World Grand Prix Championship Season 16: RP Thread

[WGPC]

Saturday Qualifying
North Emeros Street Course

Drivers had seventy-five minutes to record up to ten flying laps of the track. Only the fastest lap is recorded below
Conditions: DRY

Pos # Driver			Team			Fastest
 1 25 Jessica Franssen    	0:01:45.275
 2 50 Jang Xiaopeng       	0:01:45.314
 3 10 Jennifer Johnson    	0:01:45.376
 4 27 Gregori Krupin      	0:01:45.381
 5 71 Rustom Ibuna        	0:01:45.399
 6 14 Sigur Bjarnason     	0:01:45.429
 7 47 Erica Okumura       	0:01:45.471
 8 31 Cesaro Whittaker    	0:01:45.481
 9 23 Jasmin Kranjska     	0:01:45.500
10 16 Alexander Lund      	0:01:45.513
11 51 R.L. Cruisin        	0:01:45.515
12  7 Ethan Ellis         	0:01:45.564
13 55 Asao Nadakei        	0:01:45.597
14 20 Mick Schramm        	0:01:45.614
15 52 Sayono Souzare      	0:01:45.657
16  1 Ryker Lane          	0:01:45.680
17  2 Jean Mercer-Daly    	0:01:45.691
18 99 Nate Jackson        	0:01:45.721
19 64 Moe Himura          	0:01:45.833
20  5 Juliano Lemos       	0:01:45.837
21 42 Alex Dimitrianov    	0:01:46.112
22 56 Terho Talvela       	0:01:46.112
23 77 Juracai Klianiota   	0:01:46.124
24 17 Lourdina Westgrens  	0:01:46.246
25 12 Ranveer Singh       	0:01:46.637

Sunday's race will be scorinated on Monday night after 10pm UTC.

WGPC Eelandii's new driver will be selected before Friday evening.

[Sorlovia]

Saturday Qualifying
North Emeros Street Course

A ninth place finish at Autodromo Internazionale del Rivoli coupled with a fourth place position in the starting line up for the North Emeros Street Circuit. Perhaps things were finally beginning to look up for him. Maybe his bad streak was coming to an end at long last? He could certainly use some good results both for himself and for VMR. His fans had stuck with him through it all but the constant string of poor results and failures to finishes had become immensely disheartening for him. But he refused to get his hopes up or to let his ambition get the best of him. It never paid to allow oneself to become overly confident ahead of race. He'd trained hard and revised his racing style ahead of the race in North Emeros and was confident that he had what it took to secure a good finish this time.

"Don't get cocky Gregori." he thought to himself as he sat in the racing garage "This could still go either way. The race is an unpredictable and harsh mistress."

The past few circuits had favoured drivers with a high technical approach. But the North Emeros circuit and the circuits immediately after it looked to favour a more aggressive racing style. If that was the case he was in for better results. Gregori had always favoured an aggressive stance in racing ever since his days as a street racer back in Sorlovia. It just felt natural to him. A firm hand on the steering wheel kept the car under control and an aggressive approach made the most of the corners and straights. The prospect of facing a series of aggressive-oriented tracks brought a smile to his face and gave him hope for a come back. It would give him an opportunity to put his skills to use.

The North Emeros Street Course was a beast that could be tamed. Like a wild stallion it required a strong hand with a healthy dose of respect. He'd gone over and over the layout of the track in his free-time studying every single corner. Then he'd spent hours on the test circuit preparing his car for the rigors of the track. More power would be fed to his car's engine and his engineers had tinkered with it to enable it to handle the corners better. Faster acceleration on the straights and better use of the slip-stream to take advantage of the slingshot effect when coming out onto said straights. An aggressive stance would allow him to take advantage of the very nature of the track turning it to his advantage early on.

And of course, the media had somehow managed to corner him before he'd had a chance to slip away;

PRESENTER; We're here with Gregori Krupin. VMR's persistent and unwavering racer who is refusing to give up despite a string of bad results. Gregori, can you tell us what is going through your mind in the lead up to the North Emeros race?

GREGORI: Likely the same things that are going through the mind of every other racer? How can I best take advantage of this track? How will things go on raceday? Is there anything I haven't covered?

PRES: So is it safe to say that you are nervous?

GREG: I would be a liar if I said I wasn't. Its natural for a racer to get at least a littler nervous before a race regardless of how experienced he is or how many times he might have raced on the circuit. Practice and qualifying is an entirely different animal from raceday itself. There is no telling what conditions will be like on raceday nor what variables might be in place.

PRES: Has your string of bad results had any serious impact on you?

GREG: If anything it has made me more determined to do better. A bad result is a chance to learn and grow as a racer. Every failure is an opportunity to learn and every success a chance to evaluate what you did well.

PRES: Thank you for your time Gregori. We wish you the best of luck in the race.

GREG: Thank you. I've trained hard and have studied every statistical read-out available. I am confident in my ability and intend to put everything I've got into this race.

[Vilita and Turori]

Vannish Grand Prix, North Emeros Street Course, Vangaziland :: While Vilita and Turori Motorsports drivers don't have much, if any history driving on Vannish circuits, they had some reason for optimism heading to the (potentially) newly constructed North Emeros Street Course. Having gained some momentum during the (ambiguously) recently contested Gran Premio di Nekoni, Tropicorp Racing Aelund driver Juracai Klianiota had to know at this point that their seat was on the line and another poor showing could mark the end of the drivers debut Grand Prix Season. For R.L. Cruisin while they were unable to claim points in Nekoni they were once again able to outperform teammate Cesaro Whittaker in the under-powered MSA SinVal machine - at the very least showing that it may not specifically be Cruisin who is at fault for the fact that the Vilitan driver presses on deep into the season as the only full time driver without a single points-paying Top 10 result.

Vilita & Turorian NSSCRA driver Centur Tiones has already driven VTM to Victory Lane in Vangaziland this season.

While not on the open wheel circuit, Vilita and Turori Motorsports have had some recent success in major international motorsport in Vangaziland over in the NSSCRA circuit. Even the circuits themselves couldn't be more different with the North Emeros Street Course being (potentially) a track built on public roads, the Imperial Speedway in South Stead, Vangaziland is (assumingly) a purpose built permanent short track race course. While the Vannish drivers were favored to come out on top in their home race and propel themselves into the championship race, it was instead the upstart Turorian driver Centur Tiones who dominated the race weekend, claiming pole position and winning the race by edging out the (presumed) homeland favorite Floyd Hackerbee to claim the first major internationstatal victory of their career and deny Hackerbee a chance to compete for the NSSCRA 6 championship in the series finale at Tumbra Falls.

While there is no technical or even strategical knowledge of any use that could be transferred between the race winning #2 Tiones Lumber Dart Vilita and Turori Motorsports team from their triumph in the Gyphon Supermarket 250 at the Imperial Speedway in South Stead and either of Vilita and Turori's World Grand Prix Championship drivers, Juracai Klianiota and R.L. Cruisin, or even iBen Toralmintii's WGPC Eelandii Motorworks team - but mentally there may have been an advantage or two to be gained knowing that another Vilita and Turori born driver struggling to make an impact in their racing series had such success coming into Vangaziland and outpacing the overwhelming home favorites on a race course that (historically derived from previous lack of internationstatal events have not been conducted on them) very few foreigners had prior experience competing on.

It didn't take long from arriving in Vangaziland to determine that this race weekend wasn't going to go smoothly for all of Vilita and Turori's interests in attendance, however. WGPC Eelandii Motorworks team principle iBen Toralmintii had taken a 'wait and see' and 'lets get to the track and figure it out' attitude with regards to who was going to replace Reva Izalio in the second WGPC Eelandii Motorworks machine. What Toralmintii didn't realize, however, is that entry lists for each race weekend were due prior to the opening of the Paddock on Thursday prior to the race. The entries for all three of the races in the Esportiva swing had already been sent in with Jennifer Johnson listed as the driver of the #10 and Reva Izalio listed as the driver of the #36 and no reserve driver listed at all on the entry blank.

Since Izalio had gone home to Karditan there was no approved Grand Prix driver in North Emeros to drive the second WGPC Eelandii machine. Of course, there were perfectly capable drivers in the paddock - not in the least WGPC Eelandii's own iBen Toralmintii who drove the very same car just one season prior, and another driver who had requested an interview with the team about the open seat en route to Esportiva to meet up with the team for a meet and greet but had not arrived yet. That driver, Luc Kennedy of a nation known as North Prairie, was last heard from in Starblaydia waiting to get on a flight to Vangaziland to get to the street circuit in North Emeros for the Grand Prix Weekend.

Toralmintii was advised that a formal update to the teams entry would have to be processed before the second WGPC Eelandii machine was let out onto the track.

With practice about to start, there was no time to deal with paperwork so the WGPC Eelandii team focused on the one car they actually had a driver for and pressed forward. During the practice session everyone was following the Vangaziland affiliated drivers who drove as if they already had inside knowledge of every corner, two tenths faster than the rest of the competitors. With all their attention on a single car, WGPC Eelandii Motorworks team members were worried they wouldn't get enough practice data but instead it resulted in hightened focus on perfecting the one competing machine. During the Saturday qualifying run only Johnson in the #10 WGPC Eelandii machine was able to breakup the Vannish monopoly at the top of the field squeezing in between second place Jang Xiopeng and the Sorlovian driver Gregori Krupin in the second Vannish Motor Racing machine.

While not challenging at the top of the pack it was a surprisingly respectable performance for MSA-SinVal drivers Cesaro Whittaker and R.L. Cruisin with Whittaker placing ahead of Jasmin Kranjska and Alexander Lund in 8th place and Vilita's R.L. Cruisin just two-one-thousandths of a second outside the Top 10; ideally placed to break the longest points drought of his Grand Prix career and finally get a mark on the board despite being well eliminated in the Drivers Championship contention.

The story was a far less optimistic one for either of the Tropicorp Racing Aelund drivers Terho Talvela and Juracai Klianiota who appeared on the verge of watching their season implode from the back of the grid with Talvela narrowly besting his Vilita and Turori teammate on the track.... for the 22nd spot on the grid.

There will be just two drivers rolling behind the Tropicorp Racing Aelund machines when the lights go out on Sunday - Bitten Heroes Lourdina Westgrens and Team India's Ranveer Singh. It will be an incredible feat should either Terho Talvela or Juracai Klianiota finish in the points at Vangaziland but with drivers still unfamiliar with the debutant course there is an(potentially) increased risk of caution car coming out which could allow different strategies to come into play and with some gambling and even more Luck it may not yet be lights out on the season for Tropicorp Racing Aelund.

[Nekoni]

Thousands of feet up in the air, a small plane made the journey from Nekoni to Vangaziland. In it, sat the team boss of Polaris, Alexandra Mayari. However, Erica, the driver wasn't sat, she was pacing the aisles...and she was pissed. After such a strong start to the weekend at Nekoni, she had messed up. She had a pole position, she only missed out by a thousandth of a second on the Friday, and yet, despite everything, she locked up when it mattered most. Ibuna, and all of the second row took her at the first turn. She had ended up behind Sigur, and despite being a dry lap, something was wrong with her tyres. Although she was able to claw back the lead over fifteen laps, her grip was noticeably different, and then the inevitable happened.

Almost in a carbon copy of last race, her front left tire clipped the wall on the pit straight. The car spun a full 360, so was able to continue, however, the tire was noticeably ripped. Irritatingly, as she'd passed the pit entry, she needed to complete a full lap before she could pit, which absolutely tore into her time. One achingly show lap later, at lap 18 of the race, she exited the pit in 7th. Not what she needed.

