The first new track on the 2019-20 SBMRL calendar is November’s Bahrain International Circuit.
Bahrain
Construction on the circuit began in 2002 and with the first Bahrain Grand Prix taking place less than two years later in 2004. It was the first Formula 1 grand prix to take place in the middle east.
The starting grid is set far back on the pit straight, so a healthy run up to the first corner will be the first order of business. Turn 1 is complicated and will slow the field right back down before spitting them out on a long straight to do basically the same thing over again.
The second sector is comprised of a series of sharp, fast corners with varying lengths of straights between them. There will be plenty of chances to get things wrong in here, with the cars who can drive cleanly likely to be among the front runners when the checkered flag waves.
The final sector is a rough mirror image of the first. A moderate straight leads to a sharp right hander followed by a long straight to the final corner of the track. The last turn will frustratingly slow the field before the pit straight, which is easily the longest. Cars will want to avoid pitting if possible, but even then, they may not have much speed with which to tackle the length in front of them.
Starting Grid
The drivers will line up in reverse order of the driver standings, which puts Switch Motorsports’ Luigi on pole position. Lining up next to him will be The Stig. Launch and Whiplash, currently tied in the standings, have their tie broken by reverse order of finish in Austin.
Luigi (SM)
The Stig (SB)
Rask Sjofar (SB)
Delilah Whipplefilter (FR)
Mario (SM)
Whiplash (RM)
Launch Bornado (FR)
Jaap Snellrijder (RM)
Team standings determine the order of pit selection.
Texas has a reputation for hot weather, and while it isn’t always hot in October, Austin lived up to that reputation during the SBMRL’s visit. The track hosted the SBMRL for the 5th time, having never had a repeat victor. Switch Motorsport, who took a surprise victory in their first ever SBMRL race to start the year, was looking to continue that form and keep the track’s history of having a new driver atop the podium alive.
With just one race in the books, the grid lined up as follows:
A clean start saw the field heading uphill to the blind left at the end of the pit straight. The field bunched up quickly, with Luigi and Jaap leading everyone through Turn 2.
Wheel to wheel in Turn 2
Launch would join Luigi and Jaap at the front as the three pulled slightly ahead. At the back, Mario was struggling to keep up with the rest of the field, who had nothing to distinguish them.
Down the back straight, Jaap was able to pull slightly head and get a leg up in Turn 6. Behind him, Whiplash and Rask also found speed to burn, joining Launch and Luigi in the battle for second place. Whiplash was forced to back off in Turn 7 as the others were blocking up the corner, and it really threw his drive off for the third sector.
Rask tries to pass Luigi on the inside
At the front, Jaap had a measured drive through the third sector, operating smoothly and without mistake before diving to the pits for fresh rubber. The same cannot be said for Luigi, who suffered body damage while battling with Launch and Rask in Turn 7. The result was that he fell back to the pack that contained Delilah, the Stig, and Whiplash.
As the field rounded Turn 10 and headed for the pits, Mario was the only car not on the pit straight. Jaap was just coming out of the pits and starting his second lap when everyone but the Stig pitted. Launch’s pit crew was able to give him a jump and he was soon battling his former teammate for the lead. While Rask and Delilah were not far behind, the Stig wasn’t able to find the speed he needed on the pit straight as his gamble did not pay off.
Despite not pitting, the Stig didn’t make up any ground
The first sector of the second lap was characterized by a trio of battles. Jaap and Launch at the front, Rask and Delilah for 3rd place, and Whiplash, Luigi, and the Stig fighting for 5th. Mario was just hoping to catch anyone at this point.
While the battle at the front was white hot in the first sector, Launch got through Turn 5 smoothly and then flew down the back straight. Jaap, however, was not to be denied. He flow down the straight like a man on fire and made up a tremendous amount, catching Launch at Turn 6 to ensure that the third sector would truly be a fight.
Launch’s large lead would be short lived
Mario’s travails at the back of the pack took a bit of a boost when he caught the also-rans around Turn 5, however his engine simply refused to give him the boost he needed down the back straight and he never had much hope of catching anyone as a result. However, the battle for 3rd place took on a whole new dimension when Whiplash and Luigi joined the fun at Turn 6.
Four cars try to squeeze through Turn 6
Coming out of Turn 7, Jaap edged ahead of Launch for the lead, while both front runners gave everything they had. They continued to push, wearing through tires on every turn. However, it was Jaap who managed to stay just ahead, with a frustrated Launch even clipping the rear of Jaap’s before he finally won the race.
