Harbin/Gravitt take eNASCAR Heat Pro League wins at NHMS
The first segment of the eNASCAR Heat Pro League closed out Wednesday with twin 55-lap races at virtual New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
PS4
Brandyn Gritton of Stewart-Haas eSports led the field to the green flag for the first 55-lap race of the evening.
He held station until Joe Gornick put the bumper to him, taking over the lead ten laps into the race.
Most of the field filed down pit road right around halfway for green-flag pit stops with Gritton retaking the lead from Gornic through the cycle.
With 18 laps remaining, a caution changed everything. Joey Stone and Nick Jobes put themselves out front with a strategy gamble, but would not be able to hold on as they were quickly swallowed up following the restart.
Gritton was able to move back into the lead, but Josh Harbin was in hot pursuit.
With seven laps to go, he was able to complete the pass and take over the lead. From that point onward, the battle was really for second as Cody Giles, Gritton and Maxwell Castro went at it for position.
Despite some contact, they kept the cars pointed the right direction and Gritton came away with the runner-up position just ahead of Castro, who leads the points standings at the conclusion of Segment 1.
Harbin was able to cruise to the checkered flag and take the win for Leavine Family Gaming, ended up eight points shy of Castro in the standings.
Josh Parker and Stone rounded out the top-five in the results table.
PS4 Driver Standings
Pos. / Points / Driver
1. 101 Maxwell Castro
2. 93 Josh Harbin
3. 92 Kyle Arnold
4. 87 Nick Jobes
5. 87 Jason Mitchell
6. 78 Brandyn Gritton
7. 75 Mike Braas
8. 72 Joey Stone
9. 72 Cody Giles
10. 67 Corey Rothgeb
11. 61 Josh Parker
12. 52 Joe Gornick
13. 47 Brandon Hanna
14. 36 TJ McGowan
Xbox One
Justin Brooks of the JTG Daugherty Throttlers led the way at the start of Race 2, but an early rash of yellows would plague the event.
There were two cautions in a hectic opening ten laps with the lead swapping hands between Brooks, Luis Zaiter and even Diego Alvarado before Daniel Buttafuoco emerged out front.
Buttafuoco remained in control through another set of yellows and led Brooks until both drivers dove to pit road with nine laps to go.
That cleared the way for Slade Gravitt to move into the race lead, hanging on against a hard-charging Zaiter to win by just under half a second. It was an impressive win from the back row of the grid for the Wood Brothers Gaming driver.
Tyler Dohar, Jose Ruiz and Nick Walker rounded out the top-five.
Brooks would finish eighth, but that was enough to hold onto the Segment 1 championship lead, eight points clear of Buttafuoco who finished sixth.
The series goes back road racing next week with the NASCAR Truck Series at Mid-Ohio.
Xbox Driver Standings
Pos. / Points / Driver
1. 121 Justin Brooks
2. 113 Daniel Buttafuoco
3. 107 Slade Gravitt
4. 94 Luis Zaiter
5. 84 Nick Walker
6. 68 Tyler Dohar
7. 66 Mitch Diamond
8. 62 Matthew Heale
9. 61 Matthew Selby
10. 56 Riley Ogle
11. 55 Jose Ruiz
12. 55 Diego Alvarado
13. 54 Brian Tedeschi
14. 44 Sam Morris
TCR champion to star in ARG eSport Cup
Best of the banter – Supercars at COTA
How an unlikely tie-up won sim racing's biggest prize
An unlikely partnership between World Endurance Championship LMP1 privateers Rebellion Racing and Williams Formula 1's highly-successful sim racing team yielded victory in the inaugural 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual. Here's how it triumphed in the biggest sim race ever staged
How seriously should Esports be taken?
As interest in Esports has increased during the coronavirus lockdown, the lines have become blurred between what's real and what's virtual - especially when some high-profile participants seem to be playing for laughs, says Luke Smith
Why Abt's deception left Audi with no choice
Daniel Abt's suspension by the Audi Formula E team - and possible loss of his drive - for fielding a ringer in an Esports event could be considered an overreaction. But in a wider context, his employers had little other alternative
How Leclerc is embracing his new mission
The emergence of Ferrari F1 driver Charles Leclerc as a Twitch streaming star has been one of the pleasant surprises of lockdown so far. He says it is giving fans a greater insight into his nature, but that's not his primary purpose
Leclerc's Virtual GP annihilation deserves great credit
The introduction of Charles Leclerc, Alex Albon, George Russell and Antonio Giovinazzi to Formula 1's Virtual GP last weekend meant it was a step above the franchise's debut two weeks ago. But a dominant performance from Esports newcomer Leclerc stole the show
How the hidden side of being fast has been exposed
The lack of real track action so far this year hasn't stop drivers from keeping their racing brains 'fresh', as former F1 star Stoffel Vandoorne suggested last weekend.
Why entertainment isn't Esports greatest virtue right now
MotoGP's virtual #StayAtHomeGP was a sad reminder of some of the storylines that could be unfolding had the real-life season not been delayed indefinitely by the coronavirus pandemic. While we can bemoan Esports as being a poor relation of the real thing, it has an even more important function to perform
F1’s pantomime Virtual GP is fun but unsustainable
F1 Esports' inaugural Virtual Grand Prix last weekend provided brilliant entertainment to those tuning in to watch a mix of F1 drivers and celebrities battle on track, but was a missed opportunity for marketing its own Esports stars. A change of approach is needed if it is to successfully fill the void until the resumption of proper racing