From there, her confidence was shot. Despite being her home GP, and reassuringly knowing that her friend Souzare was in the lead for the first time in ages, this shock threw her. The rest of the race went almost depressingly processional for her, despite everybody else seeming to get overtaking opportunity after opportunity. Why couldn't she get a bit of good luck? She didn't pull off a single overtake for the rest of the race, only gaining positions through other team's pitting strategies...which ALSO didn't work for her, as her sixth place she was in for most of the round fell after Himura outpaced her out of turn 8. So, her home round, the round she was expected to podium at least, especially after that qualifying session, resulted in a humiliating seventh place. Souzare was taken at the line, but still managed to achieve a solid third, her first podium finish.

---

All of this had kept resonating in the back of Erica's mind ever since the chequered flag dropped. Sigur was leading convincingly now, the first two-time winner of the season. And it really, really should have been her.

"I don't get it. I really don't get how I did that badly in front of my own supporters." Erica necked an espresso. "Remember when you said about everyone cheering me on, Alex?" Alex nodded as she continued. "You heard the boos, didn't you? I lost my shit out there, and I totally deserve to be booed for it. How the hell am I supposed to come back from that!? That was my comeback round and I pissed away 21 points out there." As she attempted to down another coffee, Alex got out of her seat, raising her hand between the cup and her face. "Erica, stop. Seriously."

"It's great that you're caring about your performance, but this? This ain't the way." Erica closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
"I don't know how I can get out of this rut, Alex. I'm starting to lose it."
"No, you're not, you're really not. Look at the standings. You're still fifth. Mercer-Daly's one point ahead. You can take him. Talvela's seven ahead. You can take him too. It's not the end of the season yet."
"We only have six races left," Erica's eyes were still closed, still breathing deeply.
"I won a championship on six races, Erica. And even if you don't win it this time, already you've outperformed the expectations. We're easily going to get buckets more funding next year, and even though you messed up the last couple of races, you're still doing phenomenally."

Erica dropped the cup, and buried her head into Mayari's shoulder, her voice starting to break. "I wanted to show my family what I could do in person. And I failed."
Alexandra hugged her tightly. "It's alright, Eri. You still have time."

A couple of minutes passed, and Alex went to the chiller next to her seat. "Now, you've had a lot of caffeine, so you're gonna be pretty nervy, so I wouldn't have another one of them espressos, yeah?" She reached into the chiller and pulled out a beer. "Here. As we're up in the air it's gonna affect you a little bit more, so just one of these, and it should mellow you a bit, I reckon. Only one, mind. Don't want another thingy like last time."

The plane continued to Vangaziland. At North Emeros, it was all well and good being emotional and showing how much she wanted to win, but she needed to put the work in on the track, too, and this weekend had to be the time to do it.

[Vangaziland]

Jessica's fastest flying lap was her 4th. It started coming out of the relatively small straight which ran for a few hundred meters before hitting a rather tight chicane. The feature was natural to the city's road and added the jagged curves where most designed courses would have rather extended the straight. Behind the grandstand along the length of the straight, were rows of tall homes. They featured Victorian era styling. The largest home was known locally as Vangaziland's most haunted house. A for sale sign sat in the yard. It would be an interesting b-roll shot for the multiple race broadcasts looking to get footage of the area.

Jess rocketed down the straight and hit the first turn at just the right angle. The chicane was broken up enough to allow straight line acceleration between turns 1 and 2. Turn 3 is about as evenly spread before giving the course's first hard turn. The Dragon's engine roared with one bark before going silent at the braking point and coasting into the turn. Its gears popped with every shift.

From there the car's engine whirred before kicking back into it's usual high pitched screaming fit. The car was alive. It sounded angry. There was something about the sound of the Vannish engine that was visceral. Its notes tingled ones spine and danced in the onlookers' brains.

Turn 4 was a slight switchback from 3. This was where one refined their line into the longest stretch of the race. The segment of the track between turns 4 and 5 was one of the fastest if on the right line. The hard turn 5 lead down a winding curve which slowly wound it's way into another wide switchback.

On the outside of the track, here in this section, were rows and rows of shops. People stood outside of them, waving and yelling as the indigo & red motored it's way along the segment. The sun peaked out from the array of thick, fluffy clouds which hung in the air.

Jess flew through this segment on her fastest lap. It was here that she made up most of her time. A lot of time in practice was spent refining lines she already had mental data on. On her 4th flying lap, she found her best line. The car hit it's long gears as it sped through the wide turn. It slowed just the slightest before switching over into a wide turn 6. WGPC spec cars should have no trouble hanging on through these high speed turns, meaning a lot of passing might come on the wide stretch known as 'The Boulevard'.

Now Jess sped towards one of the coolest features of the track. The district changed into more of a commerical district. Gone was the residential, small-town feel. Now the race was clearly moving through a city.

Up ahead was a tall feature. A mall was on either side of the road, connected by a footbridge which crossed over the track. Onlookers watched from inside, looking down over the race track. They could still hear the VM-222's engine yell and scream into a gear shift from their indoor perch. Other fans packed the parking lot to catch a glimpse.

6 straightened into a small run before heading into perhaps the tightest turn on the track. The engine went quiet around the braking point as Jess brought her car into position to cut the apex of Turn 7. It led into a little curve between the next turn which put a lot of g-forces on the driver as they started to push out of turn 8 into the next segment.

8 to 9 was a quick little straight. Now they were in the Transportation District. Behind the gates, the city was still in motion. As Jess passed the extremely ornate, art deco bus terminal, a bus was leaving the main garage. Its passengers would have seen the indigo & red speed by on it's way to pole position.

Following that was a train station, located in the same square. From here, one could catch a high speed train up and down the Mainland's east coast (of which Emeros was the midpoint of). Long distance trips also carved through the central arteries of the nation, leading Northwest to Old Prairie and Southwest to South Stead.

Jess made up even more time in this segment, putting her on a good run to turn 10. There was a rather deep decline in elevation here, but it was a quick drop. The Vannish coastline was notoriously flat land. Tall trees flanked either side of the track here as the road ran between a large urban park. The tall trees were widely spaced, leaving enough room for many to gather in the park. Roars of cheers kicked up, voices bouncing loudly, echoing from the acoustics of the trees.

The course finally starts to turn slightly more residential after the park. Turns 10 through 12 are another set of fast switchbacks. Jess actually didn't run her best time here on her fastest lap, not timing her braking right in the section leading on to it.

Things picked up on Turn 13, which was really a tight entry was onto a street which led to the local parkway. It ran from this more residential district all the way through the city of Emeros, running through the much denser commercial districts. A look to the left from the road would show a skyline of towers peering down from on high way off in the distance.

A statue of the city's namesake, Lord Emerott of the 1500s, stood tall above Turn 13. It was built in the late 1800s. The interesting thing is that, as this was an older road, the statue was designed to peer down on the intersection which is now turn 13. It was another hard break of a turn, with the distraction of a stoic, towering figure staring each driver in the face.

13 led to 14 in a short straight. The direction change was actually tougher than it looked here, because 14 was a blind turn. Three yellow arrow signs illuminated the wall, making sure nobody crashed into the hard metal barrier permanately affixed to the road. Jessica liked this feature, even though it made her hair stand up every time. It might be tricky on race day.

Her car ran up the straights between 14 and 15 and then to 16. In the background were small shops like gas stations or delis. They were spread out among small homes, apartment complexes and open spaces. Small crowds gathered to watch on smaller stands set up here.

Turn 16 led back to the final straight. The car roared and shifted through it's routine as it belched across the finish line into the next lap.

"Helluva lap, Jess!" Hattieson sounded excited over the team radio. "Beat that lap, if you can." But Jess couldn't.

Up above, the clouds sailed high. It was almost as if they were figuratively above what was happening on the track. The clouds were not bothered with the whims of some racer or anything on the surface below. The clouds moved to the tune of their own beat, just like Vannish Motors Racing. Clouds are not worried about the sun, nor the Earth they turn into mud on a whim. They have their own goals.

[Savojarna]

Rivoli finally felt like a proper challenge to Sigur Bjarnason again. Somehow, he found out, he was only driving properly when he had the feeling that a mistake could truly cost him. If the track was testing speed rather than courage and skill, like it had been the case in Lisander, he struggled to keep his concentration up and was punished with a loss of places, and then also with a technical defect. Now, the tables had somewhat turned against him as the team was travelling into the Lion's - or rather the Cat's - Den, the home race of his big championship and increasingly personal rival Erica Okumura. The Nekoni had the benefit of having a race in front of her own fans, on her home track, while Sigur's driving home of Yarkovo was only a test track in the beginning of the season. His best bet for home advantage would be Kopylov. As soon as he had rolled out onto the track in Nekoni, he felt that this was much more up his alley than the previous circuits. The fast first sector with its highspeed turns challenged his courage, especially in the qualifying when he would be aiming to win the last split second on that part. The second half of the track appealed to Sigur in terms of its technicality and lack of forgiveness.

In the first practice run, he ended up in the grass in sector three. The car had touched the wall, but only needed a new front wing; nevertheless, it shook him from the lethargy Sigur had been in since Lisander. Finally, he felt the danger and adrenaline of racing in his blood again. Bjarnason's runs were no longer uninspired solid get-round-the-track runs, they were laps of a hungry tiger launching at his prey and trying to capture those final split seconds required for the pole position. The thrill of racing was part of the fun for him. Had he been placed in a Nexus with its near-invincible forcefield, he thought, he'd probably hardly ever get decent laps - the lack of security features and technology gadgets fired up his concentration and got him into the tunnel vision needed to shine in a WGPC car. In Lisander, he had been distracted. That was the reason why things weren't working out: He had too much time to think. Thinking about the championship, about the annoyingness of the press circus (especially if every journalist and their mother got their three minutes thanks to the SSA's worse than useless rulebook and a bureaucrat unwilling to organise press conferences - it would have been effort for him!) and the whole business about the engine issues in Lintulahti and Lisander took his mind off his actual job. Now it was back where it belonged: on driving, beating Okumura at her own turf and winning the Gran Premio di Nekoni.

It probably also helped that he finally got to see a press centre from the inside again. Kjurman, who had always posed his press demands in the worst moments, had been replaced by a young MRT representative. Sigur found Lara Kasparova a lot easier to be around than Thomas Kjurman. For a start, she seemed like she actually enjoyed being on a racetrack and had a clue about the car. In fact, having an engineer as his press representative proved to be quite cool, as it meant he no longer had to explain why the MRT and the Nexus couldn't start equally fast to a dense journalist any longer when he should actually be preparing for his strategy session with Krister and the team. Sigur didn't know what or who was behind Kjurman's semi-sacking, but he definitely wouldn't start complaining about the removal of the SSA bureaucrat or about his successor.

With his mood so drastically altered, Bjarnason was looking forward to the race in Nekoni. The plan was to stick to Ibuna at the start and go for a one-stop strategy, stopping about twenty laps into the race. "Don't attack Rusty too hard. We want to win the Constructor's, if you guys kick each other out in the first corner nobody wins. He has the better tyres in the beginning, so just try to stick to his backside and overtake when he comes in, okay?", Arlund briefed him again as the formation lap was about to end. "Oh, and don't obsess about Erica. Of all your concurrents, I fear Talvela and Nexus the most. These people are in for the long run and know how to handle a championship. We can always fight it out with Okumura, but if we fall substantially behind Talvela or Mercer-Daly, things will get difficult. Keep them behind yourself first", the briefing continued. Sigur rolled his eyes. Krister had told him this about seven times already. Finally, he pulled his car up behind Rusty's MRT and next to the Polaris of Souzare. The lights went on one by one. He sized up his competition, preparing for the start.