Among the group of challengers, it was Whiplash who was making the most dramatic move. Having run as low as 7th for much of the second lap, he now found himself all the way up in 3rd. Delilah continued to push, while Luigi had red cars in both of his mirrors.
Delilah in 3rd while Luigi is pressured from behind
While Delilah strived to keep Whiplash behind her through the final three corners, Luigi was getting passed. First it was the Stig around the outside in Turn 8. Then it was Rask around the inside of Turn 9. Luigi simply didn’t have the pace to hold them off.
The battle for 3rd place would come down to a drag race between Delilah and Whiplash. Delilah was in front coming out of Turn 10, but Whiplash was right behind. Slip streaming behind Delilah toward the finish, Whiplash pulled past with a last second plunge to the right, and crossed just ahead to claim the final podium spot. A pair of similar drag races would take place between the pair of Scandinavian Blitz drivers for 5th and 6th as well as the pair of Switch Motorsports drivers for the final two spots, but neither team was satisfied with their result.
Whiplash slipstreams past Delilah for 3rd
Final Results
Driver
Start
Lap
Finish
Jaap Snellrijder (RM)
5
1
1
Launch Bornado (FR)
6
2
2
Whiplash (RM)
7
7
3
Delilah Whipplefilter (FR)
4
5
4
The Stig (SB)
1
3
5
Rask (SB)
3
4
6
Luigi (SM)
2
6
7
Mario (SM)
8
8
8
Jaap records the 8th win of his career, to break free from a tie with the Stig as the SBMRL’s winningest driver. It’s his first victory since the final race of the 2017-18 season in Barcelona. It also puts him back atop the driver standings.
Launch’s second place finish gives him two on the year and extends his record for most career podiums to 19. Interestingly, the only other time that Jaap and Launch finished on the top two steps of the podium was Jaap’s Barcelona victory just mentioned. Whiplash’s 3rd place gives him 10 career podiums, and means that he and Launch switched places from Suzuka.
From a team standpoint, Regency Motors now have a healthy 15 points advantage on Force Ravenswood. Scandinavian Blitz’s struggle in the first two races this year are a marked contrast from last season, as they sit in last place.
Race Gallery
Wheel to Wheel in Turn 2
The Stig tries to pass Luigi on the inside
Despite not pitting, the Stig doesn’t make up any ground
Launch’s large lead would be short lived
Four cars try to squeeze through Turn 6
Delilah in 3rd while Luigi is pressured from behind
The SBMRL’s October race will take place at the now traditional venue of Circuit of the Americas in Austin, TX.
Austin
The track was purpose built for Formula 1 in 2010, and played host to its first Grand Prix in 2012. The SBMRL has raced there every season, and we have yet to see a repeat victor.
COTA’s starting grid faces uphill into a blind left hander for Turn 1 followed by a quick right hander. Both turns are fairly easy to get right. It’s the next two corners that will start to trip people up. The esses through turns 3 and 4 aren’t necessarily challenging in and of themselves, but the combination is tricky to get right.
The best place to make a move on someone ahead is through the second sector. Coming out of Turn 4 with speed to hit the Turn 5 hairpin right and fly down the back straight can really give a car an edge. The end of that straight is quite abrupt, though.
Turn 6 is a very quick left before immediately moving into the winding Turn 7. The rest of the third sector is a series of short quick bends with small straights between them. Getting a feel for these corners is harder than it looks. In contrast to the second sector’s long straights, these corners are where laps go to die. Getting the third sector wrong is as detrimental as getting the second sector right is helpful.
Starting Grid
With one race in the books, the starting grid for Austin is the reverse order of Japan’s finish.
The Stig (SB)
Luigi (SM)
Rask Sjofar (SB)
Delilah Whipplefilter (FR)
Jaap Snellrijder (RM)
Launch Bornado (FR)
Whiplash (RM)
Mario (SM)
Pit selection is always in the order of the team standings.
Switch Motorsports
Regency Motors
Force Ravenswood
Scandinavian Blitz
Austin will be Whiplash’s home race.
Track History
In four different visits to Austin, 4 different drivers have won. Three of those drivers will be on the grid this year, Jaap, Launch, and the Stig, who won last year’s race. Interestingly, Whiplash is the only other driver on the current grid to have scored a podium, with a 3rd place finish two years ago.
The other two drivers who’ve raced at COTA are Rask and Delilah. Neither of them fared will last year, with Delilah being knocked out very early and Rask coming in last among those who finished.
