Category Archives: Race Recaps

Buddh Recap

Posted on March 12, 2025 | Leave a comment

The SBMRL raced at Buddh International Circuit in February, in what was the league’s 3rd visit to the track in India. The February race would make it two thirds of the season complete. While Pieter entered the race still comfortably in first place, the rest of the standings were still very close.

Here’s how the drivers lined up:

P1 – Mai “Cashew” Maghur (FP)
P2 – Felix (SM)
P3 – Parker Lacroix (SB)
P4 – Max (SM)
P5 – Ramen Acuna Jr (MnS)
P6 – Liu S. Amil X (FP)
P7 – Magnus Rasksen (SB)
P8 – Orzo Albies (MnS)
P9 – Stoot van Vaart (RM)
P10 – Pieter Pieperpoes (RM)

As the lights went out and the cars raced to through the first bend, Parker, Mail, and Felix established an early leading pack. Stoot found early congestion to be to his benefit, as he was able to move up a few places from the back of the grid, insering himself in amongst those who started well ahead of him.

The long back straight between Turns 2 and 3 would be where things started to shake up a bit. Felix was the first one to find a line for Turn 3, and with the rest of the field jockeying for position behind him. Too many cars for too little space on the track made for a field that was literally racing wheel to wheel and bumper to bumper. Only Felix and Orza avoided the fray, although Orzo certainly would’ve liked to have been in there, too.

The technical curves that make up much of the second sector began to spread the field out a bit. Felix maintained his lead, but it was here that Fir Splays and Regency Motors began to form a challenger group. Mai was at the head of it, and Pieter and fought his way all the way up to run as high as 3rd. The trailing group consisted of the rest of the field, with Orzo having been able to join up with them.

The transition between Turn 6 and Turn 7 are where things started to shift at the front. Mai found a rhythm that Felix was unable to defend against. Pieter pulled just ahead of Liu and Stoot, and would find himself battling with Felix for 2nd position by the end of the lap.

Mai had run a clean first lap, sparing his tires enough that he made the decision to skip the pits and fly down the pit straight. The decision worked out tremendously for him as he established a significant lead to start the second lap.

Pieter’s Regency Motors pit crew changed his tires in record time, sending him on his way fast enough that he came out of the pits ahead of Felix, who did not pit. The two would start the second lap as the only ones with any real shot at closing the gap to Mai. The rest of the field all opted to pit, opening up a gap between them and the front runners.

As Mai finished out the first sector of his second lap, those at the back were just coming out of their pit stops. At this point, Pieter was up in second place having gained a small edge on Felix. Stoot was well back, but running in fourth, followed by Magnus and Liu. Parker, Ramen, Max, and Orzo made up the backmarkers.

The top three cars, Mai, Pieter, and Felix, ran comfortably spaced out in that order through the second sector, but there was a fair amount of jockeying for position behind them. Magnus, Liu, and Stoot made up the midfield and found themselves closely aligned through Turn 3.

A few moments later, Ramen, Parker, Max, and Orzo were all in a similar state of mutual contention.

The back of the field was also hotly contested

Mai cruised through the second sector, calmly hitting his lines and making no mistakes. Behind him, Pieter was unsuccessfully trying to keep Mai in his sights. As they drove on through the third sector, the gap between the race leader and second place was getting larger.

In third place, Felix was being pursued by Stoot, Liu, and Magnus. The trio fought neck and neck through the second sector. At they charged into Turn 6, Stoot and Liu finally caught up with Felix, passing him on the inside.

It was at this point, with Pieter in Turn 7 and still having two more turns to go, that Mai won.

Mai crosses the finish well ahead of everyone

With victory out of reach, things were getting interesting further back. Pieter, as already mentioned, was having some struggles that kept him from keeping pace with Mai. Liu, Stoot, and Felix were in a battle for 3rd place, and Orzo, Magnus, and Max were in a 3-way battle of their own. Only Parker was lagging significantly behind.

The trio behind Pieter were having a very different third sector than the driver standings leader. They were hitting the corners in rhythm and Pieter’s inability to do so caught up with him in the final bend.

While Pieter made it to Turn 9 before the others, his inability to cut the inside line at speed left him unable to carry speed down the straight. All three of Felix, Liu, and Stoot passed him on the way to the checkered flag, finishing in that order.

Magnus, Orzo, Max, Ramen, and Parker ended up getting a bit of space between them in the third sector. Running comfortably in 6th place and trying to keep Orzo at bay, Magnus’s engine blew out just as he had the finish line in his sights. It was his second DNF of the season, and particularly difficult after struggling last time out.

