The first rounds of Season 3 of the PCGB Sim Racing Championship proved to be a mixed bag for 11Tenths. Both drivers qualified well for Race 1, with Johnny Elia starting in 6th position, edging out teammate Mark Baxter-Jones in 7th by 0.06 seconds.
Race 1 was eventful. When the lights went green a slow-start ahead resulted in Elia being boxed-in and with little room to manoeuvre he lost several positions before turn 1. Despite a small mistake later in the race that dropped him down to 17th, Elia was able to refocus and put in a series of consistent laps which brought him back up through the pack to finish in 13th position.
Baxter-Jones, meanwhile, was able to capitalise at the start and leapfrog into 5th place. A frenetic pace saw P1 & P2 trading fastest laps. Despite this, the top five cars remained separated by only a few seconds deep into the race, until lapped traffic spread out the front-runners and denied a grandstand finish.
With a reversed grid for the second race both 11Tenths drivers started in the back half of the field. Elia’s 13th-place finish in race 1 proved unlucky for race 2 as he took a hit from behind, ending his race before turn 2 of the first lap. Baxter-Jones escaped the chaos at the start and managed to make his way through the field unscathed and battled his way up to 10th place
Championship Points after Snetterton:
- Baxter-Jones: 25
- Elia: 7