Buie’s Monster Week
June 10th, 2013 by Jaime Baker
Week Five of the NASCAR iRacing Class C Fixed heads to Dover International Speedway for some action at the 1-mile concrete coliseum. Over 2,000 sim racers took the green flag for at least one race during the week, but there would be only one who could claim they are king at Dover.
NASCAR iRacing Pro Series competitor Brandon Buie (Atlantic) drove his No. 1 Silverado into victory lane during the week’s top Strength of Field event after race leader Brandon Wise (California) had struggles after leading the opening 31 laps. Marc Melcher (DE-AT-CH) finished in the second position after starting fifth, just 0.387 seconds behind race winner Buie. Chase Cabre (Florida) was a man of threes during the race. Cabre finished in the third position after starting third all while driving the No. 3. He also set the fastest lap of the race with a 24.005. Jonathan Cheeseman (Georgia) finished in the fourth position after starting from the same position. Rounding out the top five is James Hudson2 (Ohio) who started eighth and drove a smart race into the top five in the 3690 SoF.
With the victory in the week’s top SoF race, Buie earned 230 championship points. Kollin Keister (Atlantic) made four starts on the week, earning three victories in those starts, and earning 228 points for his efforts during the week. Eric Mahlik2 (Midwest) made seven starts during the week, taking the checkered flag first in four of those and netting 213 points. Wade Hustad (Midwest) also made seven starts during the week, but came up one win and four points short of Mahlik for the third position. Christian Pedersen (New England) completed the remainder of the top five after making three starts, collecting one win and 203 points.
Two time NASCAR iRacing Series World Championship champion Ray Alfalla (Florida) put his Hick ‘N’ Jick’s Silverado on top of the qualifying chart for the week with a time of 23.743 seconds. Fellow NiSWC competitor Chad J Laughton (Carolina) had the second fastest time of the week with a time of 23.778. Keister, Nicholas Goertzen (Canada), and Trey Eidson (Carolina) fill the remaining spots in the top five.
Keister currently has a sizeable lead (151 points) over second place Michael Guest (Indiana). Josh Berry (Mid-South) sits in the third position, 232 points out of the lead after five weeks of racing. Wes Weidman (Great Plains) holds down the fourth position, but is 239 points behind Keister and Hustad rounds out the top five (-256).
Up next for the NiCCF is a trip to the Lone Star State and Texas Motor Speedway. The 1.5-mile speedway is a favorite among drivers because of its high banks and high speeds. Will Keister be able to extend his lead, or will Guest and Berry be able to make a dent in Keister’s point lead.