Chapters A variety of thoughts rushed through Viral's mind, as she pulled up at the massive house. The same one owned by her best friend, teammate and partner in crime, Akula the Changeling.
But it was out of place for her to turn up at a changeling house that had been built in the middle of nowhere, out in the state of Queensland in Australia. Why was Viral 14,540 kilometers away from her home in America, and at a very late hour? And even still, why was she even in Australia at all?
Well, ever since Equestria first appeared on Earth, the Equestrians begun to adapt to many of the popular pastimes of the humans. And that included the world of sports. And one such sport was motorsport. And Viral, Akula and their third friend, Danger Dean, had all jumped on the opportunity to showcase their talents in the world of racing cars. And they quickly proved themselves on the world stage.
Within years, all three of them had claimed many titles in the world of motorsport. Viral had managed to achieve massive success in both NASCAR and IMSA, Akula was in it with Formula One and Dean really seemed to enjoy some time in the European Endurance series. But bit by bit, all three of them saw much success and earned much money through their racing exploits.
However, a few things changed come 2022. And it all started with the 2021 Formula One season. For the first time in many years, the title battle when right down to the wire. Defending champion Lewis Hamilton and title rival, Max Verstappen were tied in points doing into Abu Dhabi. However, the race was controversial to say the least. near the end of the race, Nicholas Latifi binned his Williams into the wall and brought out the safety car with 5 laps to go. Verstappen pitted and was stuck behind 5 lapped cars. However, in a shock decision, race director Michael Masi allowed the five cars past the Safety Car, which put Verstappen right behind Lewis. And as the safety car pulled in on the very last lap, Max (who was on fresher and softer tyres) easily pulled by and won the race, becoming 2021 Formula One World Champion.
But while Red Bull celebrated, Mercedes was pissed.
They had just seen their No.1 driver get beaten by Max. Which would have been fine in most cases. But given that Max was seemingly just handed the title, Toto Wolff immediately protested the result. But out of all the Merc personnel, no-one or pony was more pissed than Akula.
Akula HATED Red Bull with a burning passion. Seeing his mentor, Sir Lewis Hamilton, lose the championship to Max and Red Bull was bad enough. But seeing a corrupt race director pretty much just handing the Dutchman the championship, he was outraged.
In a post-race press conference where both Red Bull and Mercedes were allowed, Akula went ballistic. He called out Red Bull and Masi with fiery language and explosive anger, to the point where Hamilton, Toto and Equestria Series teammate Twilight Sparkle had to physically stop him from beating Helmut Marko into a bloody pulp.
It was after that, something broke within the changeling. After what he had witnessed, he had lost all faith in the sport. And with that faith, went all his passion too. Akula was done with Formula One for good .
Moments before the cars were scheduled to go out for the Equestrian Series finale, Akula announced to the press that we would not be participating in the race. He also stated that he would leave F1 and never come back . He didn't have the passion for F1 anymore and he was done.
But he wasn't alone in leaving. Moments after Akula announced his leave, his best friend, ES title rival and Aston Martin No.1 driver, Viral Velocity said she would also not be participating in the race. Having heard the news from her mentor and friend, Sebastien Vettel, she was heartbroken. She loved F1, but seeing her best and closest friend leave the sport after the rollercoaster of a season they have had left her speechless. So, she didn't have the will to race either and left, out of respect for her best friend.
And that was that. Akula and Viral, the two best Equestrian F1 drivers ever to grace Earth, went to their trailers, packed up their stuff and left not just the circuit, but F1 entirely.
Dean stayed for the race (which he won), but he was affected by the departure of his friends. He even raced with a sticker that commemorated the leaving of his friends from the sport.
Also, the championship was decided in Abu Dhabi for the Equestrian Series. Since both drivers refused to race and the points were tied, the championship went to Viral, given she had the most wins of the season. But when it came time for the F1 Awards Ceremony one week later in Paris, where Max was given his Championship Trophy, neither Viral nor Akula showed. Viral never collected her championship trophy that night and neither could anyone contact her.
Dean decided to stay with Ferrari in the F1 Equestria series, as he wanted a championship of his own. But while Dean played his life racing for an entire day, Akula and Viral had gone dark. They didn't post on their social media anymore, they wouldn't answer their calls or emails. No one, except a select few, could reach them. But to themselves they had, decided to settle down a bit and just not participate for a full-season of racing. F1 had done a number on them and they needed some R&R.
That was the plan. But of course, sometimes those plans change.
