RDGPC Season 5 Mid-Season Summary

Joseph Wright · Jun 10, 2017

As the RaceDepartment Grand Prix Championship (RDGPC) reaches its halfway mark, we take stock of the season so far and look ahead to the final rounds of the year.

With half the season complete in the RDGPC, we think it time to have a look at the races so far. Breakneck speeds and tight overtakes, all of our drivers have had an interesting start to the new season over the first three rounds. Team mates and friends took to the track at three iconic racing circuits, and continue to develop their skills looking forward to closing stages of this high performance championship.

So, how did the first half of the season stack up?

Charles Baccio took an early championship lead following Round One at Barber Motorsport Park, even with the absence of his Talking Door Racing teammate, he was not deterred from winning the opening round. Dan Long of MK Simsport was able to take second position following the retirement of his teammate Matt Beavis after contact with backmarker Joseph Wright caused his car to stall. And taking the bottom step of the podium was Ryan Seltzer of The Mighty Forth securing a strong opening round result.

Interest sparked at Road America as the Full Course Yellow was used for the first time. A few confusing opening laps led to a great strategic battle for the top steps of the restrum. Eventually Tom Watts of SSKM took the win, followed by the sister car of teammate Dan Long of MK Simsport and Charles Baccio held onto the lead of the championship with a solid third place finish.

Focus then spun to the dizzy circles of Lausitzring which brought an interesting turn of events in the championship, with some of the back runners taking advantage of the Caution filled event. So what are the current standings for the event?

RDGPC Drivers Championship Standings

RDGPC Team Championship Standings

Looking forward to the final three events, the battle for positions in the championship is by no means over. With the two Championship leaders tied for points, and third place only 20 points down, means that any one of them can still take the lead at Silverstone as 50 points remain on offer to the winner of the British round of the season. From 5th to 12th, our drivers remain in close competition with only 12 points separating all 7 drivers.

Racers in Pyjamas have taken an impressive hit on the championship, both in the drivers and the teams, after one of their drivers, Christian Moreau, got the pole and the win in their first ever race in the season. They move their team respectively straight into 8th position, being the first team to score move than 80 base points in a weekend (thanks to the additional points added to all drivers mind you).

Silverstone will play host to Round 4 of the RDGPC this weekend with drivers preparing themselves for a hard fought battle. The Top 10 drivers from this season of the RDGPC will automatically be reserved a space for RDGPC Season 6, so the pressure is on! With tensions rising, friendships still remain, with drivers sharing tips and even setups to give everyone an easier race around some of the most challenging tracks to run in a Dallara DW12 IndyCar.

All focus will be shifted towards the final race of the season, recently being confirmed as Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where drivers will push for 100 pure laps of racing, constantly on the limits, hoping to win the championship. To ramp up the pressure yet further our season closing event will offer double points, ensuring the championship fight will not be over until the final car crosses the finish line at IMS.

To watch all the action of the RDGPC check out our Twitch and YouTube pages, where we will be streaming live at every race weekend.

If you want to get involved then fear not, its still not too late to get in on the action yourself! Just head over to our Sign Ups page and take advantage of the chance to get behind the wheel of an IndyCar for some of the most intense fighting in sim racing. Sign up now before all of the remaining spaces close! For more information on the league, be sure to check out the Forums dedicated to the RDGPC.

With half the season complete and both championships still wide open, who do you think is going to have a chance of winning this season? Let us know down below!

Christian Moreau · Jun 12, 2017

First victory was nice, though a little bit of a gift considering the nature of the race. Time to get back into the saddle at Silverstone! Though really not one of my favorite tracks.