How to lose a championship in two laps or less (through no fault of your own)

"Just wear your damn mask..." (jimal) 09/30/2013 at 16:44 • Filed to: Car Crime

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Going into last weekend's Grand Am finale at Lime Rock Park, Jalopnik favorites Magnus Racing were leading the GT championship. Then this happened on Lap 2.

Taken out by the non-championship TRG Aston Martin driven by a factory "pro" driver. Well fuck.

desertdog5051 > Just wear your damn mask... 09/30/2013 at 17:12

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Hey, I just put some money down for those Turner cars.

sflash868 > Just wear your damn mask... 09/30/2013 at 17:22

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I swear the Turner cars must be the most damaged race cars in motorsports today. Anytime I flip on Grand AM within 15 minutes of watching it, there is a turner car involved in an accident.

Milky > Just wear your damn mask... 09/30/2013 at 17:23

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I just ran wide and went off the track .... I know I'll just cut across the whole track to the inside!

04sneaky - Boxers. Blowers. Bikes. And bitches. > Just wear your damn mask... 09/30/2013 at 17:34

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Let's be honest....

There were quite a few drivers and wrecks that they seemed to narrowly avoid at the beginning too. So there must have been a few other "pro" drivers out there as well.

Just wear your damn mask... > Milky 09/30/2013 at 19:57

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For some people, the instinct to get to an apex is just too strong.

Just wear your damn mask... > 04sneaky - Boxers. Blowers. Bikes. And bitches. 09/30/2013 at 19:58

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True, but there is something especially stupid about reentering the racing surface from the outside and heading - dirty tires and all - toward the apex of the corner.

WarShrike > Just wear your damn mask... 09/30/2013 at 20:32

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Sponsored by Paypal, what do you expect?

The honest guys always get screwed over by them :D

EL_ULY > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 12:55

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Thanks Obama? Can someone make this happen :)

ncasolowork2 > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 13:04

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Was Stanaway driving the Aston Martin at the time of the incident?

George Arnold > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 13:05

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It looked to me like the Aston was still not in control of the car when heading towards the apex. If you look at his line, it wasn't the preferred racing line for the turn. It seems as though it was still sliding, and he was still trying to get the car under control as it was headed towards the path of the Porsche.

TheRaceTrackIsMyChurch > Milky 10/01/2013 at 13:08

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Not holding your line is the easiest way to make you look like the biggest tool ever.

ncasolowork2 > ncasolowork2 10/01/2013 at 13:10

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It appears he was. That's too bad. He's a really cool kid. Injury at Spa last year basically cost him a shot at F1 and now he's trying to make it in sportscars. That won't help.

The Sparkytooth Ring Lapper > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 13:12

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Reminds me of GT5 online for some reason.

Just wear your damn mask... > George Arnold 10/01/2013 at 13:12

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Once you're off on the outside of Big Bend at Lime Rock Park, the only way to get back on is to drive there. My impression from the video is that the Aston driver went off and was aggressively trying to get back on when the incident occurred. It makes sense; it is easier to make up time lost early in a race than it is later in the race. Just sucks for Magnus.

Mr-PLP > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 13:22

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How to lose a championship in two laps or less (through no fault of you own)? Let's ask Fernando Alonso about his 2012 season:

SPA

Suzuka

Vettel wins world championship

Nerdist > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 13:24

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Don't worry guys he has "Bill Me Later" he will be back on the track in no time.

SmugMannerisms > WarShrike 10/01/2013 at 13:31

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paypal is always there to fuck you in the ass!

Dangerous > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 13:36

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I'm not happy with you guys right now...you F'd up that Evora damnit!

Dangerous > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 13:37

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I'm not happy with you guys right now...you F'd up that Evora damnit!

lt5zr180 > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 13:39

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funny looks like the impact with the lotus did the damage.

Ralstig > George Arnold 10/01/2013 at 13:39

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He doesn't have control. His tires are covered in dirt. You can see how each tire has varying levels of grip.