The lights went out and the cars roared as they went into the first corner. Ibuna had the better start, pulling up a small gap that made the plan of following him past Souzare difficult. He pulled up next to the Hodoran as they went through the first corner, but on the second turn, the Polaris appeared on his side again. He had the outside for the fast corner and also the stream of Okumura, with Rusty already being too far ahead of Sigur for him to benefit. He had to pull back, consolidating himself in the fourth position behind the two Polaris that he held for a while. Westgrens and Franssen were solidly behind him, Bjarnason had Souzare's back in sight, but couldn't attack the Hodoran successfully. Ibuna was comfortably pulling away. Seventeen laps into the race, Souzare and Sigur had fallen behind Okumura a little as the Nekoni was pushing hard. This proved a blessing: pulling around the tight 20th corner, probing for an opening at the inside of Souzare's Polaris, he suddenly saw a slow-running black and orange car. Erica Okumura had hit the wall and was driving far off the line with a ripped tyre. Suddenly, Sigur had not only been far ahead of the one remaining Nexus and Terho Talvela's TRAE, but also passed his big rival.

His mood took a hit after the pit stop. The stop had been decent, but he ended up right behind Alex Dimitrianov. The McPahan was clearly slower than the MRT was on fresh tyres, but he was an expert at defending himself against Sigur's overtaking attempts and slowed the Savojar down as he chased Sayono Souzare. All hope of undercutting the Hodoran was gone as he led the field following Ibuna's pit stop, building a massive lead that Sigur couldn't contend with. Finally, after three laps, he beat the Mattijanan on the brakes in Turn 12, turning the anger and frustration in him into fuel for attack. The push brought him closer to the top as Souzare and Ibuna took their second stop, but Ryker Lane and Jess Franssen were coming up from behind. The gaps were closing, and the Gran Premio di Nekoni moved towards its culmination. Suddenly, he caught glimpses of Rusty on the straights. Ten laps before the end, he had caught his teammate, who seemed to have trouble with his tyres judging by his overly careful driving. "Sigur? You are faster than Rusty. We may have him let you pass to catch Souzare, so be patient and only attack if you have a good and safe chance. If you kick both of you out of the race, Struna probably rips off your head, so be careful", Arlund told him. Indeed, half a lap later, Rusty exited Turn 2 wide and Sigur slipped past the inside, not thinking about whether it was voluntarily or not. His mind was on hunting down Souzare who was on a similar strategy as Sigur, but with the longer stint first.

The seconds were melting down under his wheels as Team Polaris must have miscalculated the longevity of the soft tyres. First it was seven seconds. Then five. 4.2. 2.7. Six laps before the end, he could see the Hodoran leader in front of him. The race was down to seconds. He pulled up behind him midway through the circuit. Then, in turn twenty, he went a bit wider than the Hodoran to get more speed out of it. Pulling up behind him, he built up the speed required before swerving to the right, braking just a bit later and pulling up next to Souzare on the outside. He was perfectly positioned for the second corner, and used the inside advantage to get his nose ahead of the black and orange wing. Making the MRT roar at the exit, Sigur Bjarnason came out into turn 3 ahead of Souzare, and saw him disappearing in the rear mirror as he shot down the straight. Until the end, he'd build seven more seconds and cross the line as the season's first double winner and new WGPC leader. Not something I would have imagined a week ago, he thought as Krister congratulated him on the radio.

[Mattijana]

The sound of Izara Keunssberg's shoes were muffled only by the silky green carpet that waved its way up the stairs to the Kopylov hospitality lounge. The last two meetings with her head steward Lara had been relatively friendly despite a few moments of tension, but this one would likely be more fractious.

Lara was waiting for her just inside the door. Either she was being more cheerful and welcoming than usual or she knew what was coming and was trying to make a good impression.

"Izara. Good to see you again, she said dryly." Her tone would suggest it was more luck than judgement that Lara had been abnormally close to the varnished wooden double doors.

"You too Lara." Izara's tone was equally devoid of genuine pleasure.

"Excellent. I'm going to get right to it to be honest. Julian Petrov saw the draft menu you had ready and he wasn't happy. All the drinks you had as aperitifs were alcoholic and there are a number of nations visiting us where alcohol is illegal. By not offering them something, you risk alienating them right at the start of the party, damaging international relationships and presenting our whole nation in a negative light in their eyes. Quite frankly you're lucky I took the flak from him because otherwise you'd be in some pretty major trouble."

Lara let the awkward silence hang for a couple of seconds.

"How did he even see the menu?" She eventually said meekly.

"You know he's a massive food fan. He'll want to know. Why didn't you have non-alcoholic aperitifs?"

"We were planning to include them onto the menu, but we just hadn't added them to the aperitif section. I can easily include them once I've spoken to the guys in the kitchen."

In truth, Lara had not been planning to add them in. It was possible and she had a repertoire of mocktails she could dig out, but it just hadn't been her priority.

"Good. I want the completed menu emailed to me in an hour and a half so I can attach it to the the final details. Julian's going to be proofing it after your slip-up, so don't let me down again."

As soon as the Kopylov manager strutted back out of the doors, Lara dashed back to the kitchen. This would be a very frantic hour and a half.

---

Kopylov InternazionRing Aprés Race Party: Further Details:

Thank you kindly for accepting our invitation to our event, we look forward to welcoming you to Mattijana. Please find attached further details of the event.

Izara Keunssberg, Kopylov Circuit Manager and Julian Petrov, Mattijanan Minister for Sports.

Arrival:

Guests will be recepted at the main entrance to the pit building and will be invited to drinks and chat in the downstairs suite. Staff will be available to register your arrival and a parking service will be available should drivers wish to accompany guests to drinks.
This will begin from 6:45 PM and it is reccomended you arrive before 7:30 PM.

Dinner:

After drinks, guests will be invited to the upstairs suite for dinner, which will begin at around 8:00 PM. Please select a starter main course and dessert per team member for the conveniance of the catering staff and return to us by email. Vegetarian options are shown, but for other dietary requirements and queries, please contact us by email.

Teams are free to organise seating on arrival, but are encouraged to mix with other teams and those in other team roles in the spirit of the WGPC.

Aperitifs

-Puklavec prosecco
-RotesJuliana: Jägermeister, Antaljan lime and grapefruit juice.
-GroseVada: Revinkan Campari, Antaljan Orange, Kranjagrad Rhubarb.

-SonnaMarelika: Apricot, pinapple and lime
-GinaKuna: Ginger, Lime and Apple
-GrunjaKuna: Cucumber, elderflower and soda

Starters

-Woklase Juliani: Grilled mint Sausages on a bed of asparagus with a cider and parsley sauce.
-Garnjele Savikani: River prawns on a bed of rice with paprika and chili.
-Zopa tsa Kirsha: Cherry soup served with crusty bread.

Main Courses

-Ballaja Kranjagrada: Lamb with a tomato, oregano and mint sauce in a crusty bread bowl, served with spiced fried potatoes.

-Marana Limona: Juliana River trout with a lemon and parsely sauce served with new potatoes.

-Pilza Kamanja: Wild mushroom stew with crispy potatoes and crusty bread.

Desserts

Käskuche tsa Kirsha: Cherry and chocolate cheesecake with chocolate and hazlenut ice cream and a dark chocolate sauce.

Hönigsharztörte: Honeycomb and toffee tart topped with honeycomb and caramel.

Bisket tsa Jabolka è Rarbar: Apple and Rhubarb crumble with rhubarb ice cream and a caremalized apple sauce.

Käsevard: A selection of regional cheeses and biscuits with local seasonal fruits.

Kaffi: Coffee made with beans from Shalkar, made to taste and served with Amaretto biscuits.

After Dinner Events:

After dinner, guests are invited to the balcony where reknowned Mattijanan singer Katarina Klamara will be providing live acousotc guitar and piano music. Following her set, scheduled to be at around 10:30 PM, Guests are invited back inside where Matej Donilovic from MFO Radio will be on the decks to provide a mixture of dance and pop music with the floor clear for mingling, both rythmic and static.

The bar will close at 12:30 AM with the event scheduled to end at 2:00 AM.

[WGPC]

CUT OFF

[Former Citizens of the Nimbus System]

???

Coalescence occurs; it simply does not occur in full, for he cannot harness it. Every motion seems exaggerated tenfold, every unmotion nonetheless uncontrollable. The power flows towards him and just as quickly slips away.

This is bizarre, for he could harness it up until now. At last year’s Audioslavian Grand Prix, he surged forth from the back lines to take up his rightful, familiar place on the podium and, in doing so, claim the Drivers' Championship. The latter stages of last race and now this Practice and Qualifying have seen him deprived of the ability - and he has no clue why.

Vannish Grand Prix
Pre-Race

The Nimban claws himself out of the darker recesses of his mind, breathing steadily. Just have to keep trying. Jean's right next to me; that’s an advantage we can use off the start. The team’s behind me. I…

He sighs, looking at the grey, featureless wall at the tunnel’s end before walking back towards the crashing waves and light. I just have to keep trying. I always have; it’s never failed me before, even if I have to work out a different approach.

He holds out his staff, then relinquishes it as it stands before him, blue as the sky. Then he focusses and it spins.

[WGPC]

*screws eyes shut. exhales deeply. presses 'submit'*

Raceday
North Emeros Street Course

Conditions: WET
Laps: 72

Start  |  Pos. After 18 laps  |  Pos. After 36 laps  |  Pos. After 54 laps
 1 FRS | 1 FRS Aft. 18 laps   | 1 FRS Aft. 36 laps   | 1 FRS  Aft. 54 laps
 2 JNG | 2 JNG +36.919sec     | 2 BJA +106.641sec    | 2 JOH +93.392sec
 3 JOH | 3 KRU +76.59sec      | 3 JOH +117.6sec      | 3 BJA +98.8sec
 4 KRU | 4 ELI +93.491sec     | 4 NDK +118.372sec    | 4 JNG Laps Down: 1
 5 IBU | 5 JOH +98.728sec     | 5 LUN +122.285sec    | 5 LUN Laps Down: 1
 6 BJA | 6 LUN +99.124sec     | 6 JNG Laps Down: 1   | 6 NDK Laps Down: 1
 7 OKU | 7 NDK +101.806sec    | 7 KRU Laps Down: 1   | 7 KRU Laps Down: 1
 8 WTK | 8 BJA +107.726sec    | 8 OKU Laps Down: 1   | 8 OKU Laps Down: 1
 9 KRA | 9 CRU +108.234sec    | 9 ELI Laps Down: 1   | 9 ELI Laps Down: 1
10 LUN |10 LAN +116.128sec    |10 WTK Laps Down: 1   |10 SCH Laps Down: 1
11 CRU |11 TAL Laps Down: 1   |11 IBU Laps Down: 1   |11 IBU Laps Down: 1
12 ELI |12 WTK Laps Down: 1   |12 DIM Laps Down: 1   |12 WTK Laps Down: 1
13 NDK |13 OKU Laps Down: 1   |13 LAN Laps Down: 1   |13 DIM Laps Down: 2
14 SCH |14 IBU Laps Down: 1   |14 TAL Laps Down: 1   |14 LAN Laps Down: 2
15 SZR |15 JAC Laps Down: 1   |15 SCH Laps Down: 1   |15 HIM Laps Down: 2
16 LAN |16 KLI Laps Down: 1   |16 HIM Laps Down: 1   |16 WES Laps Down: 2
17 JMD |17 HIM Laps Down: 1   |17 CRU Laps Down: 1   |17 TAL Laps Down: 2
18 JAC |18 JMD Laps Down: 1   |18 JAC Laps Down: 2   |18 KLI Laps Down: 2
19 HIM |19 WES Laps Down: 1   |19 KLI Laps Down: 2   |19 JAC Laps Down: 2
20 LEM |20 SCH Laps Down: 1   |20 WES Laps Down: 2   |20 JMD Laps Down: 2
21 DIM |21 DIM Laps Down: 1   |21 JMD Laps Down: 2   |21 CRU Ret. Lap 49
22 TAL |22 SZR Ret. Lap 4     |22 SZR Ret. Lap 4     |22 SZR Ret. Lap 4
23 KLI |23 RVR Ret. Lap 3     |23 RVR Ret. Lap 3     |23 RVR Ret. Lap 3
24 WES |24 KRA Ret. Lap 1     |24 KRA Ret. Lap 1     |24 KRA Ret. Lap 1
25 RVR |25 LEM Ret. Lap 1     |25 LEM Ret. Lap 1     |25 LEM Ret. Lap 1

