn't be too concerned about that, but given that his teammate was now literally a championship contender, the fact that William was 1.9 seconds off of Rudy's pace could very well make the difference between Rudy being able to take the fight to the final race of the season or him falling away before even reaching the final hurdle. Preston needed a rear gunner after all, someone who could potentially take advantage of slip-ups on the part of Tropicorp Racing Ælund. But so far this season, William did not appear to be the best candidate for that particular job. That didn't stop him from trying though.

Because Preston now had one driver challenging for the title, the team started taking their qualifying sessions later than they usually did. On one hand, it allowed both Rudy and Edward to set their times on a track with more grip which equalled faster times, but on the other hand it meant that they had less time to set faster times should they need it. William, being the second driver, went out first since technically the track had just that little bit less grip. William went through the out lap just like in the simulation, and then he put pedal to the metal and squeezed every single bit of speed that he could out of his machine. Sectors 1 and 2 he breezed through easily, and then came the straights and hairpins of Sector 3. Just grin and bear it, William, just grin and bear it, he told himself as he navigated through that part of the circuit. Finally he was on the back straight, and he activated his DRS to give him one final boost before the end of his first timed lap. "All right, William, your time is 46.155," his engineer told him. "46.155."

"Jesus fuck me," William exclaimed. He was sure that he was the only driver out there to have set a lap time in the 1:46 range this deep into the session. "How far away exactly are we?"

"That's a 2.3 second gap to Rudy, 2.3 seconds."

"And where is he?"

"Rudy is 43.8. 43.819 seconds."

"Jesus," William repeated. Thus was the dichotomy of the WGPC. Rudy Edwards and William Archer were on the same team, driving ostensibly the same equipment, yet they were literally on the opposite ends of the timing sheets.

"Ready for another go?" the engineer asked.

"Sure, just let me recharge my batteries a little bit," William replied. He then wound his way around Talbott slowly, just like if he was doing his in lap, but he was going to stick to his current set of tyres. He hoped that there was still some pace to be extracted from this set even if they were already worn down.

However, just as William was preparing to round the final hairpin of Sector 3 and start his second qualifying attempt, his engineer suddenly shouted, "Stop the car! Stop the car! You're on fire!"

"Wait, what!? What the fuck!? How did that happen?" William asked.

"We don't know just yet, William, but if you can, please find a spot to stop and get out of the car ASAP!"

"Goddamn it," William muttered. He found a marshal's post and steered his car there even while the dashboard on his steering wheel was blaring all sorts of alerts and warnings. He could also see the pink flames coming out of the back of his car on his rearview mirrors, and he knew right then and there that that was his qualifying done. There was just no way in hell that the mechanics would be able to fix the car in time for William to set another lap. He was going to be starting from the literal back of the grid. What a way to be a rear gunner for Rudy Edwards.

And William would remain at the back of the field for the actual Grand Prix of Liventia; only Dom Falapeau would have the misfortune of finishing behind him. Rudy Edwards finished in the points, P6, but with both Toralmintii and Talvela finishing higher than him a lot more things now needed to happen in his favor if Rudy wanted even the ghost of a chance of pipping the title from the veteran drivers. The dark tentacles of misery were beginning to take hold of William's mind once again, and getting rid of them might not get any easier at all even as he made the trip to Mattijana with the rest of the Preston staff.

by **Lisander** » Thu Dec 17, 2020 8:09 am

Ljubala, Mattijana
The night before FP1

When they entered, they saw those words written in the whiteboard: GARAGE SALE. Around the words, lots of drawn rays and sparkles. Carolina was a little anxious to give them the news and show the new earrings Nasunen gave her. Seems that they're dating, but they agreed in only go in dates after the end of the season.

"So, bad news or good news, what do you prefer? Nevermind. I'll start with the bad. After the race, we're all fired. TAS Alliance is finishing its journey after Mattijana." - However, she gave no more than six seconds to people on that room, before talking again:

"Since our contract with Lisander Autosports Board ends in next December 31, we're not following for the next WGPC season. The continuation of the work is pending on renewal of this licensing. Since TAS Alliance was primarily backed by TAS Bank, as well as the contributions of the team fans, we have until this exact day to finish all the contracts, with sponsors, team fans and team personnel. Every man and woman who receives a paycheck from Alliance Racing will receive its final paycheck in the usual day, with a year-end bonus. For the following season, another team will be on the rise, and our personal department will help you with anything needed. Of course, most of you won't get unemployed for long, because WGP3 is coming in the offseason and a lot of you will return to its former positions in Vetinari Racing and Team-MOON." - the worried expressions loosened. That team was maybe the smallest on the grid, and near every member was already contracted to Vetinari, Nasunen, Harlean or the sponsors of Niklas Schonbaum.

