Now that qualifying is pretty much complete, here's a little more detailed analysis rather than just a simple "Who's Gonna Win?"
F1:This is definitely the most competitive Gold field in recent years. I would wager that Fraed Naught and Endeavor will be the two planes to beat this weekend. Limitless is very fast, but Justin caught a break last year to secure the win. Miss Min should be pretty close up on Justin all weekend too. Pretty sure either Fraed Naught or Endeavor will take Gold this year.
Biplane: Phantom is running fantastic this year. The race will definitely be for the rest of Gold. John D'Alessandris doesn't have 2nd spot from luck, he's a veteran biplane pilot with a fast plane. Similar to John, Jeff Rose and Eric Zine are also veteran pilots both in fast planes. Magic and Shake & Bake are the outliers. Magic hasn't seen the course in almost a decade, and this is Tommy's first shot at Biplane in the Gold-worthy Drag Racer. Both Magic and Shake & Bake have proven themselves in their past lives, it's up to the newer pilots to determine how fast they can go in their new lives.
T-6: This is lining up to be another interesting year in T-6. It looks like Midnight Miss III and Six Cat might be the old crop of Gold racers. Radial Velocity, Baron's Revenge, and now Gunslinger are out proving themselves as the baddest of the bad in the T-6 class. I think any one of these 3 have a chance to take Gold, and it would be awesome to see Gunslinger do it!
Jet: For those who care...... The Vampire is definitely looking like the plane to beat this year. American Spirit qualified much slower than usual, but that definitely doesn't mean that speed is "lost". Just Lucky and No Compromises are the other two Jets that should be shaking up the top 3. Just Lucky is yet to post a qualifying speed, but anywhere around 480-500 puts Pete in the run for the trophy. Scott qualified a little lower than he did in the old jet. There's definitely more to be seen from Scott this weekend, but I think the other 3 are going to have the better chance of a win.
Sport: Qualifying is done and we surprisingly retained a very large amount of planes to go into the weekend, the only scratch being Havoc. Some of the posted speeds are expected, others not so much. Let's run through them...
-One Moment: 398, pole position. Awesome speed from Andy. Just slightly less than Race 39's 407 last year.
-Race 39: 396, right behind Andy. Two very closely matched racers as we saw last year.
-Race 24: The most impressive Sport Gold plane for me! 379 without breaking it for a pretty new plane is impressive!
-Miss Karen II: 358 is a good number for Lynn. I think this was a relaxed speed to get a qual down and there's more in the tank.
-Mojo: 353 just behind Lynn. Great speed out of Mojo, probably about what it will stick at all weekend.
-Swiss Thunder: 341, I think the race engine might've broke on Sunday, still no confirmation of what they are running now. Is it a hybrid stocker/race engine? 341 is dead on what they qualified last year.]
-Relentless and GA1: Kevin and Karl are down toward the bottom of the list at 325 and 297 respectively.
So strategy, it looks like One Moment and Race 39 will once again be the planes to beat. Race 24 and Miss Karen II can definitely be underdogs in this one, especially if Andy and Jeff push each other too hard. However, I do think that Race 24 plans on trying to keep up with both of them. We will see if Lynn does the same. Relentless will probably increase speed each day. I know Kevin is gunning for the top spot and it might just take a few days to get up there. I would bet around 350 on Thursday's heat. Mojo, Swiss Thunder, and GA1 will probably be waiting behind for others to pop. I was under the impression that Swiss Thunder was going to be running similarly to Blue II which would've put it up in the top 3. That sadly might not be the case with the temperamental Falconer. GA1 I have no idea about. It's definitely capable of running in the top 3, but I'm not sure that Karl has everything dialed in yet (including himself) since Sport Gold is no joke as we saw with Sean yesterday.
Unlimited: Miss America had the pole at 414 for a few hours while Dreadnought sat in 2nd at 381. Dreadnought took the clock in the 2nd sessions and bumped that to 417 to take the pole. I assume top 3 get to sit out, so it should be Dreadnought, Miss America, and Argonaut taking the course on Friday for the first time. There will definitely be some close racing across the entire field this year. Miss America and Dreadnought should be interesting to watch. 414 on a cold and cloudy day is impressive for Doc. Plane sounded really healthy too. Dreadnought obviously has more to give if need be. 924 is actually very close to Argonaut this year. Typically Argonaut leaps ahead and 924 holds back, but that might not be the case this year, especially with a third place trophy on the line! Goldfinger chasing down 924 and Argonaut is possible, but unlikely. Below Goldfinger should be good racing with Speedball, Blondie, and Wee Willy II. I am expecting Wee Willy II to run a little faster than Speedball over the week, but that's up in the air from the 322 qual speed. Polly, Lady B, and Bunny should all have a good time battling it out at the back of Silver.