Pos # Driver               Team			Race Time	Behind Preceding car	Points
 1 50 Jang Xiaopeng          	2:27:09.500	0:00:00.000	25
 2 20 Mick Schramm           	2:28:45.384	0:01:35.885	18
 3 71 Rustom Ibuna           	2:29:09.278	0:00:23.894	14
 4 16 Alexander Lund         	Laps Down: 1	0:00:39.067	10
 5 42 Alex Dimitrianov       	Laps Down: 1	0:00:20.182	8
 6 64 Moe Himura             	Laps Down: 1	0:00:12.174	6
 7  1 Ryker Lane             	Laps Down: 1	0:00:00.688	4
 8 47 Erica Okumura          	Laps Down: 1	0:00:26.882	3
 9 56 Terho Talvela          	Laps Down: 1	0:00:23.837	2
10 25 Jessica Franssen       	Ret. Lap 72			1
11  2 Jean Mercer-Daly       	Laps Down: 2	0:00:20.238*	
12 31 Cesaro Whittaker       	Laps Down: 2	0:00:03.955	
13 99 Nate Jackson           	Laps Down: 2	0:00:37.739	
14 17 Lourdina Westgrens     	Laps Down: 2	0:00:13.039	
15 77 Juracai Klianiota      	Ret. Lap 68			
16 27 Gregori Krupin         	Ret. Lap 68		
17  7 Ethan Ellis            	Ret. Lap 68
		
DF 55 Asao Nadakei           	Ret. Lap 65		
DF 10 Jennifer Johnson       	Ret. Lap 60
DF 14 Sigur Bjarnason        	Ret. Lap 58
DF 51 R.L. Cruisin           	Ret. Lap 49
DF 52 Sayono Souzare         	Ret. Lap 4			
DF 12 Ranveer Singh          	Ret. Lap 3
DF 23 Jasmin Kranjska        	Ret. Lap 1	
DF  5 Juliano Lemos          	Ret. Lap 1

*Time behind 9th placed Terho Talvela.

Current Drivers' Championship Standings

Pos	#	Name			Team			Pts	Wins
1	14	Sigur Bjarnason		MRT			74	2
2	71	Rustom Ibuna		MRT			68	1
3	25	Jessica Franssen	VMR			66	1
4	56	Terho Talvela		TRAE			63	1
5	47	Erica Okumura		Polaris			58	1
6	2	Jean Mercer-Daly	Nexus Racing		56	1
6	50	Jang Xiaopeng		Omni Racing		56	1
8	20	Mick Schramm		Omni Racing		55	0
9	64	Moe Himura		Arada			47	1
10	42	Alex Dimitrianov	McPahan			46	0
11	1	Ryker Lane		Nexus Racing		40	0
12	16	Alexander Lund		McPahan			34	0
13	52	Sayono Souzare		Polaris			25	0
14	23	Jasmin Kranjska		Kissan Motorsport	23	0
15	55	Asao Nadakei		Arada			18	0
16	10	Jennifer Johnson	WGPC Eelandii		16	0
17	77	Juracai Klianiota	TRAE			15	0
18	27	Gregori Krupin		VMR			12	0
18	12	Ranveer Singh		TIF 13			12	0
20	22	Kyoko Fujisaki		Kissan Motorsport	9	0
21	17	Lourdina Westgrens	Bitten Heroes		8	0
21	99	Nate Jackson		TIF 13			8	0
23	31	Cesaro Whittaker	MSA-SinVal		5	0
24	5	Juliano Lemos		Bitten Heroes		4	0
25	36	Reva Izalio		WGPC Eelandii		1	0
26	51	R.L. Cruisin		MSA-SinVal		0	0
26	7	Ethan Ellis		Kissan Motorsport	0	0

Current Constructors' Championship Standings

Pos	Team			Points
1	MRT			142
2	Omni Racing		111
3	Nexus Racing		96
4	Polaris			83
5	McPahan			80
6	TRAE			78
6	VMR			78
8	Arada			65
9	Kissan Motorsport	32
10	TIF 13			20
11	WGPC Eelandii		17
12	Bitten Heroes		12
13	MSA-SinVal		5

Notes on how those race results worked:

* Results are classified as long as a driver finishes at least 90% of race distance.
* Drivers who finished a lap down would have un-lapped themselves compared to the retired Franssen on the final lap, according to the scorinator.
* Drivers who finished two laps down would have regained one lap on Franssen but would only have completed 71 laps of the race, putting them behind Franssen on the classified results
* This scorinator is annoyed at being retired at the end of this season and is lashing out at everyone in protest. Cruisin and Krupin in particular. There's nothing in the numbers that suggest this. I check them after every dubious or surprising or weird result.
* Any questions or inquries or anger or protests can be directed to Audioslavia via TG or via the WGPC discussion thread.

[North Prarie]

"Well, they ought to take you now." Jeff said to Luc Kennedy. Luc watched the cars go by and finish the 17th lap. Jennifer Johnson, WGPC Eelandii's sole driver, was staggling in 3rd-to-last place.
Luc had gotten to Vangaziland on Saturday, so he couldn't work out a deal with Eelandii and get in a car in time for a practice. Instead, they gave him, his girlfriend, and his agent box seats. Luc and his team were basically guests for Eelandii everywhere until he would actually sign. He was going to go to a dinner with Jennifer Johnson that night, and he was going to fly out to Mattijana on the team jet.
All he hoped was for Eelandii to give him a contact as soon as possible.
Then he would be a WGPC driver.

[Aboveland]

As the five red lights faded, their faint glow lingering in the mist, Terho's heart surged, propelling him forward. Nanna fishtailed in delight, squirming in the puddles on the completely drenched city roads of the Vannish circuit. There was nothing that could have ever prepared him for the onslaught of carnage that awaited; the race would be down to the survival of the fittest. He charges on like a madman through the unforgivingly bumpy, zig zaggy turns one and two, the water around him splashing into his lap and splattering all over his visor, his visibility as good as that from inside an armored vehicle. The cars ahead alternate between being clearly visible and turning into blurry, runny upside down figures, desperately fighting for a minimal fraction of control.

By the first sharp turn into the longer, flowing corners of turns four and five, Terho finds himself 17th, trailing former nemesis Jean Mercer-Daly but keeping his distance enough for an emergency slam on the brakes; there was still not a fathomable amount of chunks of ceramic that would be able to slow him down in the event of a collision. Nanna begins to slide as Terho slows down for turn five, taking the corner entry almost sideways. His rally experience was good for nothing in Vulkanas, yet this was the first time where it was crucial. He feathers his foot lightly over the throttle pedal to maintain speed and countersteers between small adjustments and full opposite lock, his eyes fixed on the car to his left, the Esmerelian, taking the corner with relative ease in his four wheel drive Chase Cutter. Yet Terho's eyes soon dart from the graceful silver machine to the plume of debris arising meters ahead, just barely making itself apparent in the midst of the storm. Shards of carbon fiber sprinkle the air, nuts and bolts launching into the thick stratosphere, as the spinning cars of Juliano Lemos and Jasmina Kranjska form a bottleneck on the track. Terho frantically corrects Nanna's direction, straightening her to thread the needle through the minute gap, carefully keeping his distance to Mercer-Daly ahead. His alert pupils fixate on the car in front once more, traveling slower than before, and erupting in a brilliant showcase of otherworldly engineering: its blue force field pulses into action sporadically, with pressure points flashing a bright, blinding cyan as bits of pink Lisanderian machine deflect off the awe-inspiring canopy-like "structure". The potentially piercing pieces of debris flee the scene and leave no remnants in its wake, Terho safely through the carnage, his right brain tingling with excitement.

As his superior placed rivals begin to modulate their pace, Terho throws caution to the wind. Cars behind drop out of the classification in delightful spins and spectacular failures as they had found themselves caught in the epicenter of the shattering accident, while Terho presses on regardless. His gloves now soaked inside, his visor lifting and letting rain water seep through his lips, his teeth chattering as his body rests in a pool of frigid liquid, the Abovian overtakes seven more drivers. He loses a position to Lane before the first quarter of the race, already a lap behind on the leader. So far, so good, really.

After just becoming the best of the rest, Terho settles down, controlling his race much like everyone else. Until lap 49, the race had mostly receded into an uneventful struggle for survival, spins and bumps and tussles aplenty, the cars waddling in the pools of water like pigs in mud. The drivers were anything but relaxed, however, Terho struggling to keep 14th ahead of a charging R.L. Cruisin desperate for points. The Vilitan lunged down the Abovian's inside line on turn seven, aquaplaning past him into fourteenth place, yet Terho's more controlled entry gifted him a steadier exit and line into turn eight. The two drivers carefully navigated their way through turns nine through twelve, sliding in unison as gracefully as a choreographed ice skating routine, side by side with Terho on the oustide of turn 12 going into the hairpin at 13. Before the braking Terho was just barely behind Cruisin, his front right wheel in the middle of the MSA-Sinval machine's wheelbase. Out of turn 12 both cars had slid facing the apex, yet into the braking for the sharper turn up next the Abovian had managed to straighten his car up in time. The experienced Cruisin, however, still pointed sideways at the apex of 13 going into the braking zone, and a desperate late lock up saw him spin out of control just as Terho attempted to circumvent the blue-green car around the outside, to its left. Cruisin's left rear wheel just touched the Abovian's sidepod, the faster MSA-Sinval machine spiralling into the barriers at the end of the track, Nanna spinning tantalizingly slowly to rest its rear wing on the tyre wall.

"Ah fuck!" Terho exclaimed on the radio.

"Any damage?" replied Edvin, his blood pressure nearly popping the fine veins in his eyeballs.

"Not sure." Terho answered, slightly flustered and certainly annoyed. To his right, he could see Cruisin stumbling out of his stricken car, its wheels certainly pointing in the wrong directions. Terho rejoined the race 19th, second to last, just Mercer-Daly seperating him from the pit of despair that was last place. There was nothing else to be done at this stage, certainly.

And yet, in true WGPC fashion, the results were flipped on their heads.

By lap 58, incredibly, only three cars remained on the lead lap, Bjarnason occasionally reaching Johnson yet still too far away to devise an overtake, and over a minute and a half behind race leader Franssen. As if God himself had pressed a fist through the thick weighted blanket of the overcast monsoon skies, in just two laps Bjarnason and Johnson found themselves out of the race, the Abovian now 15th without a clue as to what had happened, the race now flaunting just a single driver on the lead lap.