But as the year started coming to an end, Viral was enjoying some quality time at home. She had even invited her mentor, Jeff Gordon over for dinner one time. But soon, the itch to race came back. And an opportunity to race again seemed to as Christmas/Hearth's Warming was closing in, she had received a phone call from Akula, telling her to come to his house in Australia.
The pegasus was initially confused as to why the Demon Lord needed her, but he would explain why once she got there. And with that, Viral packed up her stuff, locked up her house and took the first flight available to Brisbane. When she arrived, the sun had already set in that part of the world. Of course, due to jetlag, Viral wasn't tired at all. Within no time at all, the pegasus fetched her luggage, hopped in the rental car that Akula hired for her and began the journey to his house.
Viral soon arrived at about 3 in the morning (according to Australian time) and pulled up. Hopping out and grabbing her luggage, she trotted up to the door. Unlike many other sports starts, Viral and Akula didn't live in fancy mansions. Sure, while Akula's house was much bigger than any normal one, it wasn't enough to be considered a mansion. He didn't have massive stone lions out the front. The main door wasn't a twin door and wasn't laced with gold or silver. He didn't even have a massive hedge maze or a tennis court. In fact, the only thing that Akula did have that was like a mansion was a massive gate at the front of the house with an automatic opening function, but that was it.
Even with all the bags she carried on her, Viral was still able to raise her hoof enough to knock on the door. A few seconds later, the door opened. But it wasn't Akula who had done it, for standing inside the house in front of the mare, was Queen Chrysalis.
"Viral?" The former queen asked, half-asleep, "What are you doing here at this hour?"
Before she could answer her, Akula then appeared behind her. "Viral, you made it! So glad that you could!" He then turned to his queen, "Please, my love. I'll handle this. You just get yourself some sleep,"
Chrysalis just smiled at Akula's caring words, giving him a quick peck on the lips before retreating back upstairs to rest. With that taken care of, he then turned back to Viral. After standing around for a second, he then beckoned his friend inside. And the moment she stepped inside, her body was met with a sudden warmth that completely paralleled the cool night air of the Australian countryside.
"Just put your bags here, I'll sort them out for you later," The moment the changeling said this, Viral immediately relieved herself of said weight, carefully placing her bags on the floor.
"Yeah, thanks," Viral said, as she put all of her bags down, "It's great to see you again," She then lunged at Akula and wrapped her front hooves around him, embracing her changeling friend. Akula was initially caught off guard by the sudden squeeze, but quickly realized what was going on and returned the hug.
After a few minutes of holding each other together, the two then separated. Viral, now free of the changeling's embrace, immediately got to the chase. "Okay, now that I'm here, you mind explaining why?" She kindly asked.
"Of course, V. I always keep my promises. Follow me," Akula beckoned, beginning to walk into the lounge room, V right behind him. Passing through the room, with a nice couch and moderately sized TV above a fireplace that currently provided the house with warmth from a unearthly green flame. "How much do you know about the V8 Supercars series?" Akula asked out of nowhere.
This caught V by surprise. The V8 Supercars? What in Equestria and Earth was that? Although, saying that she didn't know it existed would be a lie. Back in her NASCAR days, she knew that Marcos Ambrose had come from the V8 series to compete in NASCAR, but other than knowing that Marcos Ambrose had raced in the series and it was held in Australia, she didn't know anything about it.
"A bit," Viral replied, not sure where her friend was going with this.
Akula let out a sigh, as he began to explain. "Okay, lemme explain. Basically, the V8 Supercars is the premier touring car championship in this part of the world. It runs under FIA regulation and is classified as an international series. Some of the best drivers in this part of the world take to this series, and even has seen a few stars of international talent cut their teeth here. Started off in the 1960s as the Australian Touring Car Championship, before becoming the V8 Supercars in the 90s. Usually, only two manufactures have maintained a duopoly over the series, those being Holden and Ford. And now, we are going into it ourselves,"
That last line really got Viral's attention, as Akula opened a door to a dark room. Akula more than cleaned up his intentions with that line, and the mare started getting idea. But there was no way that he would be planning what Viral was thinking. He wasn't THAT ambitious!
Right?
Well, Viral would soon find out. Heading down a hallway that seemed to never end, Viral gave in to her curiosity. "Okay, I gotta' know what you're up too! Can you just get to the point?"
Akula just turned to his friend and flashed a fanged smile. "Trust me. We are already there," The changeling stated, as he flipped a nearby switch. There was a sudden flickering, soon followed by a harsh hum as massive columns of light pierced into the darkness. And out of the blackness, came the kicker of Akula's plan.