F1:This is definitely the most competitive Gold field in recent years. I would wager that Fraed Naught and Endeavor will be the two planes to beat this weekend. Limitless is very fast, but Justin caught a break last year to secure the win. Miss Min should be pretty close up on Justin all weekend too. Pretty sure either Fraed Naught or Endeavor will take Gold this year.
Biplane: Phantom is running fantastic this year. The race will definitely be for the rest of Gold. John D'Alessandris doesn't have 2nd spot from luck, he's a veteran biplane pilot with a fast plane. Similar to John, Jeff Rose and Eric Zine are also veteran pilots both in fast planes. Magic and Shake & Bake are the outliers. Magic hasn't seen the course in almost a decade, and this is Tommy's first shot at Biplane in the Gold-worthy Drag Racer. Both Magic and Shake & Bake have proven themselves in their past lives, it's up to the newer pilots to determine how fast they can go in their new lives.
T-6: This is lining up to be another interesting year in T-6. It looks like Midnight Miss III and Six Cat might be the old crop of Gold racers. Radial Velocity, Baron's Revenge, and now Gunslinger are out proving themselves as the baddest of the bad in the T-6 class. I think any one of these 3 have a chance to take Gold, and it would be awesome to see Gunslinger do it!
Jet: For those who care...... The Vampire is definitely looking like the plane to beat this year. American Spirit qualified much slower than usual, but that definitely doesn't mean that speed is "lost". Just Lucky and No Compromises are the other two Jets that should be shaking up the top 3. Just Lucky is yet to post a qualifying speed, but anywhere around 480-500 puts Pete in the run for the trophy. Scott qualified a little lower than he did in the old jet. There's definitely more to be seen from Scott this weekend, but I think the other 3 are going to have the better chance of a win.
Sport: Qualifying is done and we surprisingly retained a very large amount of planes to go into the weekend, the only scratch being Havoc. Some of the posted speeds are expected, others not so much. Let's run through them...
-One Moment: 398, pole position. Awesome speed from Andy. Just slightly less than Race 39's 407 last year.
-Race 39: 396, right behind Andy. Two very closely matched racers as we saw last year.
-Race 24: The most impressive Sport Gold plane for me! 379 without breaking it for a pretty new plane is impressive!
-Miss Karen II: 358 is a good number for Lynn. I think this was a relaxed speed to get a qual down and there's more in the tank.
-Mojo: 353 just behind Lynn. Great speed out of Mojo, probably about what it will stick at all weekend.
-Swiss Thunder: 341, I think the race engine might've broke on Sunday, still no confirmation of what they are running now. Is it a hybrid stocker/race engine? 341 is dead on what they qualified last year.]
-Relentless and GA1: Kevin and Karl are down toward the bottom of the list at 325 and 297 respectively.
So strategy, it looks like One Moment and Race 39 will once again be the planes to beat. Race 24 and Miss Karen II can definitely be underdogs in this one, especially if Andy and Jeff push each other too hard. However, I do think that Race 24 plans on trying to keep up with both of them. We will see if Lynn does the same. Relentless will probably increase speed each day. I know Kevin is gunning for the top spot and it might just take a few days to get up there. I would bet around 350 on Thursday's heat. Mojo, Swiss Thunder, and GA1 will probably be waiting behind for others to pop. I was under the impression that Swiss Thunder was going to be running similarly to Blue II which would've put it up in the top 3. That sadly might not be the case with the temperamental Falconer. GA1 I have no idea about. It's definitely capable of running in the top 3, but I'm not sure that Karl has everything dialed in yet (including himself) since Sport Gold is no joke as we saw with Sean yesterday.
Unlimited: Miss America had the pole at 414 for a few hours while Dreadnought sat in 2nd at 381. Dreadnought took the clock in the 2nd sessions and bumped that to 417 to take the pole. I assume top 3 get to sit out, so it should be Dreadnought, Miss America, and Argonaut taking the course on Friday for the first time. There will definitely be some close racing across the entire field this year. Miss America and Dreadnought should be interesting to watch. 414 on a cold and cloudy day is impressive for Doc. Plane sounded really healthy too. Dreadnought obviously has more to give if need be. 924 is actually very close to Argonaut this year. Typically Argonaut leaps ahead and 924 holds back, but that might not be the case this year, especially with a third place trophy on the line! Goldfinger chasing down 924 and Argonaut is possible, but unlikely. Below Goldfinger should be good racing with Speedball, Blondie, and Wee Willy II. I am expecting Wee Willy II to run a little faster than Speedball over the week, but that's up in the air from the 322 qual speed. Polly, Lady B, and Bunny should all have a good time battling it out at the back of Silver.
Comment