After the retirement of Asao Nadakei on lap 65, things took a sour turn once more. The Horodan's retirement just ahead of Kruipin knocked the Sorlovian down to eighth, within the grasp of tongue-twisting Ethanian Ethan Ellis. The pointsless Kissan driver was characteristically ambitious in an overtaking manouver through turns fourteen and fifteen, collecting the horribly unlucky Sorlovian at the kink at 15 and crashing both drivers out before the final corner. The drivers behind swerved and spun to avoid the carnage, yet things wouldn't look up for Juracai Klianiota once again, the Vilitan collecting the stricken cars and slamming into the rear of Kruipin's VMR machine. A stray radio expletive meant for Juracai's car came across to Terho's radio, who promptly turned it off. In a heartbreaking twist, local hero Jessica Franssen retired on the absolute final lap, the possessed, frostbitten, water-wrinkled Terho charging from ninteenth to gain ten places in just fourteen laps, unlapping himself in the process, finishing as the final lap down car in the classification. He ticked the radio on as he crossed the line and parked the car on the first emergency road after the pit straight, releasing a heavy sigh of relief as he flipped his visor open and wiped his soaked eyes.

"Good race," Edvin said, almost happily.

"Good race indeed," Terho replied, smiling. Nanna's shot rear tyres skipped on the slick tarmac as he set off on his final in-lap of the weekend. His aching muscles thanked him for his efforts, his now visible eyes crinkling above the uncontainable smile of delight he bestowed.

[Esmerel]

Before Jean knew it, two more races had already been completed. Things were getting hectic in the WGPC- and Nexus was falling back, only scoring a couple of points now and then. Hell, Jean had finished behind a retirement this race. At least he enjoyed North Emeros as a track. Rural street race. Can’t beat that, can you? It reminded him of his earliest racing days, driving beat-up banger cars from the 70s and 80s on gravel and dirt tracks, where collisions were not only guaranteed, they were encouraged.

And where he didn’t do that well, to be honest. His career only picked up in GT racing.

Regardless, North Emeros finished with MRT running away with both championships. Of course, given last year, there was still time to turn around the situation. It only took 3 races for Red Lion to go from the midfield to dominant Constructors’ champions. Oh, and Kopylov and Vertress were coming up.

Maybe luck would even out after all. If Jean picked up the pace.

[Sorlovia]

He still had no idea how he'd managed to walk out of the maelstrom unscathed but walk out of it he had. Never in his wildest dreams could he have foreseen the tempest of carbon fibre, car parts and other assorted debris. A haze of smoke and a violent cacophony of metallic screeching that left so many cars strewn across the track. He'd emerged from the plume of smoke like a spectre from the mist. Walking on foot from the midst of the spectacular crash with his helmet tucked under his left arm. That image alone would be repeated endlessly through the Sorlovian media. Gregori Krupin striding defiantly out of the haze while his car lay upside down on the asphalt still spinning wildly.

The memories returned as his mind calmed itself from its survivalist panic mode. The car ahead of his had spun out of control colliding violently with his own car in a horrible screeching of metal and an explosion of carbon fibre. It had all happened so fast that he'd lost track of exactly which cars had been involved but he knew a third car had also been caught in the violent death spiral. The front axle of his car had been entirely torn off and he'd been flung hard into the barrier wall further damaging his car. The second impact had flipped the car upside down sending it violently spinning and he'd been flung from the drivers seat on the race track.

"Oh shi-" had been the last thought in his mind before his instincts had taken over.

He recalled narrowly escaping being run over by another crashing car. Then the discordant noise of screeching metal and the acrid stench of burning rubber as he'd picked himself up. In the style of his ancient ancestors, who had strode through the smoke of war unafraid of the turmoil going on around them, he'd walked out from the midst of the chaos and had begun making his way over to the barrier. The news cameras would pick up the sight of a tall muscular Sorlovian man striding through the chaos with a defiant look plastered across his face. Strangely calm in the midst of the violent eruption of metal and the tempest of flying parts.

He'd started well. His fourth place starting position had put him at the head of the pack and he'd taken advantage of that to get ahead in the early stages. He'd held this front position for several laps only slipping back later on into the race due to the unforgiving nature of the track and a few miscalculations on his part. He'd slowly fallen back from fourth to eight and then sixteenth before the crash. In an effort at reclaiming his lost position Gregori had been accelerating heavily when it had happened meaning that there had been nothing he could've done to escape it. Even if he'd had time to react he'd still been going too fast to have been able to avoid a collision. Not that he could have foreseen that the car ahead of him would suddenly lose control.

It was a miracle that he hadn't been killed in the crash. His car had literally been shorn in half and he'd been flung out onto the asphalt into the path of oncoming cars. The sheer violence of the impact alone could have broken his neck or he could have been run down by one of the other cars before he'd been able to get up. But divine providence had kept him alive and he whispered a prayer of thanks even as he quickly made his way over to the barrier. His faith caused him to see his survival as the favour of God. He'd been brought up in the Sorlovian Orthodox Church like most young Sorlovians but had opted to switch to the Pentecostal Church in his late teens. As such , his faith influenced his thinking and coloured the way he looked at things.

As he made his way to safety he stopped to drag another racer out of harm's way. He lifted the young man onto his shoulders and carried him over the barrier. Perhaps the news cameras would also capture that. He was the type of man who could not walk past something in trouble or leave an injured person. He'd once brought a homeless man into his home after finding him freezing on the street. He'd given him a warm meal, a fresh set of clothes, a warm shower, a bed for the night and had even helped him find employment at his cousin's lumber mill.

[Vangaziland]

Sometimes a management decision can have a bearing on the outcome of a race and maybe even a season. "How are your tires looking," asked Hattieson over the team's radio. Jessica had put on quite the race. She had done so well on her line that the event was practically a time trial. It was looking like the only driver who could beat Jessica was herself.

It was lap 67 when Vanessa's call for tires came out. The problem was that the #50 of Jang Xiaopeng, along with Schramm and Ibuna, were catching up. Coming in for a pit may have brought the other drivers in as well, but those cars had different strategies and may have been able to overtake Jess. The gamble would have been theirs at that point.

Jess considered bringing it in. She knew it was Vanessa's call as principal. She also knew that if she said admitted the true state of her tires, Vanessa would bring her in. After a brief pause over the radio, Jess replied, "Tires are fine, we should be good to go." Vanessa could have still brought the car in, but she also trusted the J-Fran could make it.

The rain had not let up all day. There were times where it fell heavier. It almost got to the point of delaying the race, but soon backed off in its intensity. The clouds which appeared calm and gentle on the day of qualifying had become dark gray, engorged with water which it felt the need to spill all over Vangaziland's capitol city.

The truth was that her tires were not fine. She could feel the wear. Her confidence in the car was failing, but she only had so much to go. By lap 72, she could feel the excitement building. It felt less like giddy excitement and more like a nervous tension.

As she ran through the high-speed switchbacks of 10, 11 and 12 she prepared for the tight turn 13. She had done this 71 times today and needed to do it just once more. After that it would be just two turns and she'd hit the last straight. Her radio had been buzzing with updates. The trio was still gaining ground, but it looked like she had them beat.

In her anxiety, she hit the braking point for 13 a little late. As the statue of Lord Emerott stared down at Turn 13, it would have seen Jess take the turn a little too tight. This brought her over the striped surface of the corner. Unfortunately a patch of water had gathered there as the rain had picked up over the last few laps.

Her car went diagonal at an angle more extreme than it should have, as Jess stepped on the gas. She tried to correct and turn into the slide. The engine cut low, barking as the car struggled for grip. She tried to brake, but they locked as the car kept on it's angle towards the wall. If this were a permanent course, a better runoff system may have been in place. Instead, a relatively minor mistake threw the Vannish machine into a temporary wall. Her car bounced on the impact and stuck in place like a magnet on a fridge.

The nearby grandstand roared at what they just saw.

"Jess! That looked like the tires", Vanessa shouted over the headset. "We could have pitted!" Her voice was angry. Now she as principal would have to take the heat, when she didn't even have a truthful understanding of the situation. Jess had not been forthcoming. Immediately the virtual safety car warning was set. A proper recovery vehicle left it's station, speeding towards Jess.

Lapped cars sped by Jess as her car sat lifeless on the track. After a few moments, Xiaopeng's Omni machine caught up and slowly eeked by. His day had suddenly become better than Jessica's.

Jang found himself in the lead after battling from as far back as 7th place. He started pushing back around lap 54 where he cracked into the top 5 at P4. He was still a lap down. At times it felt as if a top 5 finish was the best he could hope for, after spending much of the race lapped. He had already fallen off the pace of his #2 qualifying start.

But Jang's car was running fast relative to the field. His local knowledge helped him catch up. After Jennifer Johnson's late retirement, there was a chance for him to make up some ground. The Vannish course was proving to be touchy indeed. It almost seemed as if everybody who seemed likely to win ended up wrecking. Both Jennifer Johnson and Sigur Bjarnason had been in the top three for much of the race's latter half before facing their own issues in the last few laps.

Jessica's mistake was to take the course for granted. She felt as if she could keep up enough grip to edge out the lapped cars, but underestimated just how little grip she had left. This left things wide open for Jang, who would win by default after what felt like an episode of Survivor:Vangaziland.

After the race, Jess spoke to the media with bits of a smile tugging at her heart-shaped cheeks. Her body language showed she was still excited, buzzing off the feel of the day's work. Her first question dealt with how she felt about the day's race.

"It's not ideal. I take responsibility for that wreck. I felt like I could make it, but the tires were more worn than I thought. I should have been more accurate in telling the team about the wear. I just... Thought I'd be able to reign it in. But these things happen."

They asked if she was worried about not winning on her home track.

"Only rookies and amateurs focus on that strategy", said Jess through a smirk. "One race should not be the end all and be all of a season. The only silver lining is that we pulled a point from our DNF. Maybe that one point will come in handy."

The fact that some of the other top cars also struggled on the Vannish roads helped keep Jess from falling too far behind. Rustom Ibuna caught and passed her. Bjarnason kept his hold on the lead. If Sigur would have won while Jess wrecked out, his lead over her may have been massive.

Instead the top of the pack remained close, which was better in the list of case scenarios. That's why Jess was not daunted by her loss. She had gone through rough patches before and fought it out. She was showing resiliency. There was no moping, low shoulders or door kicking for her loss. Instead she spent time laughing with a few of her crew.

After the race she met Jang at his paddock and congratulated him. He was seen drinking from the bottle at his spot on the podium. Not long ago, Jess sprayed him with champagne even though he didn't place on the podium. Now she watched him celebrate his first WGPC victory. It reminded her of the WGP2, where she mentored Xiaopeng into winning the driver's competition. Now he stood tied for 6th in driver's standings. He helped move Omni to the number two slot, just as he helped VMR win the WGP2 constructor's competition.

The bubbly tasted sweet for the Tainese-Vangazi. The Vannish Grand Prix would come off as one of the more exciting races of the season. In the end, the drifting kid from Emeros walked away with the win. It brought new life to his season and could help rejuvinate a team in Omni with a chance to make a big late splash.

[Esmerel]

Nexus Racing HQ, The Nexus Wardship
Wednesday, 18 April 2018

Jean was hard at work. While he had hoped to relax a bit during the week, he knew better than anyone that nothing was going to change about Nexus unless someone did something- and Gertrude was all but quiet. So, he and Darrell (pro mechanic) were taking a closer look at the Chase Cutter.

“Darrell, you done yet? We need to compile a report soon or they’ll never get it in time for the next race.”