Orzo would be the one to capitalize with a finish one higher than he was expecting just moments earlier.

Running behind him was Max, who was having a similar challenge that Pieter did in terms of a struggle to find speed through the final corner. Ramen, on the other hand, was now playing the role that Felix, Liu, and Stoot had done just a few moments earlier.

That burst of speed allowed Ramen to take 7th place just ahead of Max. Parker rounded out the running field, finishing 9th in what was a miserable day for Scandinavian Blitz.

Final Results

Driver	Start	Lap	Finish
Mai “Cashew” Maghur (FS)	1	1	1
Felix (SM)	2	3	2
Liu S. Amil X (FS)	6	5	3
Stoot van Vaart (RM)	9	4	4
Pieter Pieperpoes (RM)	10	2	5
Orzo Albies (MnS)	8	10	6
Ramen Acuna Jr. (MnS)	5	8	7
Max (SM)	4	7	8
Parker Lacroix (SB)	3	9	9
Magnus Rasksen (SB)	7	6	10*

* Did not finish

Mai’s win was a huge redemption for him after struggling for most of the season. Aside from a 2nd place finish in Portugal, he hadn’t finished any higher than 7th place. The dominating performance, particularly his ability to run away with things on the second lap, meant that there really wasn’t anyone close to him in terms of form on the day. The large points haul from the victory lifts him all the way from last to 5th in the driver standings.

Felix’s second place means that he’s now finished in a different position in every race he’s been in. It’s his best showing of the year and while he was passed by Mai in the standings, he’s only 1 point back. Liu’s 3rd place showing means that all three of our podium finishers recorded their second podium of the year. Liu has now moved all the way up into a tie for 3rd place with Orzo. At 63 points, there’s only 4 points between him and Felix.

The double podium for Fir Splays matches Regency Motors early season form for the largest single race points haul of the season. Only a 1-2 finish could score a team more points, and Fir Splays has now leapt into 2nd place in the team standings. They were the only team to gain ground on Regency Motors whose points total was matched by Switch Motorsports. Despite that Mac ‘N Speed remained ahead of Switch in 3rd place. Scandinavian Blitz has now dropped to the bottom.

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Atlanta Recap

Posted on February 12, 2025 | Leave a comment

January brought the SBMRL to Road Atlanta for the first time in league history. Excitement was high after Orzo’s victory in Argentina had broken Regency Motors’ run. Parker’s late race engine failure left him resolute to have a better outcome this time around.

P1 – Parker Lacroix (SB)
P2 – Max (SM)
P3 – Ramen Acuna Jr (MnS)
P4 – Mai “Cashew” Maghur (FP)
P5 – Felix (SM)
P6 – Liu S. Amil X (FP)
P7 – Orzo Albies (MnS)
P8 – Magnus Rasksen (SB)
P9 – Stoot van Vaart (RM)
P10 – Pieter Pieperpoes (RM)

As the lights went out and the cars pulled away, the short run up to the first corner gave an immediate edge to the front row cars of Parker and Max. Ramen also pulled away well, with the rest of the field getting all bunched up behind them. Despite a lot of jostling for position in the first sector, no one was really able to gain any sort of real advantage.

Parker ahead with the rest of the field still closely packed

The second sector saw Parker and Ramen pull a bit ahead as Max fell back in with the rest of the field. Mai gradually emerged as one of the stronger contenders among them. Pieter also found speed down the back straight, setting himself up for a strong third sector on the first lap.

As Parker and Ramen went into the pits for fresh tires, Pieter sat in 3rd place, just coming around the final bend. Most of the rest of the field was still navigating Turn 5, with all but Liu and Magnus with a few car lengths of each other. Magnus was well back, even of Liu, and having what can only be described as a dreadful first lap.

The second lap began with a minor bump between our front runners. Ramen’s path through Turn 1 caught Parker off guard and he suffered a bit of minor front wing damage, potentially compromising the rest of his lap.

Felix, who was near the back of the trailing pack, was the first driver to choose not to pit in hopes of getting a leg up on the group. The gamble did pay off, as he was able to form a smaller challenging pack with Pieter and Orzo.

A trio of cars try to catch up with Ramen and Parker

The field really was spreading out by this point. Front to back, Ramen and Parker were in Turn 3 as Magnus was still in the pit lane, but others were also struggling to keep up. Shoot and Liu, in particular were falling behind the the group.

