Monge Masters The Triangle

Harrison Widelitz (2) and Cole C Anderson (3) navigate Turn Three.

After a short break between Season Two and Season Three, the NASCAR iRacing Class C Fixed Series is once again back in action. Up first for the competitors is a trip to 2.5-mile tricky triangle known as Pocono Raceway. The track provides a very unique racing experience with each of its three turns offering a different degree of banking from the previous. Each turn is modeled after turns at three different tracks across the United States. Turn One (14 degrees) replicates the now defunct Trenton Speedway, Turn Two (nine degrees) is like Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and the final turn, Turn Three (six degrees) is a replica of The Milwaukee Mile. With the challenges this track provides, it is a favorite among sim racers in the iRacing.com community as 1,999 racers took the green flag in at least one event during the week, each with the same goal—win the top Strength of Field event for the week.

A partly cloudy, 78 degree day in the Pocono Mountains was a picture-perfect day for sim racing. With a light breeze blowing across the speedway to clear the smoke from a massive burnout, Richard Dusett (New England) emerged to take the checkered flag from the virtual flagman after earning the victory in the week’s top Strength of Field (4241 SoF) event over Josh Berry (Mid-South). Former NiSWC race winner Jeremy R Allen (Indiana) brought home the No. 6 Silverado in the third position after starting from the pole and leading the opening three laps before relegating the top spot to Dusett. Fourth place went to NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Parker Kligerman (New England) who competes on Saturdays in Kyle Busch Motorsports’ #77 Toyota Camry. Kligerman started in the 13^th position and quickly worked his way into the top five in the No. 8 truck. The final spot in the top five went to Eric Isenbeck (Florida).

Robert Cooke (5) and Tadd Granger (11) race side-by-side.

While he did not compete in the week’s top SoF event, Tony Monge (Michigan) was able to earn the most championship points with 261 for the week due to many other competitors running more than four races during the week. Berry ended the week in the second position after making five starts and recording two wins while earning 256 points as he looks to make another charge at the championship. Jarl Teien (Scandinavia) netted 249 points during the week after starting seven events, scoring victories in three. NiSWC competitor Michael Conti made an incredible 14 starts during the week, finishing in the top five 12 times, and taking the victory eight times—earning 241 points in the process. Rounding out the top five is Allen who also earned 241 points during the week after making five starts.

To go along with the 249 points he earned during the week, Teien also set the top qualifying time for the week with a time of 57.224 seconds. Second place on the week went to Brandon Hauck (Canada) with a time of 57.243 seconds. Third place was held down by Conti, who ended the week with a time of 57.250. NiSWC competitor Marcus Lindsey (Indiana) and Dusett filled the remaining positions in the top five.

With Season Three just beginning, there is still plenty of time to recover from any misfortune that took place during the first week of action at Pocono. While this may be good news for many drivers, it may also be bad news for those who come unprepared. The next track on the schedule is Darlington Raceway, one of the toughest venues on the NASCAR circuit. Check back in a week’s time to see who was able to master The Lady in Black and avoid the patented Darlington Stripe.

You may also like...

Recommended

JD Brown scores elusive World of Outlaws Pro Series victory at Williams Grove

Recommended

iRacings Black Friday Sale is Live NOW!

Recommended

This Week in iRacing: November 26-December 2, 2024

Recommended

2024-25 World of Outlaws Pro Series | Race Preview | Race 3: Williams Grove