To the men and women in my own team at Harlean, the brilliant team who made the worst car for the last season and then reworked it to make it a little better this season, you obviously must not worry. Our work with the newer regulations is only beginning. We and Sissie Devereux here keep under a contract of Harlean. We keep developing Harlean 1 engine and its derivative project, the Harlean W3 that will be in WGP3 cars in Lisander and probably in another WGPC. Sissie will keep driving for our projects. The duo made by her and Miss Siebler proved strong enough, and despite her young age, Harlean decided to extend her contract and assign her as Head Engineer Deputy for Sissie Damsgard. Anne, you'll be working under me and help whoever comes to be the lead strategist for whatever be the new team."

Anne and Anneliese discreetly linked their fingers and smiled as they looked at each other. They would be together for one more year at least.

"Well, our patrons, Kimi Nasunen and Ricardo Vetinari, are dealing with the next step of the process, and this brings us to the next point. As soon as we finish the season, we'll return to Lisander and start a Garage Sale. All the profits will be donated to our primary partner, Wishes Foundation, a charity that supports orphanages around Lisander. So everything that could be sold, from paper pads to our cars, will be sold. Of course, we don't want to sell anything personal or that people grew attached to. You'll be allowed to keep any stuff you can carry by yourselves under L$100. Computers or anything that contains team secret or reserved information are out of bounds. After finishing the takeout of small things, we'll open the sale for ourselves. Apparel that wasn't used will be sold, but clothes designed for the opposite sex, like those mini-tees..." - she giggled - "...are also kind of out of bounds unless you can prove you're buying it to gift your wife, girlfriend, mother, daughter or niece." - the people laughed at that. - Otherwise than that, I'd like to state I probably won't be able to appear on the sale or in the year-end celebration of the team, because I'll be dealing with the details of the new car. Some of my boys and girls also won't be around, because our work is something that never ends. But it's still pending of confirmation. Anyways, I wish all of you a Happy Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanza, Natalis Solis Invicti or Maxxmas, whatever you celebrate. If someone wants to say anything, now it's time.

But no one wanted to talk.

"Okay, so let's sleep, end of meeting. We'll start early tomorrow."

- - - -

The morning after,
Night in Lisander

"So, do you think I am a bureaucratic driver?" - Sissie was in one of those team meetings again. Different from the last time, while all of the others were drinking wine around chairs in a room, she was on a tracksuit and drinking bottled water. She was the point outside the curve in that meeting. While the Lemos-Wiels were receiving other motorsport-related people on their house to one of those year-end meetings, Sissie could only appear through a video call. And that was kind of strange, since she was the only one with daylight, and turned up being the focal point of the conversation, like that old cousin living overseas that rarely happens but decides to call in the last moment.

"It depends on what do you mean with that, Anneliese." - that was the voice of the eldest in the group. Marc Wiel, aged 47, was a former racing champion, father of Ludwika, a WGP3 Driver, and Juliano Lemos wife, as well as her younger sister Annika Wiel, aged 16, yet on karts. Now, he dedicated himself to the family company, KB Motorworks. The idea that started three years ago with Ludwika turning her drawings into liveries and helmets evolved into a powerful car racing workshop. His words were full of experience and were always worthy. After all, he had faced most of the categories of Lisander Motorsport, years ago. - "But I believe I know what you want to say. You're referring to those bureaucratic office workers that mostly do their work and leave at the end of the day, making only what is expected and carefully looking for its office. They spend their lives with the same desk, with the same computer, the same drawers, because all of these are valuable assets of the company. Honestly, I won't deny it. I believe you're one of that, yeah... Well, most of the team owners would like this kind of drivers, because they rarely are spending. They bring the car in safety to the paddock. "

"Father, how rude. you shouldn't say that.... - Ludwika said, only to be interrupted.

He's right, Ludi. Don't worry. That's exactly what I'm thinking. - Sissie picked up the conversation.

How clueless, daughter. She's asking bona fide. She's really interested in change. - Marc continued - So, Anneliese. It's obious you're a cautious driver when it comes to keep everything on its place in the car. But you're a WGPC driver right now, you don't have to worry about that, as long as people pay for your mistakes. That's why they call it sponsorship. You drive for Alliance this season, You'll most surely drive for Bitten Heroes next season, and probably Harlean will have you testing the KS-04 as soon as it's ready. By the way, let me show it to you. Are you the only that haven't seen it yet? The design team finished the testing livery last night.