Although he sure was a dick in getting back on track that aggressively.

tusk09er > sflash868 10/01/2013 at 13:49

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BMW drivers...what do u expect

sadil > WarShrike 10/01/2013 at 13:56

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well said.

veteran011 > sflash868 10/01/2013 at 14:23

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thats probably because boris said drives one of em. love the guy but damn is he rough with those cars.

BullManUGA > Dangerous 10/01/2013 at 14:31

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It completed 1 lap in it's life. That was the first and only race that car will ever run in either Grand-Am or USCC. It was in the GX class and it won't be eligible next year.

BullManUGA > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 14:33

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I thought I said this earlier but it may have been a different thread, but a big loser in this is the GX Lotus Evora. That was the first race it had ever run, and they completed 1 lap. It's also the only race it will ever run, as it won't be eligible for USCC next year since they thankfully killed GX. Only the diesel Mazdas (the only reason the class existed in the first place) will be moved up to GTD next year.

BullManUGA > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 14:35

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I thought I said this earlier but it may have been a different thread, but a big loser in this is the GX Lotus Evora. That was the first race it had ever run, and they completed 1 lap. It's also the only race it will ever run, as it won't be eligible for USCC next year since they thankfully killed GX. Only the diesel Mazdas (the only reason the class existed in the first place) will be moved up to GTD next year.

PlopFace > Mr-PLP 10/01/2013 at 15:14

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Pretty sure Alonso turned into Kimis line at Suzuka. From what I remember Kimi held his line out to the edge of the track, he didn't turn in on alonso, alonso turned in on him.

Intending_Acceleration > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 15:48

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Uhh....that car's path was pretty damn predictable. He tried to shoot the gap, and failed.

Next time, son, wait a second for the other gent to finish crashing.

Mr-PLP > PlopFace 10/01/2013 at 16:13

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Perhaps, but SPA definitely wasn't his fault causing him to get 0 points leading to his loss of the world championship by 3 pts! If it wasn't for SPA (keeping Suzuka as the average 1 DNF per driver per season), then Vettel wouldn't be the 3x world champion.

Just wear your damn mask... > Intending_Acceleration 10/01/2013 at 16:14

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There is nothing "predictable" about a car leaving the racing surface in the middle of a corner then going toward the apex of said corner. The Magnus car did what it did based on what the Aston should have done, not what it did.

onerunjunior > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 16:23

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I don't want to sound harsh, but the dude that hit him should be parked for the rest of that race. There's mistakes, then there's stupidity. Stupidity should get you parked.

Intending_Acceleration > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 16:25

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There was a big puff of blue smoke from his lock-up, he gracefully went off the track, and then slooooooowly started to cross back.

You've seen Days of Thunder, right?

Our boy hit the throttle and tried to make the gap instead of lifting, despite the car crossing in front of him. Pretty much drove right into the other car. This most definitely wasn't "through no fault of your own."

Just wear your damn mask... > Intending_Acceleration 10/01/2013 at 16:33

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Pro tip: If you're using "Days of Thunder" as a racing analogy, you don't know what you are talking about.

The Aston should never been anywhere near the racing line at that point after going off, let alone at the apex of the corner with dirty tires and traffic behind him on line. There is a nice, short straight between the exit of Big Bend and the Lefthander to get back on track without wrecking a bunch of cars.

Let me make this clear, the Porsche driver did nothing wrong.

Fishflinger > Intending_Acceleration 10/01/2013 at 17:00

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He didn't follow the NASCAR rule. Aim for the car wrecking, by the time you get there it will be somewhere else.

LyleLanley > Intending_Acceleration 10/01/2013 at 17:17

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Intending_Acceleration

Kevin Buckler, is that you?

afgiubadfiubg > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 17:22

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Love that Evora man, too bad about the wreck.

afgiubadfiubg > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 17:23

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Oops double post

66671 - 200 [METRIC] my dash > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 17:30

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WTF is this? Cars going all over the place....

Andy > BullManUGA 10/01/2013 at 17:56

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The Lotus ran at Laguna two weeks (?) prior. It was a huge loser in the incident for sure, hardly saw it coming.