Two cars sat at the very far edge of the tiled room. But these weren't just any cars, they were racing cars . Specifically, they were both Holden Commodore ZB V8 Supercars . But the liveries of the two cars... one was bright red with blue flames and the other was a darker red with black Spades all over. There was something about them that was familiar to her. But what really triggered her memory was the numbers placed on the cars.
24 and #98, respectively.
Viral froze up upon seeing them. She knew those numbers. Those were the numbers she and Akula had used in F1.
"No, you're not thinking of..." Viral began,
"Yes, I am," Akula finished for her, nonchalantly. Viral just slowly trotted up to the two cars, her mind not comprehending what she was seeing. Sure enough, the cars were real. And to make things ever more real, on the #24 car, on the rear-side windows was the word 'VELOCITY'. Her last name.
It was clear that Akula was serious. Having said that, Akula was always serious anyway.
"These are our rides," Akula explained, as he approached the shell-shocked pegasus, "I've entered our own team into the 2022 V8 Supercars championship for this season. You and me will be the drivers and we will be racing for the full season,"
"I already see a problem with this plan," Viral suddenly interrupted, "Yeah, you've got the cars and the team, but what about everything else? Where's our sponsorship, our pit crew? Hell, I'm don't even have an idea of what it's like to drive a V8 Supercar!"
"Don't worry about that, V," Akula responded, placing a hoof over her muzzle, "I have that all sorted out. As for your lack of experience, I'm going to take you to my local track for some practice," He then took his hoof off of Viral's muzzle, as the pegasus in question began to settle down.
And Viral then had a thought. Of course Akula would have this all planned out. Why wouldn't he? He was always the careful one of the trio.
Upon realizing what exactly was his reason for calling her all the way to the land down under, Viral took a second to ponder the idea. Akula had fully banked on getting her as the second driver, enough that he had already put her name on the car. She couldn't back out on him, he wouldn't have done all this if he didn't trust her as a driver and a friend. Plus, she was always willing to give something new a try. After all, she didn't know how to drive a Formula 1 car and in less than a year she was one of the hottest names on the grid.
"Okay, you got the cars, you got the team and you got me interested. But there is one very serious issue. How do we expect to run a two car team full time without any sponsorship?"
"We've got a few small-scale sponsors curtsey of me, but a large-scale title sponsor would do wonders, but let's deal with that later. So, You're in?"
"I'm in." Viral raised a hoof up, to which Akula eagerly returned the gesture.
"Knew you couldn't turn it down, but you've had a long journey and it's really late. We should probably rest before heading out to the track."
The next dayQueensland Raceway , 11:00 am
Viral, Akula, and Chrysalis had brought the cars a few miles down the road to the track by semi and had just finished unloading them. This track that they had arrived at was a very nice track for Viral to learn how to operate how to drive a V8 Supercar, given the track was very short. The average time to complete a lap in a Supercar was just over a minute, only a few seconds longer than the shortest lap in the whole season.
Now that she was fully invested into the idea, Viral was eager to get inside the Holden and see just how a V8 Supercar operated. Akula and Chrysalis rolled her #24 Commodore into the pit lane and quickly set up the garage area with their magic. The #98 Commodore soon joined the garage and everything was ready.
Oddly enough, her Holden was a right sided car. This was something she was not used to, due to being an American. Thankfully, Akula had been driving on the right the whole of his life, so she hoped she could adjust quickly. Akula helped her get strapped into the seat, and with some assistance from Chrysalis was wheeled out on the starting grid. Shortly after, Akula was out right next to her.
"How you feeling V?" Akula asked over the radio.
"Aside from my seating position, it's something I'm well used to from other places." Viral replied, still coming to grips with the feeling of sitting on what was (to her at least) the wrong side of the car.
"Yeah, different being on the right side of the car like the rest of us Aussies. But I'm sure it will be easy for you to adjust. Everything is just on the opposite side." Akula then talked her through how to operate a V8 Supercar, from the shifter and the pedals and even every button on the steering wheel. Essentially, it was mostly the same as the Ferrari 488 she drove while in IMSA. Except, everything was the wrong way round.
"Okay. put the car in gear and let's go! Remember, pull back to shift up, push forward to shift down," Akula told her, firing up his Commodore and pulling in front of her. Viral just let a breath out, as she fired up the 5.0L naturally aspirated V8 engine in the front. The loud roar of the engine was almost deafening, had Viral not been wearing her helmet. Shifting into first, and gingerly, she poured on the gas and accelerated down the Dick Johnson Straight, being easy with the controls. She knew that she was controlling a 650 bhp RWD monster she had no experience in, so she was just going to take it easy for a bit.