Marc sent the photo to her mePhone. It was nice and purple, as a good lisanderian car should be.

File:ks04_proj_liv0367.jpg received

"So, what do you think of it? I must say, when you enter it, you're allowed to crash it as much as you want. Go for that extra thousandths. Harlean put a lot of money on you, they will not care about some spare parts ruined. I personally want to ruin at least one engine by overworking it. At least one engine per extreme use before the first round of WGP2. It's good to know what are our real possibilities, our limits. I want you to be our test driver, and I'm pretty sure Harlean will be okay with that."

"I got that, thanks, Mr Wiel."

"Don't get the stuff my father says so seriously, Sissie, he's only talking what he wants." - Ludwika said.

"Don't worry, Ludi. It will take some time to change my mind on it. I'll need to change slowly, then I will take advantage of the WGP2 season to train that. You got a test driver, Mr Wiel. Just don't complain if I leave parts of your pretty livery in the track on the tests."

I personally will ask to heighten up the kerbs. They called me "The Magician" when I was a driver. Maybe turning you into a super aggressive driver would be a nice final act.

by **Aboveland** » Thu Dec 17, 2020 10:10 am

Nimbus Bay, the Nexus Wardship of Former Citizens of the Nimbus System
Crossbay Circuit
November 29th

Gertrude turns suddenly. “Janne, you’re still our best window into this – what do you think? Would this have been helpful for you, before coming into WGP2 with us?”

Again, Janne waits a moment before replying, organizing his thoughts, his tongue trembling before he verbalizes as his mind runs wild with ideas. "I actually reckon making Chase Cutter developments modular is a great idea, now that you mention it. If... perhaps, WGPi could be used as a development platform that way: give all the teams a spec chassis and take advantage of the modular design to make each car slightly different and gather large amounts of data with different variables, and implement in the WGP2 car the best performing features as a final trial run before the debut of the finalized WGPC car. WGPI as an alpha test, WGP2 as a beta test, and WGPC as the final release."

When he actually opens his mouth, however, his feedback is more subdued. "Yes, perhaps a driver academy sort of thing would have worked," he replies sheepishly. "To be honest, though..." he cocks his head from side to side, as if measuring his words. "my WGPi campaign was useful, I feel. It was a relatively low pressure environment to gain... proper race experience using Imagination systems. And it was a proper competition, too. I quite liked it."

"What I do like is having a psychological support system," he adds. "That would have helped."

He grins, indicating the end of his feedback, but right as Gertrude inhales to begin speaking, Janne cuts her off, abruptly, his heart pounding with the fear he might have, or might be about to, overstep his boundaries. "Actually," he starts, "sorry-- I do have a suggestion, but it's obviously from an outside perspective..."

With his cautious introduction, he pours the suggestion he'd thought of initially out of his mouth and into the energized air of the conference room. When he finishes, his little anxious bug turns ever so slightly confident.

Iskajärvi, Aboveland

You have arrived, chatters the map app on Janne's phone as he approaches the coffee shop on Iskajärvi lake. He's perplexed; he'd taken his phone out before leaving his new flat--as he's just officially moved out of his family home in Kylmajärvi for good--to double-check he still knew the way to the shop; the shop where he'd met Anders, the shop where he'd met Terho, the one where he'd got his (short-lived) TRÆ gig--the shop to which he obviously knew the way. He doesn't recall having asked his phone to send him anywhere, but as a frigid gust of wind pierces the back of his ears and a flurry of snow smacks him in the face, he realizes there's little time for reflection on the street, and pulls on the recycled wood door to stumble into the cozy cafe. The warm, sweet taste of brewing coffee hits him as hard as the icy gusts outside.

He heads straight for the table he always takes--a booth in one of the corners with a view towards the lake--as the shop is rather empty on a Thursday night at 5 PM. The cashier, also one of the baristas, smiles surprisedly when she spots him, and gets straight to work on his usual order. Janne smiles back; he'd been distinctly absent from the cafe this year, so it feels nice to be back.

His coffee is swiftly on the table in front of him: a frothy, immaculately crafted flat white, which he swears is better than a regular latte but can't justify exactly why. While he hesitates to take his first sip--better to wait than risk a burnt tongue--he pulls his phone back out to settle the maps mystery, when a notification card invades his screen. WGPC news, apparently. As he begins to read, his eyes grow gradually wider, and his mouth ever more ajar.