Coming out of Turn 4, Ramon and Parker were starting to get reeled in by Orzo and Felix. Max and Pieter were just a little behind them, with Stoot and Mai trying to catch up. Ramen, however, found his speed in the higher gears giving himself a slight advantage. Parker was caught up by Orzo on the back straight, although Felix couldn’t quite keep up. Peter and Mai were able to find speed, too, leaving Stoot behind with Liu beginning to press him for position.

The final corner was where the winner would be decided. Ramen took the inside line, but suffered minor body damage as Parker tried to press him from the outside. The two raced side by side down the finish straight with next to nothing between them. In the end, Ramen, who had led since the middle of the first lap, found himself just eked out by Parker, who took home a thrilling win with that last second pass.

It’s at this point that it should be noted what a tremendous second lap that Max was putting together. Max had been running down in 7th early in the lap, but a good back straight and finding the perfect rhythm in the corners had him neck and neck with Orzo in the final turn. Just like Parker and Ramen before them, the difference between Max and Orzo would be who could find speed out of the final bend. Once again, it was the Mac ’N Speed driver who lost out to a last second pass from a rival.

The next group to charge hard toward the finish was the trio of Mai, Pieter, and Felix. They finished in the order just listed, all of them finding similar speed around the final corner and finishing with just fractions of a second between the three of them.

Mai, Pieter, and Felix come around the final bend

Stoot had a rough second and third sector, eventually being reeled in by Liu. Magnus finished last in a performance he’ll be happy to put behind him.

Final Results

Driver	Start	Lap	Finish
Parker Lacroix (SB)	1	2	1
Ramen Acuna Jr. (MnS)	3	1	2
Max (SM)	2	6	3
Orzo Albies (MnS)	4	7	4
Liu S. Amil X (FS)	6	5	5
Pieter Pieperpoes (RM)	10	3	6
Felix (SM)	5	4	7
Mai “Cashew” Maghur (FS)	4	9	8
Stoot van Vaart (RM)	9	8	9
Magnus Rasksen (SB)	8	10	10

The win for Parker was a joyous turnaround after Argentina’s engine blow out, and gives him two races in a row where he’s performed extremely well. It’s a shame he wasn’t rewarded for it last time out. It’s also the first win of the year for Scandinavian Blitz.

Ramen’s 2nd place after leading a huge part of the race is slightly disappointing for that reason, but it’s a great result for him as his first podium. He certainly deserved it. Max’s 3rd place is also his first podium of the year. Together, our three podium finishers were also the cars that started top 3 on the grid, the first time that has happened this year.

Pieter remains atop the driver standings, increasing his lead over Stoot slightly. Orzo’s fourth pace finish puts him up in 3rd, with Magnus falling down a spot. At the other end of the standings, Mai’s 8th place finish has him dropping down to last place.

For the first time this year, Regency Motors scored the fewest points. Magnus’s struggles means that Scandinavian Blitz were actually outscored by Mac ‘N Speed despite Parker’s win. The pasta powered performance moves their team up to 2nd in the team standings. Switch Motorsports scored 21 points to tie up with Firs Splays at the back end of the standings.

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Argentina Recap

Posted on January 22, 2025 | Leave a comment

The December race for SBMRL was hosted in Argentina, marking the second time that the SBMRL had visited the South American country. With Regency Motors having won each of the first four races of the season, the big question was who, if anyone, would be able to unseat them at the top of the podium.

The drivers lined up as follows:

P1 – Parker Lacroix (SB)
P2 – Orzo Albies (MnS)
P3 – Liu S. Amil X (FP)
P4 – Ramen Acuna Jr (MnS)
P5 – Felix (SM)
P6 – Mai “Cashew” Maghur (FP)
P7 – Max (SM)
P8 – Magnus Rasksen (SB)
P9 – Stoot van Vaart (RM)
P10 – Pieter Pieperpoes (RM)

For the first time in the season, we had an uneventful start. Every driver pulled away from the starting grid, although it was the drivers at opposite ends that had the best getaways. Parker was the first into Curva Numero Uno while Pieter was already passing others at the back.

Parker was able to leverage his pole position and smooth start to be among the leaders through the first sector. Orzo was his main challenger, eventually joining in a back and forth battle for the lead that would continue into the second sector. Liu dropped back into a battle with others behind them. That included a large group of cars represnting every team: Felix, Ramen, Magnus and Pieter among them.

The first driver to break from the pack and join the leaders was Orzo’s teammate Ramen, catching up to them by hitting the Curva de Ascari at speed. As they ploughed forward, nearly the rest of the entire field battled neck and neck through the same bend. Only Mai, who was struggling for pace was left out of the scrum.

