Salas refuses to lose, takes eNASCAR Contender iRacing Series win at Phoenix

It wasn’t as clear cut as he’d hoped it would have been, but Vicente Salas managed to collect back-to-back victories in this year’s eNASCAR Contender iRacing Series on Tuesday night, winning for both the second week and season in a row at Phoenix Raceway.

Salas had to get physical to get the job done at the end, citing that he was “willing to do what it takes to win” as he moved Femi Olatunbosun out of the way into Turn 3 on the final lap and took back a victory that seemed to be ripped from his hands with a late caution just moments beforehand. This marks his third win in the series in 17 starts, an impressive stat to claim as he hopes to race his way back into the 2024 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series.

110 laps were scheduled at Phoenix, and if Salas wanted to go back-to-back, he would have to do so from the ninth starting spot. Las Vegas winner Kaden Honeycutt would have an even tougher battle to do so from the 33^rd starting spot. Rise eSports’ Jonathon Dulaney scored his first pole position and led the opening 31 laps, defending against the likes of Dylan Ault and 2019 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series champion Zack Novak.

Eventually, Salas got through the pack, and on a restart following the third caution of the evening, he made the move for the lead. From that point on, unless Salas made a mistake or another caution were to fly, it looked like he was due for another victory—but cautions would become a factor later on.

In total, there were five cautions throughout the night for a total of 18 caution laps. The third one at Lap 18 changed the game as Olatunbosun took the opportunity to pit for service, which meant he could go longer than most of the field if the race stayed green. It did, and the pit strategies wound up all over the board during the stint.

At Lap 50, the pit window opened, and some of the struggling drivers kicked off a wave of stops in the following laps. Salas waited until after halfway, handing the lead back to Dulaney for a moment at Lap 58 before he pulled in the next time by. Novak led a lap before he decided to pit, and on Lap 61, Olatunbosun was handed the lead with more than eight seconds over second place Wyatt Tinsley. Tinsley would eventually be swallowed up by Salas and the rest of the field before he pitted, but out front, Olatunbosun was still in control as questions about fuel mileage arose.

If the fuel could have stretched 92 laps, it looked like Olatunbosun could have pulled a major upset. Salas cut the gap to under eight seconds with 15 laps to go, but the tires had equalized between the two, so lap times were nearly identical. Seemingly, the dream scenario died with 13 laps to go as the No. 43 pulled down pit road for needed fuel. However, a caution nearly at the same time changed the game again: the lead would fall back into Olatunbosun’s hands, as he stayed on the lead lap and cycled to the lead while the rest of the field came down for service under yellow.

A fifth and final caution set up for a two-lap dash to the checkers in regulation. Olatunbosun took the white flag and played impeccable defense through Turns 1 and 2. Entering Turn 3, Olatunbosun blocked low, but Salas gave him the bumper and moved back into the lead to win. Ryan Luza snuck by to finish second once again as Olatunbosun recovered to finish third.

eNASCAR Contender iRacing Series results from Phoenix Raceway were as follows:

2023 eNASCAR Contender iRacing Series points following Round 3 are as follows:

1. Vicente Salas,115
2. Kaden Honeycutt, 104
3. Ryan Luza, 104
4. Zack Novak, 93
5. Taylor Hurst, 92
6. Jonathon Dulaney, 79
7. Briar LaPradd, 78
8. Timmy Holmes, 75
9. Kollin Keister, 72
10. Daniel Faulkingham, 70

Salas leads the standings over Luza and Honeycutt, the other clear favorites through three races in the seven-race season. The 20^th place cutoff currently belongs to Cody Byus with Ray Alfalla sitting in 21^st, but there will also be a drop to factor in when the season ends.

Up next on the 2023 eNASCAR Contender iRacing Series schedule is a Halloween date with the Lady in Black, Darlington Raceway on Tuesday, October 31. Last season, Cody Byus was the dominant force from the pole position, but it was Tucker Minter who was victorious. The action starts live at 8 p.m. ET on eNASCAR.com/live and across iRacing social media channels.

The eNASCAR Contender iRacing Series is the final step on the Road to Pro ladder before becoming eligible to race in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series. For more information on this series, visit www.iracing.com/enascar/rtp/. For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit www.iracing.com.

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