“Jean, don’t worry. I got this. So, the car is comprised of a billion different systems, all with their own acronyms that I can’t remember at all... so forget them.”

“Well, you have the automatically heating tyres, the projectile shield, the automatic starter, all of the stuff like that... oh, and the halo. Why place a ring there when the car is already surrounded by a projectile Imagitech shield? Someone might have had a brain fart.”

“True. So, what do we do?”

“We could get the engineers to do general upgrades on the car, get a B-spec car ready by the Esmerelian GP... talk with Brutus and see if they can perfect the tyres any further, rework the car slightly to favor cornering at least a bit more... it’s definitely a flaw in the car.”

“Good ideas.”

“Oh, and get the DIADEM off Coalescence. The car doesn’t need it... heck, if Ryker was able to win a championship without it, why use it now, only for Ryker to barely be able to contest his defending title? Plus, it’s still useless.”

“I’ll try and get that to Gertrude, Jean. Here’s hoping she’s accepting visitors now...”

[Vangaziland]

Jenna Vandersen had invited Jessica Franssen over to discuss something private. Vandersen took 4th place in last year's WGP2 and is spending WGPC 16 as an assistant to the manager. Long story short, she's training to possibly become the team's principal. Since this is a factory team, the head of Vannish Motors' Sport Division inherited it. Vanessa's heart wasn't in motorsports and she would much rather focus on the production side of the company's sports cars. Jenna, as a Royal, was looking to possibly buy into the team. She was working on a deal to buy enough shares in VMR to take hold of the motorsports 'VMR' division.

Today's conversation was not about that. The team was on the road, in Mattijana, preparing for the next race. Jenna invited Jess up to her hotel suite in the top floor of a ritzy, local hotel. They both currently sat around a long, glass table. Vanessa leaned back into a soft, extra-cushioned sofa. Jess was in a recliner with her feet tucked behind her thighs, off the ground.

A bottle of dessert wine and two half-full glasses sat on the table. Jess reached for hers and said, "I'm glad this land's got progressive views on something as simple as a glass of wine. Finally, we don't have to slip our flasks through customs in team crates."

Jenna let off a few giggles, which turned into rolling laughter. The pair were joking, but this was an inside joke they've had all season. Jess had been at the suite for about 20 minutes now and Jenna hadn't gotten to the topic. She was nervous to bring it up. Finally she hinted, "You know... There's something to that illegal life", she said with a restrained smirk.

"What do you mean?" Jess had a curious tone in her voice as she asked the question. This whole meeting was a mystery.

"Look. Nothing happens in Central Vangaziland without me knowing." Jenna looked down at Jess from the sofa, clearly enjoying the stall on her big news.

"Okay", said Jess. Her tone was impatient and almost accusatory, as if she was frustrated about how long the news was being drawn out.

"Two words. Street Racing."

"Gurrrrrrl, I can't get caught up in all that!" Jess sounded surprised that it was even brought up. Although Jess often sped, she didn't want to participate in something organized where the worst case scenario may not be a fine, but something more severe. She couldn't afford to lose her license, for example.

"No, no, no. We're not driving. Somebody is looking for a sponsor. Two cars", Jenna said.

"I don't know, what's this? Some local race thing?"

"It'll be international." The baroness spoke as she topped off her glass of wine. Putting down the bottle, she swirled the glass. "They came to me because they wanted to run through my province." As the daughter of the state's de-facto governor, the Jarl of Central Vangaziland, Jenna had lots of sway. She definitely had pull with the state police.

Jenna hadn't guaranteed that no police would show up. She had only started to put the feelers out with one of her contacts in the state police. She only mentioned the slightest hint that she might need his watchful eye (or lack thereof) in the near future.

"What do you want me to do? Buy somebody a car?"

"They already have cars", replied the Baroness. "We'll pay for their travel and HELP with repairs." She stressed the word 'help'. "We're not made of money."

Franssen laughed. "Dang, girl. This is some crazy stuff. Some Wheels o' Fire stuff." 'Wheels o' Fire' was a Vannish spy television series, that ran during the late 90s. It featured a network of spies who ran everything from chop shops to midnight street races. "What are they driving?"

"Vannish Motors. Of course." Jenna spoke through a deep chuckle which escaped her throat alongside her words. "One's driving a Roland. One's driving a Hammerhead. One increased turbo boost. One added a NOS setup."

"Who are these guys?"

"I didn't get any names", said Jenna. "Plausible deniability. This could be quite the scandal if we got caught up."

"That's the risk", said Jess as she ruminated the scenario that was suddenly thrust upon her. Pausing on her thoughts, she reached for the glass, holding it by it's base before gracefully tipping it back. She let her mind focus on the relaxation, on the feeling of being in a free country where she could relax and unwind with a simple drink. "I think I'm in. Unless it costs like.... Way too much."

"I'll sponsor the Roland", Jenna replied. "Cover the Hammerhead. We'll set a budget for travel and repairs. If they go over that, it's on them."

"Maybe we should get in touch with them. Let's make sure they're not showing up with half-assed rides."

Jenna let out a hearty laugh in reply. "Love you Jess!"

The WSRC now had an unofficial VMR team. They would be split, more like the VMR NSSCRA cars, which were the benchmark that dominated season 6 along with cars from the land of Saint Kanye. Vannish Motors was a car company that was represented everywhere from rally, to formula spec, to stock car. It had to be one of the most prolific car brands out there. The brand took off in the last decade as managers like Hattieson and Chuck Banners brought the company into international motorsports.

Now the company would be unofficially represented in the world of underground, tuned street cars. Of course such an event also came with risks. Jenna had heard from the WSRC contact that the series only had a few contestants so far. Time remained to be seen if enough other racers would step forward to answer the call.

[Krainin]

Jennifer and Josh are riding in a SUV. The vehicle pulls up to a large building. Both of them get out and stare at the building.

"You ready for this, Jen?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," says Jennifer as she sighs.

"Just remember that this is a local conference. The reporters in there are only from Krainin."

"Why would you tell me that?"

"Just to let you relax. You know exactly what to say without getting in trouble."

"Yea, don't remind me."

"Alright. Come on." Josh and Jennifer walk into the building escorted by guards. They enter a small room that is connected to the main room. They hear a man talking in the other room.

"Alright everyone. Jennifer's in the building and will be here any second." Jennifer, Josh, and one guard walk into the main room. The room is at least 100 by 100 foot. There is a stage on one end of the room, which they enter in on. There is at least 50 people in the room, each from different news agencies in Krainin, and about 5 cameras. Jennifer walks up to the podium. Josh stand behind her and to her left while the guard stands behind her to her right.

"Hello, everyone. I'm Jennifer Johnson and let's get this conference started. I'm open for questions."

"I'm Alexander Grandson from Channel 6 News in Horrison. What were your thoughts and hopes coming into the race at North Emeros Street Course in Vangaziland?"

"Well, I came into the weekend with quite a bit of optimisim. After practice and qualifying showed that I had a contending car, my optimisim and hope went through the roof. The late race retirement reminded me that I'm just a rookie racing with a second-rate team. Alright, next."

"I'm Abigail Ford from Krainin National News in Leckin. You had such a great race going on. What happen to the car that made your retire?"

"To be honest, I don't exactly know what happened to the car. With less than ten to go something broke. I managed to baby the car back to the garage, but I knew my day was over. Next."

"I'm James Pazel from Northern Jegrar News in Fredricksburgh. What are your thoughts about the WGPC season so far?"

"So far we've raced nine races. Out of those races I've DNF'd 5. Overall, I'd say it's a bit disapointing. I'm not expecting a win, hell I'm not even expecting a podium. All I'm expecting is to finish a race consistantly, not having a DNF every other race. Next."

"I'm Jake Robinson from Seplan News on Channel 3 in Seplan. Do you like your experiance with WGPC Eelandii so far?

"Actually, yes. Even though the cars we have been given so far are not that great, I've still been having fun. Next question."

"I'm Sue Weeks from Kings News in Lugneburgh. How do you feel about your teammate, Reva Izalio, parting ways with WGPC Eelandii?"

"It's sad to see her go. To be honest, I haven't really talked with her. I wish I had, she seems like a nice gal. Alright, final question."

"I'm Glenda Matthews from Good Morning Krainin in Seplan. What are your thoughts on the remainder of the WGPC season?"

"Well, even with all the DNF's, I'm still quite optomistic about the remainder of the season. If our team could have a consistant car I could do well for myself. I've show multiple times that I can hang on with the big teams. At Dashoze Circuit, I lead multiple laps and at the most recent race in Vangaziland I was in the top three before my car broke. I've show I can drive the car with the big names, but stuff keeps breaking. Well, that's all the time I have. Thanks everyone." Jennifer waves at the crowd and steps away from the podium. She is escorted by Josh and the security gaurd out of the room.

"See, before you knew it, it ended."

"Yea."

"Ok, Jen. A man named Luc Kennedy is wanting to have dinner with you..."

"Why?"

"I was getting to that. Luc is trying out to be WGPC Eelandii's #2, and it looks like he's going to be the one they choose. He's wanting to get to know you." Jennifer looks down at the ground as they're walking.

"Alright, I'll do that."

"Great." They get to the SUV and the guard opens the door to let them in.

[West-East Timor]

North Emeros Street Circuit
Race Day

The formation lap was over, and Mick was rolling to his starting position. P14 was not a good result in qualifying, but he had also had worse results. Jang's qualifying had gone way better, he was in the first row on P2. Mick of course was happy for his teammate, but he also felt like something was wrong with him. Or his car. Or whatever. Or possibly it was just bad luck.

He tried not to think about it and concentrate on the red lights. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. None.

Mick had not the best start, and lost a position right away when Souzare overtook him. He unsuccessfully tried to regain the position for the first two laps, before deciding to try and go for strategy. Which, on a street course, seemed more logical to him than trying to overtake on track anyways, and in the rain, on a street course, a lot could happen.

In lap 15, he was nevertheless close to Souzare again, and tried to overtake - unsuccessfully. He succeeded, however, in touching a wall and getting a puncture.

"Box box box, you have a puncture! Box box box! Pit now!"

Luckily, he was close to the pit entry, but Mick still lost positions and now found himself on P20.

"Well... so much about this race."

"Don't give up yet. We might have a chance. According to our calculations, the others will have to stop at least once, while your tyres now might last the entire race. Keep pushing."

Mick did as he was told. The rest of the race up to lap 60, Mick simply tried to avoid any crashes while driving as fast but efficient as possible. The usual stuff. And indeed, towards the end of the race, he was on P10. In lap 60 Jennifer Johnson had to retire - and the safety car came out.

"Mick, safety car is out, due to Johnson's crash. I may have a suggestion."

"And that suggestion is?"

"We make a pit stop now, and you get new tyres. I don't think the other drivers will do that as well, they stopped later than you, it's not necessary for them. And with the safety car out, but the field not together yet, you should only lose one or two positions. The new tyres would give you an immense advantage, and you could try to overtake as many cars as possible to get a maybe actually great result."

"Sounds good. Let's do it."

"Alright. Box this lap, box this lap!"

Mick made his pitstop, the crew fitted the new tyres and Mick indeed only lost two positons.

In lap 68 he heard:

"Nadakei, Ellis, and Krupin had to retire, Mick! They all were in front of you! You are fifth now, P5! Right in front of you are Okumura and Lund."

"Should I be able to overtake them?"

"Yes, yes you should. Due to your newer tyres, and you having safed fuel while not much was happening, you should be way faster. Go for it!"

And so he did. In lap 69, Mick overtook Okumura on the straight between turns 4 and 5, and Lund on the straight between turns 14 and 15 in lap 71.