The cars go two and three wide as they battle

The third sector on the first lap started proved tricky for some. The first big change actually came from Pieter, who found himself suddenly leading the race through the Senna S, a portion the track that scrambled the field. Orzo and Parker kept up with him, while behind them, Ramen bumped into Magnus. It wasn’t just the two of them that had issues, though. Max and Mai, who were fighting at the back of the field, also collided. Max came off worse for the wear, suffering severe body damage that knocked him out of the race completely.

Pieter, having pushed his car hard to get into the front running from a starting position at the back, went into the pits for fresh tires while Orzo and Parker stayed out. The result was that Parker established himself slightly ahead of the rest through the first sector. Ramen, Liu, and Magnus were the next group across the line, with Stoot, Felix, and Mai trailing.

The first sector of the second lap saw Parker maintain his lead. Liu was able to make it a pack of three challengers rather than two with a nifty move in the Curva de la Confiteria. Pieter was impacted by a minor collision with Orzo and began to fall slightly behind. Felix and Stoot were gradually falling further back, while Mai was suffering from a severe case of slowness. The Fir Splays driver seemingly unable to find any rhythm anywhere on the track.

The next major event of the race took place when Parker was flying down the back straight and into the Curva de Ascari. Driving at maximum speed and ready to run away with things, Parker’s engine gave out.

It was a bitter disappointment for the driver who most needed a victory, particularly after running such a fine race to that point, hardly putting a foot wrong.

The lead of the race was inherited by Orzo, with Liu behind and a battle brewing between Ramen and Pieter. Mac ‘N Speed holding two of the top 4 cars at this point. The second sector saw Felix start to fade a bit, allowing Stoot and Magnus to begin fighting each other for 5th.

The final sector of the race would not be without event, either. Orzo led but Pieter and Ramen were hot on the heels of Liu.

Liu was able to leverage a bit of track position into the Senna S, forcing Pieter and Ramen to slow more than they would’ve liked. Meanwhile, Magnus was gaining a small advantage on Stoot in this challenging section.

With battles raging behind, Orzo cruised through what turned out to be an easy final sector and to his first win.

Unfortunately for Mac ‘N Speed, as Orzo was taking victory, Ramen was finding himself unable to complete the race. Battling Pieter for 3rd place, Ramen hit some road debris and a broken suspension left him unable to complete the final corner of the race.

The battle for third place left Liu all alone to take 2nd place. Ramen’s fate left Pieter no challenger for the final podium spot. Fourth place ended up being equally uneventful. Magnus took that position as Stoot found himself suddenly in a battle with Felix. It was one that Felix would win. That left just Mai, whose race can comfortably be described as disastrous.

Trailing by what seemed like miles, Mai decided to milk his time alone on the track, slowing down in the final straight, crossing the line as slowly as possible. SBMRL officials were not amused, leveraging a hefty fine against the driver and his team. Race victor Orzo had a different take, “I don’t know what the big deal is. I couldn’t tell any difference with what he did at the end and the rest of his race.”

Final Results

Driver	Start	Lap	Finish
Orzo Albies (MnS)	2	1	1
Liu S. Amil X (FS)	3	5	2
Pieter Pieperpoes (RM)	10	2	3
Magnus Rasksen (SB)	8	6	4
Felix (SM)	5	8	5
Stoot van Vaart (RM)	9	7	6
Mai “Cashew” Maghur (FS)	6	9	7
Ramen Acuna Jr. (MnS)	4	4	8
Max (SM)	1	3	9*
Parker Lacroix (SB)	7	10*	10*

* – DNF

Orzo is the first Mac ‘N Speed driver to take a victory and the win makes him the 17th different driver to win an SBMRL race. He led more of the race than any other driver, never giving up the lead after Parker’s elimination. It’s also Orzo’s first podium and he has now improved his finish position in every one of his races. The large points haul moves him up into 4th in the driver standings.

Liu’s second place is also his first podium. While Liu never led the race, he ran in the top 4 throughout almost the entire contest. His finish moves him up to 5th in the driver standings, behind Orzo. Pieter’s podium is his 3rd of the short season and stretches his lead over Stoot.

At a team lever, Pieter’s performance and the trio of DNF’s means that Regency Motors continues to hold a strong lead. The rest of the standings remain very tight even if Mac ‘N Speed and Fir Splays did cut into the lead a little bit. Mac ‘N Speed are now in 2nd place with Fir Splays just behind. Scandinavian Blitz and Switch Motorsports aren’t that far back, either. Only 9 points separates the four teams.