It didn't take long for her to complete a lap around Queensland Raceway, thanks to a map of the track on her steering wheel stopping her from getting lost on the track. Once she was around, the tyres were warmed and she was starting to get comfortable with the car. So, he began to pick up speed and follow Akula as he began to get to race pace.
A few more laps around and V was closing in on Akula. But she was never truly able to reel him in. But she wasn't expecting to be faster than him at all, so this was perfectly normal. The changeling knew more about this sport than her and he even had much more experience in Supercars than the pegasus did, him being from Australia and all.
After a while, Akula checked in with her via radio. "How you feeling, V?"
"God, I may be used to this now, but this is just not normal for me. It's weird. Every single time I try to reach for the shifter, I keep thinking it's on my right, when it's on my left. Everytime I try to reach for it, I got for my right, then realize it's on my left and overrev my car before I upshift. Costing me valuable seconds," Viral explained.
Akula didn't reply for a few seconds, but he then thought of something. "Hmmmm... Okay, try this. When you are going down the straights, keep your left hoof on the shifter and your right on the wheel. When you need to shift up, use the hoof that's not on the wheel to shift up or down. And when going through a corner, use both hooves and remember to put your left back on the shifter. Just do that until you are used to having the shifter on the left side, okay? Worked for me the whole time while we were in America for the Equestrian Cup,"
Viral thought for a second and decided it was worth a shot. She placed her hoof on shifter to her left and kept her right hoof on the wheel going down the straights and downshifting while breaking. And after a few more laps, it actually seemed to be working. The delays between her and her upshifts were gone and she began closing in on Akula's time.
After a while, she was starting to get the hang of her Commodore. But then, a surprising voice came in over her radio. "Alright, V. Bring it in this lap, need to give the bugs some pit practice,"
Viral was shocked. She knew that accent. "Neon, is that you?"
"Haha, you were expecting somepony else?"
"Great to have you on the team, Neon! Don't know how I would cope without you,"
Viral followed the radio instructions and pulled into the pits, slowing down to a safe speed of 60 kph. Then, she saw their pit box. Every single member of the pit crew were changelings, unreformed ones, all dressed in pit crew fire suits and helmets. Most held pneumatic wrenches with two others holding a fuel hose.
Viral pulled into the box and came to a stop. Even while the car was still moving, the changelings on the tyres reached out and undid all four nuts as the car came to a stop. As the car did, another changeling inserted a spike into a slot in the car's window. The moment it went it, multiple pneumatic jacks in the ground inside the box raised the car up off the ground, allowing the undone wheels to be easily pulled off. Once the wheels were clear, the changelings on the wheels grabbed a fresh set of tyres and sliding it back onto the spindel, using the guns to tighten the nuts back onto the car. Once all of the tyres were back on, the spike man released the spike and dropped the car back onto the ground as Viral then raced off back out of the pits.
All of that in just under 10 seconds.
The little training session went on for quite a while, Viral getting more and more used to the 500 horsepower, RWD Supercar she would be driving. But still, she was having trouble. And it was time for her to move on. Akula pulled off the track, much to Viral's horror.
"Okay, V. Show me what you can do with that thing! Show me a few solo laps!" Akula spoke to her, pulling into the pits and garage. But now, V was very nervous. Her one guide around the track was now gone. And she began to lose her concentration multiple times and ended up binning her Commodore into the gravel trap at Turn 1.
Viral could only just sit there in her seat, controlling her breathing to calm herself down. "V? V, are you okay?" Akula asked, genuine concern all within his tone.
"Y-yeah... I'm okay," V replied.
It only took a few minutes for the changelings to dig Viral and her Commodore out of the gravel and bring her back to the garage. Akula helped her friend out of her car, as the mechanics got to work fixing up her car. "V, what happened?" He asked.
Viral just sighed. "I couldn't handle it when you pulled off the track. I don't know what came over me... but I just couldn't hold my own alone. I'm sorry,"
Akula wrapped a hoof around Viral. "Hey, no need to be sorry about something you can't control. We'll work on getting your confidence over the coming weeks. We are going to do this together, mark my words," Akula gave Viral a quick hug, which Viral easily accepted.
After that, the changelings began to pack up the cars and equipment back into the trailers, hoping to call it a day for now. Almost everyone had hopped back into their cars and the truck and they were ready to head home. Well, almost everyone...
