CoRe Wins Team Championship & AM Driver Championship With 1-2!
After Apex Racing League hosted several seasons of TCR & GT4 series, the racing league organization of Apex Racing decided to bring back two of the most popular GT racing divisions in motorsport, with each boasting a wide range of manufacturers : The ARL Sportscar Series, which included two classes of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge both in real life and in iRacing. So another challenge for CoRe awaited – the 7 round calendar began with a 75 minute event at the tricky Sebring International Raceway, followed by the European classics of Imola, Zandvoort, Aragón and Nürburgring Combined, the latter hosted a few days prior to the iRacing’s Nurburgring 24. Round 6 saw the series head to Road Atlanta, with Spa-Francorchamps bookending the season. CoRe SimRacing’s GT4 veteran Pascal Stix team’d up with Maik Paluch & Dominik Engel in a Porsche Cayman GT4 while Ronald Großmann joined AM category forces in the McLaren 570s GT4 – last but not least, Carl Winkler joined occasional races in his Honda Civic TCR.
The season roared to life at Sebring International Raceway, where Pascal Stix and Maik Paluch faced fierce competition from Carter Lundy, Luca Naddeo, as well as Lucas Taelman and Francois Strat from team Deletraz Automotive. Despite the intense rivalry, Pascal and Maik secured impressive P4 and P5 finishes in a crowded field, earning crucial points for the team championship. Dominik Engel celebrated a thrilling maiden win in the GT4 car, finishing P1 in the AM category. Round 2 took the team to Imola, where strict track limits made overtaking a challenge. Dominik Engel triumphed with a spectacular back-to-back win in the AM category, and Ronald joined him on the podium in 3rd place. Pascal and Maik faced setbacks, finishing P5 and P8 respectively, which caused them to slip in the team standings.
The action continued in a foggy Zandvoort for Round 3. It started with a tough qualifying session for Maik, resulting in an incident-filled race and a P8 finish only – however Pascal showcased his racing prowess with a strong 2nd place finish. Dominik Engel clinched his third consecutive AM victory, with Ronald again securing a podium finish in 3rd. Carl, competing in TCR, achieved a commendable 6th place. Race four at Aragon presented new challenges. Dominik faced several incidents but still managed to secure 3rd in the AM category. Maik finished in a respectable P7, while Pascal captured another podium with a 3rd place finish. Ronald and Carl were absent as they were competing in another series for the team. Race 5 was held at the Nurburgring Combined layout, including the legendary Nordschleife, which was a dramatic affair as the race transitioned from sunset to night. Nordschleife veteran Pascal delivered a flawless performance in his Cayman GT4, winning the race in the PRO category. Ronald celebrated his first series win in the AM category being also very familiar with the track due to experience in other Nürburgring Series. Maik finished solidly in P5 in PRO making the team catch back few points in the team standings. Dominik completed the race in 2nd, right behind Ronald, ensuring a fantastic 1-2 result for CoRe SimRacing in the AM category.
The penultimate round was held at Road Atlanta, a sort of experienced track for CoRe SimRacing, resulted in rather disappointment than valuable points for the team championship. Despite Pascal secured a back to back win in the PRO category, Maik finished 4th despite causing a major collision at the start only, which took out his AM teammate Ronald Großmann. Dominik Engel managed a clean race, finishing strong and placing him and Ronald in 1st & 2nd in the AM category heading into the season finale at Spa. At Spa, Pascal Stix managed another pole including Ronald Großmann also starting at the front rows being the fastest AM driver at the grid after a very strong qualifying performance. However, a collision during the pace lap ended Ronald’s race early again. This led the race to be controversial and turbulent, followed by Pascal being taken out by a team championship contender and subsequently receiving a drive-through penalty for incident points. He finished 5th while Maik managed to avoid trouble though, finishing 2nd and ending his series journey on a season-high podium. Dominik finished 3rd in AM, clinching the AM class championship, while Ronald’s P5 finish secured him 2nd overall in the AM standings by few points.
CoRe SimRacing’s AM squad achieved impressive results despite tough outcomes, with Dominik and Ronald grabbing the AM trophy with a 1-2 result. Pascal earned a strong P2 overall in the PRO category behind winner Lucas Taelman – and Maik Paluch finished 4th overall despite facing various challenges and setbacks in the GT4 category. With the series coming to an end CoRe SimRacing proved it claiming their aim of winning the team championship and therefor capping off a successful GT4 season. Thanks to Apex Racing League and the organizers for a fantastic and exciting series!
Screenshots by Apex Racing League.