Category Archives: Race Previews

Singapore Preview

Posted on November 12, 2018 | Leave a comment

The third race of the 2018-19 season takes place at Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore.  As the name implies, the track is a street circuit in the heart of the city.  The race takes place at night to reduce the toll on drivers in the tropical heat and, perhaps more importantly, to accommodate television audiences in other parts of the world.

Singapore

Marina Bay Street Circuit isn’t one that’s likely to get the cars running at full throttle much.  It’s far more technical in nature and will likely result in a longer lap time as a result.  The start-finish straight is short and there’s almost no run up at all into the first corner.  A short straight followed by the Republic Boulevard right-hander leads onto the track’s longest straight, and that makes up the first sector.

The second sector of the track is highlighted by a series of sharp 90-degree corners of the type you’d expect to find in a city block, not so much a racing circuit.  Nevertheless, here they are, and they will likely catch someone out.  The Concert Hall and Fullerton Road corners add to the challenge, but at least he bridge is picturesque.  Another moderate straight closes out this section as the field will see the other side of Crossroads.

The third sector may be even slower than the second, but it’ll feel like the end is in sight and it does run along the water.  The Esplanade Theatres corner will slow the field slightly in preparation for the even slower Carlton Millenia section.  The circuit ends with the Marina Promenade and the finish line is in sight.

Starting Grid

As is stated in league rules, the starting grid will be the reverse order of the current driver standings.  That results in the following:

  1. Whiplash (SR)
  2. Delilah Whipplefilter (FR)
  3. Jaap Snellrijder (RM)
  4. Sheila Dinkum (RM)
  5. Launch Bornado (FR)
  6. The Stig (SB)
  7. Rask Sjofar (SB)
  8. Bubba McQueen (SR)

Pit selection will then be in order of team standings:

  1. Scandinavian Blitz
  2. Sprite Racing
  3. Regency Motors
  4. Force Ravenswood

As the league isn’t racing in Australia this year, Singapore will be Sheila’s home race.

Track History

The SBMRL raced at Singapore in the inaugural season, but hasn’t been back since that day 3 years ago.  That means that only Jaap, Launch, and the Stig are among drivers on the current grid that have raced there before.

The previous race was won by Captain Slow, who was also the pole sitter that day.  Cobalt’s Nero came in 2nd and Launch took the final podium slot, which may not be all that surprising.  All three of the podium positions were taken by drivers who started on the first two rows.  The two drivers who finished in dramatically different spots than where they started were Jaap, who moved up to 4th after starting at the back, and the Stig, who fell to 5th after starting 2nd.

2015 Singapore Recap

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Austin Preview

Posted on October 19, 2018 | Leave a comment

With one race in the books, the SBMRL stays in the United States but heads south to Austin, Texas to run Circuit of the Americas.  This will be the fourth time in as many seasons that the league competes on this particular track.

Austin

Circuit of the Americas has a little bit of everything, with rhythm sections, a sharp hairpin followed by a long straight, and some technical driving through the final sector.  The starting straight isn’t particularly long and leads into a blind lefthander for turn 1.

Turns 3 and 4 keep everyone close and the field will likely stay together through the first sector.  The exit of Turn 4 is key to a fast lap as it sets up Turn 5 and the track’s long back straight.  In the past, this straight and the approach to Turn 6 have been key overtaking zones.

This is also, of cours, a prime opportunity for drivers to overcook things.  In fact, Jaap’s retirement from last year’s race was largely the result of an overaggressive attempt to catch up that ultimately cost him.

After a first sector that seems relatively straightforward, the second sector feels like the highlight of the lap.  The high risks involved leave the third sector as a bit of an afterthought.  Sure, it looks as simple as the first one, but the reality is that this section of the track has caused more problems than anyone seems to remember.  There’s nothing flashy about it.  Any overtaking that occurs here feels more like one driver’s failure rather than the other’s skill, but that doesn’t mean it won’t play a key role in the race.

Starting Grid

As this is the second race of the year, the starting grid for Austin is the reverse order of finish at Elkhart Lake.

  1. The Stig (SB)
  2. Whiplash (SR)
  3. Sheila Dinkum (RM)
  4. Jaap Snellrijder (RM)
  5. Delilah Whipplefilter (FR)
  6. Launch Bornado (FR)
  7. Bubba McQueen (SR)
  8. Rask Sjofar (SB)

As is league policy, pit selection will be in order of team standings, with ties broken by reverse order of average starting position.  That leaves the following:

  1. Scandinavian Blitz
  2. Force Ravenswood
  3. Sprite Racing
  4. Regency Motors

Austin will be Bubba McQueen’s home race.

Track History

Jaap and Launch have both previously won in Austin, while Sheila and Whiplash finished on the podium last year.  Pole-sitter The Stig has fared poorly in his three attempts to handle COTA, finishing no higher than 6th place.  However, all three previous winners have started on the front row, with two of those being on pole.  Mater is the only driver to have multiple podiums.

The previous three races have seen 5 cars fail to finish.  Ironically, it was the 2016 race with 10 cars on the grid, the largest of the three, that saw all cars make it to the checkered flag.  Last year, Jaap and Bubba both retired early.

SBMRL @ Circuit of the Americas

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Road America Preview

Posted on September 18, 2018 | Leave a comment

The 2018-19 SBMRL season opens with a first time visit to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin and Road America.  The league will race in the United State three times this season, including the first two races.

Road America

Racing at Elkhart Lake began in 1950 on county highways around the village.  Not long after that, an accident at Watkins Glen resulted in a ban of racing on public roads.  In 1955, the course that is now known as Road America began construction as a private track, holding the first races of significance the following year.  The track still has its original configuration.

The pit straight is one of three long straights on the circuit, and cars will have plenty of time to get up to speed before the first turn, a sharp right hander.  A moderately short straight leads into turn 2, which is similar and just slightly sharper.  By this point, the field will have had two opportunities to really get in each other’s way, and the long straight down to the third corner will mean that those who get through cleanly will start to pull away.

The second sector features several corners in quick succession that will slow the field down a bit.  Some of these corners are among the trickier ones on the course, but they are unlikely to compress the field too much.  The final corner of this sector, Carousel, leads into the long back section featuring the Kink, which can be taken all out.

The Kink means that it isn’t a true straight, but for all intents and purposes, it will be raced like one.  The final three corners of the circuit are seemingly designed to slow down the field before spitting them back out onto the pit straight.  Unfortunately, that’s where drivers will want as much speed as they can get.  Whether they’re cutting to their pits or barreling on ahead, they’ll want all the speed their cars can give them.  A clean first lap will almost certainly give drivers an advantage.

As this is the SBMRL’s first visit to Road America, the way the teams approach the track is open to speculation.  However, it does have a number of similarities to Sebring, which Cobalt dominated a few years ago.  Interlagos is another similar track that could be referenced for possible outcomes.

It won’t be surprising to see a couple of drivers hit the corners just right and pull away from the rest of the field.  This isn’t a track that is likely to keep the field compressed for long.  That said, the long straights should give some opportunities for those who’ve fallen behind to catch up.

STARTING GRID

With no season standings to go off of, the starting grid will be determined prior to the start of the race.

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