Just as Viral was hoping to get back home and hop back into the trailer, Neon stopped her at the door. And she did not look happy with her one bit. "So," She spat at her pegasus friend, "Where has your crimson ass been for last month?"
Queensland Raceway
"So, where has your crimson ass been the last month?"
Viral had to take a step back, not expecting Neon to meet her face to face right at the door. But, she softened up. This was going to come eventually, she figured it was best to deal with it now rather than later.
"I missed you..." Was all that Viral could get out, before Neon cut her off.
"Well if you missed me Sheila, why didn't you tell me you were coming out of retirement?" Neon asked her, with a clear hostile tone in her voice.
"Neon, I'm sorry. I needed..." V tried to explain.
But Neon wasn't having any of it and she cut her off again. "Viral, do you have any idea how much my life relies on what you do? I fully committed my entire life to you when we met. I once thought about being a driver too, but I doubled back and became an engineer. And I was happy with doing that cause it led me to becoming partnered with you." Neon turned and let her into the trailer. "Now believe me, we have a lot to catch up on. And you have a lot of things to answer for."
Viral breathed. She knew that what she had done was controversial, but she knew it was right. "Neon, I wasn't trying to avoid you, I swear. I didn't want this. I was worried that what happened would make the fanbase blow up and I didn't want anyone else caught in that. It was my decision, it was respect."
"Viral, while I understand why, trust me, every person between the ages of 14 and 20 on Twitter are having a pissing contest, but there are some things you need to share. Do you know what it's like having your closest friend vanish into thin air and not even say goodbye?" Neon began to shed tears and her voice began to break. "I thought I'd lost you. I didn't know what to do without you."
Neon continued to let out her frustration, not even letting Viral get a word in to explain herself for what she had done. "I was fortunate enough to have an engineering background from when we met in Arden. I was actually able to hold something together back in England. Believe we I was about to take up an offering from McLaren. You know how much of a dream that was for me before we met? Working for McLaren."
Viral could only look off to the side in embarrassment. Neon was quick to put on more pressure.
"Not much of that pretty voice wants to come out today, huh?"
Finally, Viral let out a sigh and made an attempt to explain herself.
"I knew you were going to get heated about this, but I didn't tell you cause I didn't want you to be caught up in the commotion. I've never even been able to work without you. I spent 4 years in America without you, and while I did well, I never hit my peak until we met. Neon, I would never want to race again without you in my ear.
"Oh that's sweet, you're really lucky then. I only agreed to show up because you were here."
The unicorn pressed her snout against the pegasus' own.
"If it wasn't for what we've done together, I wouldn't want anything to do with you."
"And yet, here you are." Akula stated flatly, coming from the front having heard the commotion. "And I'm glad that both of you are here, cause I wouldn't want one without the other…"
Both mares took their eyes off each other to turn to the changeling that had entered as he continued.
"After all, I haven't met a closer Driver and Engineer combo in my entire career. It's like you said Neon, you both have done a lot together. So, right now, we all need to put what happened behind us and look forward. More importantly, I need you two to be the tandem I know you both can be."
Both of them were silent for some time, and it was Neon who broke the silence first with a deep regretful sigh.
"He's right, we've got to find that magic again."
"Agreed…" Viral added, turning to Akula. "And I know we can."
Akula mustered a toothy grin, satisfied that his two puzzle pieces fit together just as he needed them to.
"You don't suppose we should…catch up on lost time?" Viral suggested. "Share a little of what we've been doing these last few weeks?"
"I dunno about that, Viral. All I have to share about the last weeks is nothing pretty..."
Many weeks ago... 13th December, 2021 Etihad Airways Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi
An air of uncertainty and dread hung over the Yas Marina circuit. It was the final race of the Formula One season and it was all down to the wire. Akula vs Viral Velocity, best friend vs best friend for the World Driver's Championship. It had been that way the whole season.
However, following the controversial ending to the main event where Max Verstappen won the World Championship under dubious circumstances, everyone's eyes were on Akula. Because the way he reacted when Max crossed the line first... Some would say it was downright assault, some saw it as a venting of anger.
The moment Max won... Akula had snapped, walked right up to the Red Bull pit box... and attacked Christian Horner. He grabbed the Red Bull team principal from behind, pulled him out of his chair, threw him to the tarmac and wailed on him with serious ferocity. It took the whole Red Bull, Mercedes and Aston Martin pit crews to separate the enraged changeling from Horner and even then they were struggling to keep Akula from beating Horner to within an inch of his life.
