I didn't know the AI wasn't effected by tyres wear, i knew about fuel. Anyway that explains why on fresh rubber i didn't blitz past some of the AI who was only a few seconds ahead of me. This started online yesterday at the dreaded Catalunya. My time was a 1:23 the fastest was set by Seb a 1:22, at the start i made no places but had to defend heavily against Massa and into the first corner i almost got around the out side of him. Going through the 3rd corner (flat out right hander) i had massive understeer and had to lift very slightly but i ran wide and as i danced on the out side of the track someone smashed into the side of me must have had the same problem as me with understeer). In this race there was 3 human players and the rest was AI, Lewis was leading the race with Seb 2nd. Anyway i had set my lap time in qualifiying on primes so started on them and pitted on lap 10 out of 13. Some of the others had pitted early on so i knew they was now on primes with a few on the opions. By this point one of the human player's had destroyed their car and left and the other who must have been having problems also left. I carried on because after all this racing i wasn't about to just quit no matter where i finished. So exiting the pits and i am down in 6th and i'm like WTF, when i had pitted i was leading the race and by over 10 seconds. The 2nd and 3rd place guy's wasn't far behind Lewis but the gap between 3rd and 4th was a lot and so i thourght i would drop back into 4th. Some how the laps building up to my stop while i watched the gap as best as i could on the mini map between 3rd and 4th and the actual out lap was masterfull by the AI. It must have been because 4th, 5th and 6th to over take. I was on the options and the guy's Kubica who managed to pass me on his in lap a lap before i pitted was again ahead of me as i exited the pits. He was on the primes and driving like his tyres was better than options. I was on the opitions and for the first 2 laps i was playing catch up and on the last lap i managed to get a run on him and out brake him. But even then he tried to go around the out side of me not wanting to give that potision away, and on the exit i simply ran him out wide and he had no choice but to accept defeat.
I know at Catalunya the AI are fast but not that damned fast, i finished in the same place i started. I accept that the AI needs to be strong at some tracks and more so at Catalunya because that is the track used by most in pre season testing but that makes no difference and yes the AI should be a little better because they would no the track much better but not as fast as they are.
Not all the AI was set to pro, a few was set to int (Barrichello) was one of them and for the first 4 laps or so he was all over my rear wing and it was only till he pitted did he loose ground. I think it was only 2 AI on int and all others on pro. Anyway a lesson i learned the hard way, expect the worse at Catalunya because it most likely will be even worse than you expected.