Chris_B > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 18:19

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#1: Two feet in. This is the reason drivers are taught to do this when out of control around other cars. The cars right behind you don't suddenly disappear from the racing surface just because you overcooked the corner.

#2: Mirrors are not just for sponsor decals. They actually are useful.

Chris_B > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 18:22

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#1: Two feet in. This is the reason drivers are taught to do this when out of control around other cars. The cars right behind you don't suddenly disappear from the racing surface just because you overcooked the corner.

#2: Mirrors are not just for sponsor decals. They actually are useful.

Duckferd > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 18:36

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Too bad, because up to that point it was a pretty intense race. Why did the driver who was off the track move towards the Apex? That's completely against any common sense (and rules)?

punksmurph > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 20:00

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I read about this happening but it is even more depressing to watch, I am a huge Andy Lally fan and Magnus is my team this year without Kinetic racing in ST class. What makes the whole thing worse is the Evora getting only one whole lap in and the Turner car getting tied up in it.

DetreLtd > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 20:14

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The Porsche driver didn't do anything wrong as clearly it was the Aston that was out of control but if you're trying to win a championship the prudent move would have been to back off the throttle slightly until the Aston's future path could be determined more definitively. In my experience when a car drops two wheels on the outside of Big Bend they're more than likely to end up cutting across to the inside of the corner.

Simplify, then add beer > WarShrike 10/01/2013 at 20:36

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Yeah, but rockets and Hyperloops!

Just wear your damn mask... > Duckferd 10/01/2013 at 20:46

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No idea. I believe he earned a 60-second stop and go penalty.

Duckferd > Just wear your damn mask... 10/01/2013 at 20:47

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He got off pretty easily, considering he could have killed someone in something completely preventable.

Just wear your damn mask... > DetreLtd 10/01/2013 at 20:54

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Physics my friend. If the Aston were "out of control" it would have continued going away from the racing surface, not toward the racing line. The car never even spun; it re-entered the track mid corner. Brain dead? Yes. Out of control? Hardly.

eskimo810 > George Arnold 10/01/2013 at 20:58

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I don't think he was sliding really. He/she put two tires in the dirt and continued to stay partially on the track. If he was sliding he would have slid off the track altogether.

Bakkster, touring car driver > BullManUGA 10/01/2013 at 22:10

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I thought any other GX car could move up, so long as they made themselves fast enough.

Bakkster, touring car driver > BullManUGA 10/01/2013 at 22:12

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I thought any other GX car could move up, so long as they made themselves fast enough.

Bakkster, touring car driver > BullManUGA 10/01/2013 at 22:13

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I thought any other GX car could move up, so long as they made themselves fast enough.

ImUrOBGYN > DetreLtd 10/01/2013 at 23:24

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Explain to me please, why you think that would occur? Because the physics of your "experience" aren't making sense to me.

jickel > BullManUGA 10/02/2013 at 11:07

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Not to mention the Lotus had just taken the GX lead and had a good qualifying performance (qualifying 2nd) to boot. The car is eligible to move up to GTD, but it's going to need to be some enhancements other than the obvious (power) to make it a front runner. The next few months will be interesting for the car to say the least.

Diesel_Powa > ImUrOBGYN 10/02/2013 at 12:04

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Video-games physics, didn't you know?!

tennispro602 > ncasolowork2 10/02/2013 at 12:24

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the next Romain Grosjean

BullManUGA > Bakkster, touring car driver 10/02/2013 at 13:17

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Nope. I'm pretty sure only the Mazdas will be allowed.

Lyle Petersminkle > Mr-PLP 10/02/2013 at 20:03

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You can't say that. If you can make up scenarios that did not actually happen, then you can't cluster around a single possible incident. He also could have been involved in a wreck on lap 20, or lap 40, or retired due to a mechanical failure, etc. So don't come in here dancing on the fake scenario wand and claim that he would have been world champion had it not been for Grosjean. You don't know. Any number of possible things could have happened in that race, and him getting the 4 or more points necessary to later win the championship is just one of MANY possible outcomes of the race had it not gone the way it actually did.

Fact.