Christian came out of the scrap with a black eye, a broken nose, multiple cuts on his face and a few minor fractures in his jaw. And Akula came out with a shot passion for racing, sore and bloody hooves and a $200 million fine from the FIA. After that, Akula stormed into his trailer, locked the door and refused to come out.
And there he stayed for a long while. No one could convince him to come out. Not Bono, not Wolff, not Lewis or even Viral, his own best friend, could get him to emerge from his trailer. He didn't even attend the pre-race press conference which he was required to attend, being in contention for the title.
Everyone was hedging bets on what was going to happen next. That Akula would race and he would beat Viral convincingly. That Akula would try to ruin Viral's race and take her out on purpose. Or that he would also take as many petty revenges on Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash during the race as he could to ruin their final race with Red Bull before season's end.
However, no-one was expecting what actually played out to happen. That he would quit the final race 20 minutes before the start of the race and pull out of his contract to race for Williams in F1 next season. Of all the people and ponies it hit the hardest, Neon was definitely one of them.
Neon was fully expecting Akula to race. She had been friends with Viral long enough to get to know Akula, she thought she could know what Akula was going to do. The news that Akula had walked away shocked her to her core. But she was more worried how Viral would react to this. She paced the Aston garage back and forth, back and forth, not sure what to do.
She didn't have the heart to tell Viral that Akula had walked away, in fear that it would cause her to give up on her best shot of a World Championship since 2019. And so, the #24 Aston Martin remained on the grid, now on pole, given that the Mercedes of Akula was originally on pole.
But then... moments later, the engineers got a shocking message... 'Pack it up, we're not racing.'
This came as a serious shock to Neon. What did they mean, they were not racing? Then... it hit her. She mindlessly walked to see Sebastien Vettel and Lawrence Stroll, asking them where Viral was. It was then that they gave her the message... Viral had walked as well. She wasn't going to race without her best friend.
Neon was horrified. She tried to call Viral... but got no response. Again and again and again and again, she tried to call Viral. But was only met with her ringtone. But there was one question on everyone's lips... where were they?
Little did everyone know, Viral and Akula had disappeared to the airport and were catching flights back home. They had nowhere else to go at the time... but home. And the moment they stepped onto their respective planes and took off from Abu Dhabi... they vanished.
"There," Viral finished up her story to Neon, "Now you know."
Neon... she was speechless. Almost inconsolable. She had given up on a career with McLaren for this, a chance to be with Viral again. But her explanation of the events only weeks prior only gave her more questions. "Viral, I love you like a sister I never had. But for Luna's sake, why didn't you ever call me back? Why did you keep me in the dark about this?"
Viral hung her head. She knew that probably wasn't the right thing to do, leaving her friend in the dark about what was going on. But what had happened, happened. There was nothing she could do to fix that. "I... I wasn't in my right mind... I just wanted to be alone, but I knew it was wrong to leave you in the dark... I am so sorry..."
Neon grabbed ahold of Viral's shoulders, looking deep into her eyes. "Listen, Viral. What you did was wrong. You should have at least told me what was going on. I would have understood."
Viral now had tears in her eyes. She knew what she did wasn't the smartest thing. She wished she could make things better. But what could she do? She could not go back in time. What happened, happened. There was nothing they could do.
It was at this moment when Akula stepped in. "Neon. Listen to me. We all did things that day that we regret. I should know. But it's best that we forget about all the mistakes we made and move on with our lives. We have something new and fresh to get back into the swing of racing again and I would hate to do with without my two friends by my side. Let's just let what we did go, look and focus to the future."
That lit a fire back under the mares. The changeling was right. This was something new. A whole new series, in a whole new set of cars, on a whole new set of track in a whole new country for them to travel around. It was time to let bygones be bygones and get back to doing what they loved.
Akula called them in, raising a hoof. The two mares placed their hooves on his. And Akula smiled. It was time for them to do this. And do this right.
3 months later...
3 long months passed since Akula and Viral met once again and began to plan their start in the Supercars Championship. They had the cars, they had the drivers and they had the money. All they needed was everything else. First off, a team. Now, while no teams had any open seats for them, that wasn't going to be a problem.
The pair had already decided they were going to do this with their own team. And so, on the eve of Christmas... Akula and Viral Velocity, 2019 and 2021 Formula One Equestria Series Champions respectively, established AKV Motorsports, their own personal team. A team they would run and drive for. The two top Equestrian drivers were now Owner-Drivers.