"Well done! Great job. We should finish the race on P3 now. That's a brilliant result! Franssen is on P1, Jang on... No. Wh- Wait a minute ... Mick, it seems Franssen just had to retire in the last lap of the race! Franssen is out of the race!"

Mick crossed the finish line while Max was talking.

"I'll have to correct myself, you are second! P2! Fantastic race! Jang has won. This is... brilliant."

"Wooohooooooo! Yesssss! This is... not at all what I would have expected before the race, but I like it! Holy *BEEP*! Yeeeeessssss!"

Mick drove to the parc ferme, placing his car beside that of his teammate. He got out of the car, and shook hands with Jang first and congratulated him, then his entire team. And then he finally was standing on a podium again. While listening to first the Vangazi and the the West-East Timorian anthem, he was looking down at the two Omni cars - a double win was the best that could possibly have happened. And from P14 to P2, is generally not bad at all. Mick hadn't felt so motivated since the second race of the season. He was looking forward to the next race.

[Mattijana]

Grand Prix Tsa Mattijana: Race Preview

With the Esportivan swimg of the WGPC coming to a close, it's time for the best in the world to visit centre-north Mattijana. This weekend marks the third time a race has been held in the country and specifically the Kopylov InternazionRing, the reknowned piece of tarmac that winds its way through the Rekvadas hills, around an hour west of the city of Burges and not far from the town of Kranjagrad.

This year's race carries extra impetus for Mattijanan fans as a record contingent of Mattijanan drivers will take to the grid, with Jasmin Kranjska alongside old-hand Alex Dimitrianov. Mattijanan team MRT also return. With their big championship advantage and the Kopylov circuit being favourable both technically and sentimentally, it would seem like the title is their's for the taking.

However past history may suggest otherwise. With 3 races to go in the WGPC 15 season, MRT had a 14 point lead in the constructor's championship and frontman Terho Talvela a 14 point advantage in the driver's. By the end of the season, some terrible results had seen both slip to a disappointing third.

This year's run in may also cause some problems. Of the four races after Mattijana, one is in Esmerel, which boasts one of the highest average speeds per lap on the calendar and one is at the generally engine-heavy Isknalkorvburg circuit in West-East Timor. Although the season-ender is at the more technical crossport autodrome, the remaining race in Turori is on a circuit generally percieved to be a balanced one. As a result, the final race weekends are not as favourable to the MRT cars and drivers as the majority of the mid-season, particularly the Esportivan races.

All that will make the team even hungrier to secure a good result in front of their home fans.

The Circuit:

The Kopylov site is the oldest purpose built circuit in Mattijana and the second-oldest layout behind the Petrovijanka Street Circuit. Racing in the area in fact began before the currently-used layout came into existence, with closed hillside roads around the Rekvadas area joined up to make an exhilarating 15 km track that wound it's way around the hills.

However a string of accidents and poor access for marshalls and emergency services brought racing around the long circuit to a close. With pit buildings and track around the lower part of the course going to waste, plans were drawn up for a new, safer, shorter and more modern circuit.

The section of road up to turn five and the section from the now turn 8 and the finish were widened and installed with improved safety features and a 3 turn section installed to join the two, including the Ausfleck, HollesBirjke and the hairpin loop that became part of the Sava section.

The new look secured the circuit's future for years to come and with Mattijana looking for a home for the WGPC, the Kopylov Ring was upgraded to InternazionRing as the obvious home for the multiverse's premium motor racing competition.

Although a race around the Revinka Street Circuit has been suggested as a home for the race every other year, the Kopylov circuit still has a major role to play in the future of Mattijanan WGPC.

NAME OF CIRCUIT: Kopylov InternazionRing
CITY/TOWN: Kranjagrad
COUNTRY: Mattijana
NAME OF GRAND PRIX: Grand Prix Tsa Mattijana
TRACK RATING: (4/6)
QUALIFYING TYPE: Two-Tier
LAP RECORD: 1:35.244
LENGTH OF ONE LAP: 5.123km (3.183 miles)



Built near the village of Kranjagrad in the outskirts of Mattijana's second city, Burges, the track is well-connected to train and bus routes and is not far from Burges' international airport. The track is located where the large Burges flat joins the small group of hills known as the Rekvadas collection meaning the first half of the lap slopes upwards before turning back downhill leading into the final corner and the flat pit straight.

Despite more recent safety upgrades and renovations, the centre has retained most of its original stands, which offer superb views of the circuit, especially due to the inclines around the circuit offering natural banks to place stands on. The pit building has also been retained with a fresh coat of paint and a spruced up interior making it a suitable contrast between nostalgia and modern practicality.

It's mixture of straights, twisty sections and more sweeping turns means it tests all parts of a car and makes car setup an interesting dilemma come race day whilst the steep slopes and inclines also play their part in interfering with the car's balance during a lap.

Run off generally depends on slope with uphill sections having largely tarmac runoff with small gravel traps close to the barrier whilst downhill sections have a smaller amount of tarmac and large gravel traps to slow cars with more momentum in smaller spaces. The only tight barrier is on the exit if turn 13, but is a well-engineered absorption barrier and should protect drivers if needed, which it probably will be. In fact, despite a total of well over 150 collisions with this wall, the most serious injury ever sustained was a broken elbow.

The lap begins with a long run down to the breaking zone at the Čaluka hairpin which represents the main overtaking opportunity on the circuit. After exiting, the drivers must negotiate a left hand kink and drive steeply uphill around one of the Rekvadas before the track flattens out and goes into a tight left-right chicane. After that, the track continues upwards towards turn 5, a 90° right hander that immediately leads into another looser right hander.
A good exit from that section is key as the track immediately goes downhill for a longer period of time towards the multi-apex Hollesbirjke turn, named due to it's similarity to a turn at the country's main alpine sliding centre. This turn is a big test of both a driver and a car's turning ability and once again, exit speed is key as the track once again slopes upwards towards turn 8, another long and flowing hairpin.
Another long downhill section leads into another very good overtaking opportunity into the 9/10 chicane which continues down into a tighter hairpin at turn 11. Any indication of the track slowing down is however vanquished, as drivers are encouraged to drive flat out through a high speed chicane with a barrier tight to the exit.
The track then goes into the slowest corner on the track-a tight right hand hairpin before a straight and than a flowing right hander to finish the lap.

Full list of corner names:
1: Čaluka hairpin (named after the hill it's situated under).
2: Čaluka sling (commonly known as the sling).
3/4: Vischkolcha (Fishook chicane).
5: De Šumma (The summit, named because it is the highest point on the circuit).
6: Da Ausfleck (literally translates as 'the flick out').
7: Hollesbirjke (named after Mattijana's famous alpine sliding centre).
8-9: De Sava (the river: named due to it's flowing nature).
10: Erstglaub (named as it is the first time cars can be seen from the pit straight after turn 2).
11: Ezelhöchlas (cliffhanger, named as it's run off is on an artificial platform to deal with the steep slope).
12/13: Wasserkirjke (The waterslide).
14: Da Lebjalupa (survival loop, named as it comes after the most risky turn on the circuit at turn 13).
15: Kranjagrad (named after the village this part of the circuit is closest to).


Last Time Out:

The last race in Mattijana was a good one for Johan Struna's MRT team as Moisés Delgado took his only victory of an otherwise dissapointing season. Ryker Lane, eventual champion, took second and this year's other Nexus driver Jean Mercer-Daly completed the podium.

Characteristically for the region, it was a wet race. This year's race takes place slightly later in the year, but with weather in the region usually unpredictable, a shower or two is not out of the question.

The Afterparty:

This race is a little different from the last couple of years as in addition to the race, a party for the WGPC's team staff and drivers is scheduled to take place after the race. The Kopylov hospitality suite will be in action and a traditional local meal provided for guests. Julian Petrov said the evening was "a great chance to showcase the region's culture and relax ahead of the mid-season break before a busy run-in."

[Former Citizens of the Nimbus System]

Vannish Grand Prix
Race Start

Rain drums against the surface of Ryker’s UHSGV-2 as the Nimban mentally steels himself for an awful race.

“Just to confirm, Ryker, that the weather will, at best, slightly improve as the race goes on. We may be able to switch to W-1 tyres but it seems probable that there won’t be any dry running. For this reason, we will not be able to support Jean through complementary strategy either.”

“Gotcha.”

Sigh.

It is perhaps ironic that Brutus and In Motion’s blue sidewall full wet tyres are most concordant with the UHSGV-2’s colour scheme. For all of the improvements that Nexus Racing made to the car, for all of the confidence he has gained in his own abilities to drive under these conditions, the effects on the track haven’t been stellar. The last race in wet conditions, at Grandeville, normally a thoroughly enjoyable circuit to drive and one that he can and has driven well, certainly didn’t send himself and his teammate plummeting down the order but certainly did force them onto the defensive, landing Jean an eighth from fourth and Ryker a tenth from seventh, preventing them from capitalising on MRT’s abysmal performance.

As such, as the lights go out, though the Nimban goes through all the usual motions - PA-AS activated, foot on the accelerator - he feels no surge of determination as he sometimes does. Where that should be is instead a grim, melancholy, almost bored acceptance.

And then, somewhere perhaps untraceable, there is a Coalescence - a small one but one nonetheless.

Though it certainly does not reach its typical ballista-like heights of acceleration, the Chase Cutter still launches from its grid position with the speed of an arrow loosed by a master archer from a composite bow, crafted by expert hands acting with years of wisdom and centuries of evolution in their art behind them. The rest of the field is barely moving by the time that Ryker is alongside Souzare, the fierce cerulean of Imagination’s power driving himself and the car forward, and then only beginning to catch up to his pace when he when he dives towards and around the inside of Schramm’s Omni vehicle; finally, they have just about made up the difference when he streaks through the gap that Nadakei attempts to close down as he moves towards the inside.

Ryker and Coalescence strike forward together, even if Ryker himself doesn’t embrace it.

A dozen or so seconds of essential nothingness pass. The stupor continues to hold him through 3, 4, 5.

Then, abruptly, it is shattered. Ryker widens his eyes as a blur of crimson and slate careens towards him, spinning wildly amongst a maelstrom of spray. If his HUD cheerfully displays Jasmin Kranjska’s car falling down the order towards him, the Nimban doesn’t see it, for his mind is simultaneously analysing and judging. Moving towards the barrier -the way that it’s rotating - flick off the wall towards the pack - I can’t let that happen. Need to change the rotation, now.

Ryker, logic and emotion in accord, moves off his line for Turn 2 just a little. That little is enough to clear Coalescence from the main body of Kranjska’s vehicle - but not enough to do so entirely.

Ryker doesn’t want to do so entirely.

I hope I’m not wrong here… That incomplete thought is the last that he has time to think before the Imagikinetic Remote Anti-Shrapnel Shield Unit bursts into life around his left front wing-mounted fairing just before it would have made contact with the KISMO vehicle’s right rear tyre. The result is that, rather than continuing to spin, its front wing crashing against the wall and sending it into the main body of cars, the red and grey car is robbed of its angular momentum and slides relatively benignly along it.

The Nimban checks the back view momentarily, fear filling his mind. It is extinguished in a moment.

Thank Imagination, thank Imagination, thank Imagination…

“Ryker, that was…” Martin’s voice manifests in his ears. “You understand the risk you took there, if you just did what I assume you did?”

Too focussed on the tight line into Turn 7 and the subsequent acceleration, taking his challenge now to one Cesaro Whittaker, to nod, Ryker responds only with, “I do, but I still had to act.”