Terho Talvela to Retire From WGPC After Mattijanan Finale

This morning, two-time World Grand Prix Champion Terho Talvela announced, via Ælunder Nyttispalvelu Radio, his retirement from the prime category of grand prix racing at the conclusion of the current 18th season of the World Grand Prix Championship. The Tyttebærsby-born, Brukkifordet-raised rally idol turned grand prix legend was inconclusive concerning his future career plans, but assured that, for the foreseeable future, his WGPC career has come to an end.

The current drivers' champion, still with a plausible chance of defending his crown going into the season-closing Mattijanan Grand Prix, said it had been a difficult decision to make, but that once Tropicorp Racing Ælund had successfully defended their constructors' title he was ready to make the call for good, assuring that he'd "likely miss" the week to week action of the racing scene but that he has "accomplished everything [he] wanted." He added, too, that Tropicorp Racing Ælund's second constructors' championship felt to him just as fulfilling as scoring a drivers' title, and that, regardless of which of the three hopefuls the drivers' title goes to by the end of next weekend, he's happy with his performance in season 18 and ready to quit on a high, rather than "risk stretching [his] career out too thin."

Talvela's big break in the World Grand Prix Championship came in season 14, when surprise team entry Vilita and Turori Motorsports took a gamble on the then-unproven rally ace at the tail end of the pre-season signing period, to spearhead the team's offensive alongside Turorian Grand Prix veteran iBen Toralmintii. Immediately, the Abovian was on the pace, winning the first race of the season, and the first of his career, before taking another two wins, six podiums and nine top ten finishes to clinch his first ever drivers' championship crown, and Vilita and Turori Motorsports' first constructors' title.

Citing a desire to tackle new challenges, Talvela departed V&T Motorsports for a shock switch to Mattijana Racing Team for season 15, effectively leaving the VIlita and Turorian effort in the dust and causing its eventual collapse. Donning the number 1 on his MRT machine, the Abovian continued to shine throughout the season, leading the title race on equal points to then debutant Ryker Lane going into the final race in Audioslavia, before a lap 2 collision with Esmerelian Jean Mercer-Daly immediately ended his title hopes.

As Talvela's legacy grew among the multiverse, the Abovian government agreed to fund a homegrown offensive on the World Grand Prix Championship from season 16; alongside Vilita and Turorian WGP2 graduate Juracai Klianiota the former World Champion spearheaded the efforts of Tropicorp Racing Ælund, a multinational outfit in cooperation with Tropicorp and managed by his former rally co-driver Edvin Pekkanen, to build from the ground up the third chapter of his career. Growing pains early in the season and an ultimately solid car allowed Talvela to take a home Grand Prix victory and again finish third in the championship, having led the title race before the Grand Prix of Esmerel where a heavy shunt poured cold water on his momentum. The team, the spiritual successor to Vilita and Turori Motorsports, managed fifth in the constructors title after a lackluster debut season for Klianiota; after a string of disappointing results, Talvela's estranged teammate, iBen Toralmintii, returned for a one-off appearance in the final race of season 16, finishing fourth and setting the stage for what would become the most dominant season in WGPC history.

Once again reunited, Talvela and Toralmintii blitzed the opposition throughout season 17 in even stronger form than during their dominant season 14 showing. A radically redesigned and re-engined Tropicorp Racing Ælund machine carried Talvela to his second ever drivers' title with two races to spare, and though an early season slump saw the Turorian out of contention for the drivers' championship and, at times, questioning his return, a record-setting late season run to four straight wins saw the top two drivers in the championship separated by just five points at seasons' end. As a result, the constructors championship went for the first time to TRÆ and for the second to the Vilita and Turori Motorsports crew integrated into the team, their winning margin of 177 points the largest in WGPC history.

In response to the announcement, President Kaj Torvald van Aalsbyyre has prompted the local government of Tyttebærsby to organize a multitudinal viewing party in the closed Furuhøytie Virtapiiri race circuit for Talvela's final race. The frequency of scheduled flights to the central Abovian city is expected to increase in the days leading up to the race week, along with the reorganization of road routes to the retiring champion's hometown to give the star a worthy end to his career.

Tropicorp Racing Ælund is expected to reintroduce their one-off WGPC14 tribute livery used in the Abovian Grand Prix for the Grand Prix tsa Mattijana as a farewell gesture to Talvela.

