Ottinger adds name to eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Championship 4 roster with Dover win

Nick Ottinger couldn’t have picked a better time to collect his first win of the 2023 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series season. The 2020 Champion for William Byron eSports earned his place in the playoff field on points, but now he’ll race for $100,000 next month at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, NC after winning the second round of the 2023 eNASCAR Playoffs on Tuesday night at Dover Motor Speedway. While it’s only his first win of the season, it’s his third race win-in-a-row at the Monster Mile, dating back to 2020, as well as his 20th career victory, the most of all current eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series competitors and second most all-time.

Ottinger had the pace from the time final practice opened, as he led the charts both entering and exiting qualifying for his series-leading fifth pole position of the 2023 season. After leading the first 10 laps ahead of the Stewart-Haas Racing duo of Dylan Duval and Steven Wilson, the former took the lead on Lap 11, pulling away during the green flag cycle by more than a second. Ottinger maintained second, and through the field, it looked to be a race where tire conservation would be key to success. 23XI’s Keegan Leahy managed to fight into the Top 5 before Lap 30 after starting in 33rd, but his tires were completely used up too early, as he faded back to around 20th.

Up front, Ottinger used this knowledge to his advantage, saving the virtual rubber for the first half of the run before taking back the lead from Duval on Lap 41. Wilson also employed this strategy, and the two Playoff competitors would stay close throughout the race. On Lap 60, halfway through the 120-lap event, the pit cycle began as XSET’s Casey Kirwan and Leahy entered the pits around the midfield, with the majority of the pack soon following suit. Wilson came in at the end of Lap 61 while Ottinger waited one extra lap. This undercut allowed Wilson to take the lead of the cycle as the pair weaved through slower traffic, but Ottinger would eventually get back on top of that battle.

About 10 cars opted to run it long, hoping for a caution to flip their strategy around. However, the tire wear was so great that some drivers began to blow out their virtual tires. Up front, there were still five cars that had not pitted that were still ahead of the cars that did pit, led by Jim Beaver eSports’ Garrett Lowe and Rise eSports’ Jimmy Mullis. As Ottinger and Wilson were about to break back into the Top 5, 23XI’s Michael Guest blew out a right rear tire just before the entrance to pit road and just ahead of the effective lead. Guest attempted to wheel his car back around, but he could not hang on and spun to bring out the second caution of the event. This worked out perfectly for Lowe and Mullis, as well as Jim Beaver eSports’ Malik Ray and Tony Kanaan Esports’ Tyler Garey, who are both fighting to stay above the Top 20 relegation line.

With the whole field pitting for pit service, Lowe and Mullis led the field back to the green flag with Ottinger and Wilson in the row behind. Cautions would breed cautions, however, as the field would be slowed another three times on laps 92, 101 and 107. The field received the final restart on Lap 112, with nine laps to go. Ottinger had managed to move into second through the yellows and on Lap 114, he managed to reclaim the lead from Lowe. Wilson was able to get by as well on Lap 117, but didn’t have enough time to challenge for the win. Ottinger took home the win, punching his ticket to race live and on-stage at the NASCAR Hall of Fame on September 26. The Top 8 finishers were all eNASCAR Playoff competitors.

Only two spots in the Championship 4 dance remain among eight drivers. On points, Wilson and Team Dillon eSports’ Jordy Lopez hold those spots with Guest the first driver outside, four points behind. The defending series champion, Kirwan, is seven points behind Lopez. The final four spots in the Round of 10 belong to Team Dillon eSports’ Tucker Minter, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Bobby Zalenski, Mullis (who finished fourth) and the Regular Season champion, JR Motorsports’ Michael Conti.

While a points position is not entirely impossible, with how close the field was on Tuesday night, the four at the bottom will likely need a win to continue their chase towards the 2023 Championship. Only 14 points separate Wilson from Kirwan, but even then, a win is the only guarantee for any of these remaining drivers to claim a seat in Charlotte to race for $100,000 and hoist the Dale Earnhardt Jr Championship Trophy.

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series results from Dover Motor Speedway were as follows:

The 2023 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series points standings are as follows:

1. Garrett Lowe, 1 win/2077 points
2. Nick Ottinger, 1 win/2052 points
3. Steven Wilson, 2073 points
4. Jordy Lopez, 2066 points
   ——————————–
5. Michael Guest, 2062 points
6. Casey Kirwan, 2059 points
7. Tucker Minter, 2051 points
8. Bobby Zalenski, 2047 points
9. Jimmy Mullis, 2047 points
10. Michael Conti, 2040 points

The penultimate round of the 2023 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series season will take place at the same venue where Casey Kirwan was crowned the champion last season—Phoenix Raceway. One more Championship 4 berth is available by winning, which leaves at least one spot to be earned on points. Of course, if there isn’t a win spot taken, that means two drivers will make the Championship 4 on points. There will also be the Top 20 relegation line to keep an eye on as well as the others look to secure their spot on the 2024 grid.

Race coverage for Phoenix Raceway will start on Tuesday, September 12 at 9 p.m. ET at eNASCAR.com/live. The Countdown to Green, presented by Wendy’s, will kick things off at 8:30 p.m. ET.

For more information on the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, visit www.enascar.com or www.iracing.com/enascar. For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit www.iracing.com.

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