The Nimban driver can almost hear the half-smile, partially of disbelief, partially of horror and partially of warmth and respect, in his race engineer’s sigh and soft laugh. “Kranjska has now collided with Lemos; still…” A pause. “That does seem to be the extent of the damage.

The Chase Cutter silent glides past the green and blue car, hope and determination now manifest once more as speed and skill. “Imagination… Good. Good.” Imagination, please be okay.

“Mmm. Now, back to the racing. Let’s try to keep heroics to a minimum; focus on doing what you do best.”

Ryker does just that - for he is now fully awake, mind and soul as one, Coalescence channelled in his every manoeuvre as he had failed to do before.

In the end, the stewards give him a five second penalty which he takes at his stop on Lap 36 for intermediate tyres. With that, he unleashes himself and all of those with him once more, making up the ground that he has lost and forging beyond it. He finishes in seventh, on the lead lap - an excellent place under the circumstances. More importantly, it is perhaps telling that he attempts to seek out Jasmin immediately after the race has finished. Ryker Lane has found himself again.

He won't let it go.

Nexus Racing HQ, Crossbay Circuit, Nimbus Bay, the Nexus Wardship of Former Citizens of the Nimbus System
16th of April

Guard gazes at the email from Kopylov InternazionRing’s authorities and wishes that he could in good conscience allow his team’s members to attend unconditionally. There is far too much to be done for the sacrifices in tiredness, in lost energy; if we are going - and we are - there must be a counterbalance.

Thus a vote of who has worked best this week, with the party as a reward for the five highest-polled. That will hopefully create sufficient motivation to make up for time lost later. If it can grant us momentum into Mattijana without becoming destructively competitive, it will be a success.

He sighs. It is simply too good an opportunity to miss. Win unopposed at their home Grand Prix and MRT will be in near-total control of both Championships, even with our advantage at the next races.

Guard’s gaze turns resolute - his eyebrows furrow, his jaw clenches. I will not let that happen.

17th of April

Gertrude,

It's go time. Five races left and MRT are running away with both championships. We need to pick up the pace. Luckily, the next two races (Kopylov, Mattijana and Vertress, Esmerel) are catered to our car fairly well. However, perhaps we could introduce somewhat of a B-spec car for the last few races? Get your guys working on that, maybe.

Contact me at tthornton30@amail.co.em if you get any ideas you want to send my way.

Talia

---

“The new wing’s ready for testing, Vance?”

The young man before her nods eagerly. “Yep! All sorted for this afternoon.”

Gertrude gives an encouraging smile and even a wink to the aerodynamics prodigy fresh from the First City’s university. “Nice one; welcome to the team.”

First Builders, he’s sweet, Gertrude thinks as she turns away from the design team’s blushing newbie. Pretty much a less mature Ryker… Hopefully that new s-duct will be just as good for the car as his team spirit is.

Vance Fleetfoot is, in fact, pretty much exactly what the team needs at the moment. The Nexus Racing Ultra High Speed Ground Vehicle, in spite of possessing four-wheel drive and an underbody fan, has never been particularly known for its ability to corner, even if it has come a long way from being comparable to Soviet oil tankers. Now, that is - so Gertrude hopes - about to change. The nose and rear wings are being reworked, the latter gaining endplate cutouts to increase the speed of airflow beneath the wing and thus the pressure difference that produces downforce along with grilles in front of it to improve the structure’s aerodynamic stability while the former gains a duct to draw air from under the car’s nose and direct it along the top to improve airflow over the body as a whole, and Victoria and her team are working to improve the CS-TCCS’ brake anti-lock programming. Perhaps this is not enough to be considered a full ‘B-spec car’, as Jean’s circle have been asking for, but nonetheless a highly significant improvement that should help their two drivers to claw back some momentum from the currently superlative MRT.

Good thing too, the subversive, rebellious part of her mind adds. Ryker’s going to need it.

Gertrude closes her eyes tightly at that thought, pausing at the door to her office. The one thing that she had been hesitant over had been the request by Darrell - an Esmerelian engineer who had transferred over from Jean’s old team, Obey Sport GP, when Jean himself had arrived - to drop the DIADEM from Ryker’s car. It was unnecessary, he had argued, given that the IRASSU already went above and beyond in performing its function in safety. And he’s right, at least in that - it doesn’t actually do any deflecting at all.

But it… She clenches her fist, even as she places her other hand on the handle and twists. It does more than that, damn it! Not all progress has to have immediate results; this makes a statement to the other teams that they don’t need Imagination to improve driver safety. If we just get rid of it now, we’ll look like hypocrites!

We could cancel out the weight Imagikinetically… She sits down at her desk and immediately begins drumming her fingers upon it as she fires up her computer. That wouldn’t change the aerodynamic penalty, though. There’s always going to be a disadvantage. She nods to herself. Ryker has to be the one to decide. It’s my car, our car, but, well… It’s his Coalescence.
His call.

[Vangaziland]

Vanessa Hattieson answered some questions about driver safety as Principal of Vannish Motors Racing. Truthfully, she would have rather had Jenna field the question. It was a tough one to explain VMR's policy on. That's exactly why the reporter asked Vanessa once she was cornered. The corporate executive had already dodged the question once with a generic answer of, "Driver safety is paramount at Vannish Motors. We focus on training and awareness on the part of each driver to avoid difficulty."

This time, a reporter from the Emeros Post caught her with no place to run and nobody to refer to. "Can you give us insight as to why the Imagination-based safety devices did not make the leap from WGP2 to the WGPC?" The journalist then threw the mic in Vanessa's face, eager for an answer.

"We gave the device a trial run during the WGP2 as you mentioned. Part of the reason we did so was to help the league gather data. We ran tests. We studied the effects on the car. It even took place in a wreck or two. We feel like we've done our part to push for driver safety. At the same time, it's something that we didn't feel we had enough control over as a team. It's unsettling to put your driver's life in another team."

"But surely, the technological advantages and the chance that it can save a life are worth it... Yes?"

"That brings me to point number two", Vanessa replied. "We feel our car is safe. There will always be hazards, like debris on the track. I have faith in systems in place, like the safety car... Even the virtual safety car. Drivers are well trained. They know when to slow down. Our company is not going to send the signal that technology alone will solve our problems."

"What about a system like the HALO? The DIADEM that we're seeing some teams take a swing at..."

"If the league will mandate something like that, we'll take a look at it. Personally, I think all it does is get in the way. It may cause more distraction related incidents than its worth. Teams should look more into the research done with transparent windscreens and cockpits. They're made from the stuff fighter plane cabins are. As a matter of fact, our WGP2 chassis, the VM-triple one was originally going to be fit with one."

"So where is VMR in terms of driver safety?"

"As I've said. We're pushing for league wide driver's training. We also stand by rules the league has in place. Now it's up to the drivers. This is not curling. Driving a race car is a dangerous task. Each driver has their life and the lives of others in their hand. My job as Principal is to make sure my drivers understand this. There is always the chance for a freak accident. Stay alert. Stay alive. Thanks for your time."

Vanessa closed the interview, satisfied with her response. The team would always research driver safety, but Vanessa's intentions were clear. Time remained to be seen if Jenna Vandersen felt the same way. Her deal to buy into the team was looking more and more as if it may be approved.

[The Gathered Nations of Privateers]

He kept his hat low over his eyes, blocking the light rain that plagued the GNP on a regular basis, as he watched the track before him. The wind kicked the hem of his greatcoat about his legs, the garment a sign of his office as a Capitan within his country. White and blue swirled about gently as the man turned to regard the other Capitan, decked in a crimson and black coat of similar design. It was rare that two Capitans ever were found on land together, at least, rare for Capitans-at-sea. "Aya! What do you think, amigo? I believe he will do The Shade proud!"

"With respect, Capitan," the man in red growled. "He's crazy, we know little of this sport as a whole, and you're investing a ton of money in this adventure." Maximillion was never a fan of international sports, he considered them an unnecessary waste of the treasury.

"Oho! Maximillion! Amigo, but think of the opportunities that should arise if we were to make our name in such a thing? This, formula one thing, why it could open many doors! You do know what is often behind open doors, hm?"

"Typically someone waiting to keep you from," Maximillion pauses as the track erupts in a roar while Sebastian's vehicle blasts by, flinging light pellets of water everywhere. "Waiting to keep you from your goals."

"Well we have the coin to at least put up a decent sponsorship from what recon we could pull." An elderly gentleman pipes up as he wipes the excess water from his face. The quartermaster of The Vacant Shade was one if the most trusted members of the crew and he kept the ship in good discipline under the Capitan's orders. "Despite Sebastian's experience as a stock car driver, he seems to be adapting well to this vehicle, I put my faith in him."

"Haha! See? If mi amigo, Mr. Patelli trusts him, I put the full backing of the Vacant Shade behind him!" The Capitan in white and blue practically gushes.

"It's your coin, your crewmate, your call." Maximillion grunts before turning to his companion with a smile, "Now, preytell, WHERE did you get your claws on such a machine, Capitan?"
The men laugh together as they file away from the track to collect Sebastian.

Hours later found the young driver in Luigi Patelli's office, his driver kit still on, though unzipped, with his feet propped up on the quartermaster's desk. "Yeah, you let those landlubbing dry-backs know I'm coming for them!" Sebastian laughs. "I can't believe Cap is actually funding me for doing this!"

"Capitan," Mr. Patelli corrected him, fingers never missing a beat as he typed out the email. Sebastian carried on with a shrug, speaking as though he were dictating the email to Luigi. Slang and swears riddled his jargon all while Luigi constantly reminded him thatthis would be a different audience altogether and he'll have to clean up his act for the multiverse media. Eventually, their discussion came to a stifled close and Luigi finished his email. The quartermaster sent the email outto every contact available to every team with an opening.

To the Captain of this esteemed organization,
It is the great pleasure of The Gathered Nations of Privateers to announce our interest in joining this grand sport of yours on an international level. As such, it is the honor of the ship known as The Vacant Shade to provide our first driver we trust will impress in such a market.
Sebastian Vacantson has been a national favorite in racing in the last five years, proving himself in our stock car racing and two years ago making the jump to Formula racing. We are very excited for any chance to race internationally and across the multiverse, Sebastian carries quite a lucrative sponsorship with him from the Shade itself (home of one of the three Capitans of our nation) and whatever sponsors from his local career might even be able to toss their coin into the bill as well.
We look forward to hearing from you
Sincerely,
Luigi Patelli, quartermaster and acting agent to Sebastian Vacantson

[Audioslavia]

Look In, Sing Out, Pirates Ahoy
All change on eve of Mattijana Grand Prix

The WGPC announced today that TIF13 would not be renewing the contract of Ranveer Singh for the final chapters of the Grand Prix season. The organization stated that they considered Singh to be a talented driver, but were exploring new avenues towards the end of the season.

Replacing Singh in the TIF13 car will be rookie driver Luc Kennedy of North Prarie, who is expected to be in the seat for Friday practice.

Over at WGPC Eelandii, the seat vacated by Reza Izalio will be filled by Corsair driver Sebastian Vacantson. Vacantson, an eleventh-hour entrant into the championship, will commandeer the white, beige and brown vessel in time for Friday practice in Mattijana.

In Audioslavia, Alexander Lund has confirmed that, indeed, he will be retiring at the end of the season. The statement comes after an unlikely fourth-placed finish saw him climb further up the standings, with pundits expressing admiration for the fact that, into his mid thirties, the driver has yet to lose his reflexes or concentration.

[WGPC]

CUT OFF for Friday Practice and Saturday Qualifying