Ljubala InterNazionRing
Ljubala, Mattijana

"What you looking at?" asks Edvin, his voice approaching along with the surprisingly pleasant smell of paddock coffee. Terho smiles as the sight of two cups slips into his peripheral vision, then looks up at him from his phone.

"Checking the story's alright," he replies, shrugging, and sticking his hand out to grab one of the cups.

"Ah!" exclaims Edvin, pulling back slowly to not spill the coffee. "Who said this was for you?"

Terho chuckles, jabbing at his side. "Come on, give it," he says, clutching the cup and forcing Edvin to avoid any further escalation. They sip at the same, time, looking at each other and making the same 'hmm, nice' gesture. They pause, tapping their fingers against their cups, basking in the silence of the pre-practice paddock. After a bit, Edvin breaks the silence.

"So this is it, then," he says, his eyes glassier than usual. "The end of the road."

"Nah," Terho replies, swatting at the air. He takes a bit to continue. "Well, yeah, actually," he admits. "The end... as we know it, at least." He nods.

"It's the end of an era, Terho," Edvin says, looking down at his feet, and taking another sip of the coffee. "For you, for me, for the team... It's gonna be awfully different with you gone."

Terho, again, minimizes the situation. "You know I'm sticking around, right? I'm not dying--" he stops, as some coffee sloshes onto his hand. "Your development driver seat is still open," he quips, smirking as he takes a sip himself. Edvin doesn't catch onto the humor, his voice increasingly croaky and almost as if holding back a knot in his throat.

"Sure," he says, coughing to mask his emotions and setting down his coffee. "But this is the fun bit," he says, stretching his arms out, tucking his lips in, and looking around the garage, nodding as if revindicating his statement. He sniffles. "But well, I guess you're right. Better to go off on a high."

"Yep," Terho replies. He stares at Edvin, whose glassy eyes now no longer hold back tears. His tough, pragmatic team principal persona, for the first time in a while, is broken; Terho sets his coffee down quickly beside Edvin's and rushes to hug him, patting his back absurdly hard to get a laugh out of him, which works. They both sigh, entangled, before pulling away and each straightening out their clothes. "Ready for the last track walk?" Terho says, grabbing both coffees and stretching out Edvin's to him.

"Don't say last, please," Edvin replies, cry-laughing as he pulls his glasses off and dries his tears with the cuff of his shirt. Terho laughs back. "Ah, you idiot, stop crying! You're crying!"

"Yeah," Edvin says, reaching out to nut-tap Terho to get him to crack as well, a shot he misses as Terho dodges the strike. "Ha, cheeky!" Terho teases.

***

Once down most of the new race track, having paid close attention to the tricky first sector, Terho spots someone walking up ahead, dressed in a matte gray coat with cyan accents and strutting gracefully over the asphalt. He hesitates to react outwardly, inhaling as if he's about to speak but stopping himself, before telling Edvin to "hang on," and upping his walking pace to meet the man ahead of him. He tries clearing his throat before speaking.

"Hey, Ryker," he calls out, the Nimban turning around before Terho trots the final few steps to walk level with him. "Long time no... speak, huh?" he says, wincing internally.

"Sorry I've been absent this year," he continues, Ryker's initial confusion now turned into comprehension. "It's been kinda crazy... but I guess I missed speaking with you."

As they walk, Terho turns to face forwards and gazes out at the disappearing track as he speaks. "I, uh, am assuming you've heard the news, and--" he trails off, chuckling to himself, "--well, we're trying to get Edvin to come to terms with it all."

They both walk steadily, only the sounds of their footsteps on the fresh tarmac and the whistle of the wind filling the silence. "I guess I just want to thank you," he says, "for... existing, I suppose. For being my friend. Not to sound brash, but I was sort of hoping to see iBen and I pitted against you in the title fight." He stops himself, appalled at what he's just said. "I'm so, so sorry if that sounded awful," he pleads, "you know what I mean, hopefully."

He looks back to his side again at Ryker. "I've never been too, umm, secretive with it, but I've always admired you. You know this, but well... I'm ready to go home after this, but I will really miss you. I'll miss seeing Nexus put on a show every race week, I'll miss seeing you race... I'll miss, I suppose, looking up to you as a rival. As a competitor, rather than a spectator." He, again, lingers. "That's it, really. Thanks for motivating me all these years. I promise you," --he holds a hand to his heart, his eyes tender, his voice soft-- "I assure you I'd never be where I am without you. Nobody has spurred me on as much as you have."