Next, was team personnel. That wasn't a problem either. Akula and Chrysalis' own spawn of changelings would man the team for now, until more personnel could be found. But for now, it was good enough and the bugs seemed to be very good at their jobs.
However, then there was a bit of a bigger problem. Sponsorships. You see, Akula and Viral's personal sponsors were not very happy about them suddenly cutting ties with Formula One and abandoning their championship fights and they had all pretty much cut ties with them and now, AKV Motorsports were unsponsored and running completely out of pocket. They needed some way to get some new sponsors to sign and fast before their plans were sunk before they even began.
So, in order to attract some attention back to them and their little Supercars venture, Akula and Viral began to participate in a few one-off races around the world to catch some attention, sign some sponsors and make some money. Thankfully, the start of the Supercars season wasn't until March, so they had plenty of time to get into some events. AKV Motorsports hit the ground running with appearances in the Dakar Rally, the 24 Hours of Daytona and much later... the Daytona 500.
And for a pair of washed up F1 rejects... they did shockingly well. The Dakar Rally went well enough, having to run the event unsponsored, with an old Toyota Hilux DKR and not the best equipment. But even still, their talent and skill showed, as out of 73 finishers... they managed to place 15th overall in the Cars category. Not bad for a pair of "privateers". Then, in the 24 Hours of Daytona, they began to find their form again. Racing for themselves, but being backed up money and personnel-wise by Team Penske, the pair were able to finish 1st in the GTD class. By now, sponsors were rolling in and even still, they were not done.
As they chilled a bit in Florida after the 24 hour race, they were contacted by Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan, the owners of 23XI Racing, a relatively new team in the NASCAR Cup Series. They were impressed by their performance at the 24 Hour race and they wanted to sign them up to a one-race deal for them to race at the Daytona 500. The two friends jumped at the chance and accepted. This would be their last race before heading to Australia to begin their Supercars season.
And driving for 23XI Racing, driving the #98 and #33 Toyota Camrys respectively, alongside Kurt Busch and Bubba Wallace, they did very well. They rode in the Top 10 all day, putting in some consistent laps and Viral and Akula managed to finish 3rd and 4th respectively, and managed to help Bubba to a 2nd place finish, behind race winner, Austin Cindric. But still, that was very impressive. Now, the sponsor issue was solved.
When they got back to Australia, they had received multiple sponsorship contracts. Viral had chosen to stick with Axalta as her title sponsor, happy to have her favourite personal sponsor back. However, with Akula and his personal sponsor, Monster Energy... there was an issue. You see, Monster Energy was already signed with another driver to be their title sponsor, so Akula had to look somewhere else. Thankfully, he found another he liked and signed title sponsorship to the flagship Australian airline, Qantas Airways.
Now, all that was left was some promotional material before the season kicked off. And that was easily handled. Just some nice photos of their car liveries and themselves to look good for the newspapers, Youtube videos and social media posts. Those three months they had since they started this plan had flown by... and it was time for the first round of the season.
Sydney Motorsports Park, Sydney, New South Wales Repco Supercars Championship Round 1, Sydney SuperNight
This was it. Akula and Viral walked through the paddock of the Sydney track, readying themselves for the first practice sessions of the series. They had a lot to learn about their cars and they needed some mileage to learn as much about the cars in the short twin practice sessions they had.
Akula and Viral were walking through the paddock of the race track. The sight was overwhelming. There were people everywhere, drivers, pit crew, engineers, even eager fans. The sight was eerily reminiscent of their time in F1... but then again, pretty much all other motorsports were like this, so that wasn't too much of a worry.
"Holy hell..." Viral exclaimed, noticing the sheer number of people, "This place is lively!"
"Goes to show how popular this sport is with us locals, V." Akula explained. "The Supercars are the top flight of motorsport here in Australia. Those who don't waste their lives trying to make something of themselves in Europe in open-wheelers are here, watching the best Australasia has to offer."
Soon enough, they began encountering some of their fellow drivers. Most of them fellow Australians, with a select few New Zealanders, or Kiwis, as Akula and some of the others called them. However, there was one driver who caught their attention. It was another Kiwi. And he was dressed in Red Bull Ampol attire. He also had a bit of a bushy beard and wore a cap to hide his somewhat balding hair.
Viral was a bit concerned. She immediately thought Akula was going to snap and attack, because of the Red Bull branding. However, that concern became confusion when Akula was actually smiling at this gentleman. "Ay! Yo, Shane!" He called out, getting the man's attention. And her fear settled as the man smiled back and the two embraced like a pair of best friends.
