Forgive us for the ABBA reference, but we could not help outselves with revealing that despite a stint away from the team the past half a year, we are very happy to welcome our good friend Simone Maria Marcenò back to the team. One might say that “There’s no place like home”, and in the case of Simone and for Altus Esports, we feel the same way.
Welcome back Simone!
It was a fantastic Sunday night for our Gran Turismo Sport squad, as Group A drivers Kenny Conomos (AGT Online) & Jacob Anwyl (FYRC.) both took dominant victories in their respective races, making it a perfect two from two.
The night started of fantastically in what was a very tense and tight qualifying session, with the Kenny taking provisional pole on a 1:19.6 only for a gaggle of other cars to be near to the mark early on. The order changed significantly before the final few seconds of the session, where Kenny slammed the door shut posting a 1:19.1 to seal pole!
The start was managed excellently by Kenny, with fellow FIA World Tour racer Simon Bishop in hot pursuit, extending the gap to the those behind. Then the strategies split, with Simon opting for a 2 stopper, and Kenny sticking to a 1 stopper. With those on the same strategy Kenny continued to extend with the unknown being Simon on his two stopper. At the end of his stop though, he was 11 seconds behind with 12 minutes to go, and Kenny crossed the line to take victory after that unassailable lead!
For Jacob in the FYRC Porsche race, he achieved an excellent P4 in qualifying and having been caught up in an incident at the start, and the leader spinning out of contention, he found himself alone in the lead and he was able to close out an almost lights to flag win like an absolute pro.
This week sees the Group B boys in Nick Voon (AGT Online) & Chris Saunders (FYRC) also take to the Laguna Seca track. Can we go 4 from 4? Tune in to find out on Sunday night.
We’ve got a big day ahead of us, all condensed within a 12 hour span too! Your eyes aren’t deceiving you, this is one of our busiest Sunday’s yet and you can watch all the action LIVE! 🙌
From the top on Sunday evening AU time, on Gran Turismo we have the AGT Online by Thrillhouse Arcade and the FYRC. Porsche Series kicking off with Group A. Kenny Conomos headlines our AGT entry in the BMW M6 GT3, with new birthday boy Jacob Anwyl repping us in the FYRC Porsche Series. Be sure to catch that action LIVE on the Thrillhouse Arcade Facebook page.
Also with a local flavour, the V8 SCOPS Premier Series returns with Round 2 at Sonoma Raceway. The Pre Qualifying stage has been tight, however we are hoping to convert our promise from last round, into more of a result this round. You can catch that also on the iRacing Esports Network, as well as on the V8 SCOPS Premier Series Facebook page. Action commences at 6PM AEDT.
At 11PM AEDT (1200 GMT) the final round of the Sports Car Open series is run, with 8 Hours of Silverstone. We are currently sitting 3rd in this championship with the SIMRC squad close ahead in 2nd, and Team Redline leading the way. Anything can happen with one round to go, and Yannick Lapchin and Tuomas Tähtelä will be putting the Ferrari 488 GTE through its paces, with early pace looking strong.
Lastly and certainly not least, the second BMW Motorsport 120 of the year will be taking place at the Sebring International Raceway. After being drilled on the opening corner from a front row start in Daytona ruining any chance of a win, Andrew Kahl and Josh Anderson Racing return for redemption in what will be an all star field in the Big BMW M8 GTE. Action kicks off at 1330 GMT (Midnight AEDT), and again this is available on the iRacing Esports Network.
It sounds exhausting… but we’re all up for it! It’s going to be a great day’s racing. Let’s go get it!
#WeAreAltus #AEFTW
The Automobilista Supercars Championship kicked off with Round 1 at Adelaide, and it was a great opening for our two machines. Dayne Warren would take Pole Position in both races, and convert Race 2 into a win, with brother Ethan Warren taking out Race 1.
We are very proud to announce that by virtue of their exceptional performances throughout the Porsche Esports Supercup Qualifying Series, Dayne Warren and Josh Anderson from Australia have cemented their position to the pinnacle of road racing competition on iRacing, with one round to spare.
Both drivers have snared Top split victories along the season, such as Josh’s dominant victory at Circuit Zandvoort, and Dayne’s back-to-back victories at VIRginia International Raceway last week and Silverstone at the weekend.
For Josh, he will will earn back his Pro/WC black stripe, having had this status in last year’s GT World Championship. This will however be the first time that Dayne will don the famed black stripe.
We are absolutely delighted, however there is still a chance for another teammate to join them and Tuomas Tähtelä who had already qualified from last year’s results. Alexander Lauritzen is just a few spots away from making the field but will need a very strong week at Road America in order to have a chance of making this year’s Supercup. You’ve got this Alex! 👍👍
The V8 SCOPS Premier Series kicked off for 2020 at the traditional opener, Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve. In split 1, Sam Blacklock led the way in the #215 Mustang, shooting out of his grid box and slicing his way through the field in the opening laps, performing a great pass at the hairpin for 5th place before a hit on the rear entering the final chicane pushed him off line, and flying Tony Hawk style into the car that had hit him and into the wall of champions. There was significant damage for Sam, however he was thankfully able to continue but it would have a big impact for the remaining 55 laps. Sam continued to have a very strong drive despite the damage and was running in P10 entering the final lap, before again being rear-ended. Unfortunately Sam could only cross the line in 18th place, and despite a great drive, was a case of what could have been.