He reaches out, somewhat shyly, for a shoulder pat, and ends with a final remark. "I hope Janne treats you guys well," he says, grinning and looking back towards the track.

by **Auruna** » Thu Dec 17, 2020 11:35 am

Talbott Autodrome
Race
After a great qualifying, Viska is in a pretty good mood come race day. It was brighter than usual. While the qualifying result is good, there's still a race to do. They would try to do everything they can to overcome their bad luck, any method they could think of. They put the cars on the grid before the formation lap. The team is now slightly nervous. The last time they qualified high, it all went wrong. They are hoping that it would not repeat here.

In any case, they're still here to race.

The pre-race speeches from Jöna became a tradition at Viska. "Race day, if you're nervous, you are not alone. Don't worry too much and focus on your race, we're here with you. We'll go through this together. Kÿssä, mennä tahti täitä. (tl. Together, we will fight.) Avoid the walls and good luck. Täitä etteremät!"

Then the formation lap ends, the drivers line up at the grid, waiting for the race to start. The five red lights are out. The starts are varied with some getting great starts, others got away poorly. The two Viskas certainly nailed their starts. They are ready to hunt their prey. Goita is now at the rear of Niklas Schonbaum. He tries to dive at turn 1 in attempt to overtake the two ahead of him. He successfully overtakes iBen Toralmintii but couldn't get past Niklas Schonbaum yet. Meanwhile, Olivia is making good progress from P14, there's still a lot more to do but it's a start.

Lap 7, progress as been made, Goita snatched P1 from Niklas Schonbaum. He then ascends into dominating the whole race from there. Lap after lap, he keeps getting faster and faster, pushing while taking care of the tyres. Viska magic at work again with the tyres. Olivia is doing the same, put on her preferred strategy, she manages to breach the top 10 until it's time to pit.

When it seems that bad luck isn't present, it will be, just a bit late. Lap 20, Goita was called in first, in a very aggressive two-stop strategy, it was time for mediums. His stop was 3.8 seconds, some issue was present but quickly fixed although he lost two places in the process.

"There was an issue with the front-left. Not a huge problem, let's take back P1. Push hard, make good use of those mediums." Jan says through the radio as Goita exits the pit lane.

A few laps later, Olivia pitted for a set of hards, going for a one-stop. Again, the same issue with the front-left. Her stop was 4.2 seconds, slower than Goita's stop. There was a problem with the wheel nuts again, but it only affected the front-left on both cars. Time to make up for it. Both drivers were allowed to push as hard as they can.

Goita managed to create a huge gap after taking P1 again. It was a surprise to everyone especially to the team. Maybe the bad turned to good. There was still hope even after the pit lane problems. Olivia is still going strong, she gained a few places after dropping to P19 after her pit stop, currently running P12.

Another pit stop for Goita, this time it's for softs. He was well over a pit stop clear of P2 so there was no threat to his lead. He keeps increasing that gap, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, then 30 seconds. It keeps going.

It's now Lap 45, Goita is sitting comfortably in P1 with a 34 second gap to P2 and Olivia is struggling to reach P10. There was a lot of traffic, she couldn't reach Sigur Bjarnason after encountering backmarkers. She's still pushing, taking some life out of her tyres trying to take P10. Laps pass, there's nothing she could do.

The chequered flag is waved. Goita swerves close to the pit all and crosses the line taking his and Viska's first WGPC win. Celebrations at the pit wall and the garage. Olivia then crosses the line at P11. There was mixed emotions after that but overall, it was joy throughout the team.

Jan was quick to the radio. "YES! P1! That's a win! That's a win! Congratulations! You were great out there! Can't wait to see you at the podium. Ah... I love working with you. Take it all in, enjoy!"

Jan's message was followed by Jöna's message to both drivers. "You two did great out there. You fought well. You two showed that we can fight, together. Let's aim higher for the finale." A pause before Jöna continues. "And I almost forgot to mention, I'm getting dinner for everyone tonight, all on me. Special thanks to Artur for reminding me of our bet earlier."

The weekend ended on a high note for the team, they got their first win in WGPC. It was worth the long and grueling wait.

World Grand Prix Championship 18 [RP/results]

The Form Guides Are Thrown Out In Talbott

WGPC18 - Rd8 - Hapilopper - iBen DNF - VTGP 3-4 - IROS Rd2

Changing times, a new apartment and a futon

More Points Aren't Ignored

Marc Wiel taking the helm

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