Zachary Hanlin would also join Sam in the top split however would have a difficult race, also being caught out in other people’s incidents and unfortunately making a few of his own. He would cross the line in a lowly 32nd place, and plenty of work to go on. Beau Albert was running in Split 2, and was perhaps a little bit too optimistic into Turn 1 and despite being involved in an incident early, however an incident further in front and a blocked track gave Beau and early finish.
Bring on the next round we say – where we expect to go better.
We’re live here in Sydney for the FIA Manufacturers Series. The BOP god’s haven’t been kind to our guys, but watch out for Chevrolet (Matthew McEwen), Jaguar (Kenny Conomos) and Hyundai (Connor Healy).
The iRacing Bathurst 12 Hour is always a gruelling affair, and like in previous years we had hopes of a strong result leading into the race. Josh Anderson did an excellent job of knabbing P3 in qualifying in the Logitech G Audi, and would settle into a pretty good rhythm behind the former Williams Esports BMW pairing running in as Team #33, and the Coanda Simsport Audi. However after a difficult time with traffic in the opening hour, we would end up with significant damage to the steering and aero, resulting in a significant loss of straight line speed and bent steering, leaving us right hand down for the remaining 11 hours.
True grit and determination from the trio of Anderson, Dayne Warren and Andrew Kahl would see them come back despite a slow and ill handling Audi, and a disconnect just after the mid way point of the race, to push on and achieve as best a result as possible. They were rewarded with a 5th place finish, and it was a true testament of what sheer determination can sometimes bring.
For the ASTRO Gaming BMW, Jackson Souslin Harlow would start the race around mid-pack having missed out in qualifying on getting the most out of the tyre, however would have a fantastic opening stint to move up to 8th place by the first pitstop.
Opting to take tyres in the opening stop, a charge through the double stinting train would continue to great success however disaster struck just prior to the second stop side to side contact with another GT3 would occur resulting in a massive crash for both cars, and dropping out of contention. They would take on all repairs to the car, however a further crash just prior to the mid-race point would give irreparable damage and the car had to be retired. A disappointing end for what was an exciting run to watch to that point.
Congratulations to Coanda Simsport on taking victory in the race, with Evolution Simsport and The ineX Racing Team rounding out the GT3 podium. We also congratulate all other finishers in the lower ranked splits, as a finish in the Bathurst 12 hour is often a victory in itself.
The 12 Hour may be over, however the action continues, with Sports Car Open kicking off at Barcelona in less than 12 hours time, with Tuomas Tähtelä and Yannick Lapchin behind the wheel. Stay tuned for that!
We’re excited to name our first trio to take on the Bathurst 12 Hour. This trio however needs little introduction, especially when Bathurst is concerned. Andrew Kahl has taken P2 in on the Bathurst 12 Hour grid in 2018 and 2019. Josh Anderson has always been one of the fastest around Bathurst in any car he drives, and Dayne Warren is an absolute beast around Mount Panorama, having taken Pole Position in the Supercars Eseries last year and topping qualifying in the V8SCOPS Bathurst 1000.
This trio will be one to watch, and their weapon of choice is the Logitech G Audi R8 LMS.
Logitech G Altus Esports #43 – Audi R8 LMS GT3
Andrew Kahl
Josh Anderson
Dayne Warren
Our BMW Z4 GT3 has been sitting in the garage parked up since we took delivery of it from ILiveries, however the plucky little BMW will break cover for the first time in a competition. Driving the car will be our second trio taking part in the Bathurst 12 Hour, another young trio from Down Under with a background predominantly in the Supercars. With local track knowledge they could certainly spring a surprise after 12 long hours of racing.
ASTRO Gaming Altus Esports #83 – BMW Z4 GT3
Jackson Souslin Harlow (AUS)
Brady Meyers (AUS)
Sam Blacklock (NZL)
The AGT Online and FYRC. Porsche categories got underway at the weekend, with our Group A entrants of Kenny Conomos (AE_Kenomos) and Jacob Anwyl respresenting the team in each class respectively.
In both races however, it would prove to be a difficult night. Janwyl would recover from qualifying outside the top 10 to finish 9th in the race. For Kenny though, an OK qualifying performance was not converted when there was an incident early on in the race, resulting in a lot of lost time. He would end up finishing in P13, wondering what might have been.
This weekend sees the Group B take on Interlagos, with Nick Voon (AE_schnickoman) running the M6 GT3, and Chris Saunders (vf69225) in the FYRC Porsche.