"You two... know each other?" Viral questioned.
Akula took a second from hugging the Kiwi driver, and began introductions. "Heh, we sure do. Viral Velocity, may I introduce you to two-time and current defending Supercars champion and one-time Bathurst 1000 winner, Shane van Gisburgen. Shane, this is Viral Velocity. My best friend from America."
"Nice to meet you, Shane." Viral greeted, extending a hoof to shake his hand.
"Likewise," Shane replied, taking her hoof and shaking it.
"Me and Shane have known each other for a while now. Ever since I met him during my time in Aussie F4 in 2015. We kicked off, became good friends. I've stayed in contact with him for a while now. Hell, he's the reason we were able to get those two Commodores we're racing in right now."
Viral was amazed. She did wonder where Akula did get those cars from. Akula smiled and took her aside, having done all the introductions needed. "Alright, now that you've met him. There's something I need to explain. You've got a lot to learn about this sport and the teams. This isn't an easy field to go against, every single person on this field is from here or New Zealand, they know the tracks we are going to drive like the back of their hands. Being the only non-Oceanic driver here, you have a lot of ground to cover. But I wanna go over who will be the main people to keep our eyes on for this season, okay?"
Viral nodded, as Akula took her on a walk of the paddock.
Beaurepaires Sydney SuperNight Practice 1
"Rain..." Viral noted with a devious smirk across her face. She had stepped out for a moment to check out the weather, having heard reports of storms across the east coast. If there was one thing that always got her hopes up, it was the wet stuff. The great equalizer. Car performance? Throw it out the window. When the rain falls, it's all about the driver. And Viral always saw herself as a rain master. A Equestrian/American rainmeister if you will.
She found her way back to the garage where the team was preparing the cars while the Aussie Racing Cars were qualifying. "How's it looking? Wets?" A voice asked her as Viral looked over her Commodore. It was Vectora, the lead mechanical engineer for Viral's #24.
"Definitely, not a storm so much but it's not gonna clear up before we head out." Viral replied to her.
The blue changeling simply nodded and continued to work, she was an excited young drone but at the same time was a very dedicated worker.
Viral felt a pat on her left shoulder, turning around to see Neon with her usual sarcastic grin. "Enjoy your nature walk?" She joked.
"Ah well the weather didn't dampen my spirits." Viral joked back. Neon couldn't help but snort at that pun.
"I hate you, that was absolutely horrible."
"Yes, it was." Was all Viral could respond with, as the pair shared a chuckle and Viral moved along to get ready.
Viral had to quickly get into her racing gear, haven taken it off to check out the weather. By the time she got back, Akula was already good to go and both of the cars were ready to be rolled out to pit lane. Race Control was just finishing up corralling the Aussie Racing Cars before they gave they all clear.
"Cutting it a little close there V, you get lost in the showers?" Akula remarked knowing very well that Viral would have been looking forward to a wet session.
"You could say that. Maybe I was just excited to get out there and couldn't keep myself cramped up in a box all day."
The #24 Axalta and #98 Qantas ZB Commodores had been through several days of testing. Yet, this would be the first time the AKV Motorsports Holden's would see testing in the wet. It was going to be a learning experience, but it was one they were both looking forward to as they got strapped in and their mechanics rolled their cars out onto the lane.
To their right was Tim Slade and the Cooldrive entry, the only car on the grid all on its lonesome as a single entry team. To their left were all the other teams that had a year of Constructors Championship points to set their slot on the pit lane. The newly named Premi-Air Racing were their neighbors in the pit lane, with the #22 and #76 Commodores of Chris Pither and Garry Jacobson respectively.
They had to sit in silence for a while, but it wasn't long before Race Control gave the word to open pit exit beginning the first practice session of the season.
Neon waited until most of the cars ahead of them had exited the pits before she and Viral's car control engineer gave the signal to leave. She was followed by Garry Jacobson's Subway #78 and Akula tucked in behind them.
They were taking it easy as they exited pit lane onto turn two. No one knew how the track conditions were, so most teams including AKV Motorsports were playing it safe with the wet tires on their cars.
As much as Viral would have wanted to start pushing immediately, in these conditions she knew it was about control and flow. Finding the right lines and being easy with the throttle and brakes. The conditions could improve or worsen at any time.
But as it stood, the track felt like it still had something to give in germs of grip. Viral still eased the car around for her outlap, but she wanted to at least see how far she could take before she needed to give back.
She lifted a bit early for turn one, not exactly pushing the car towards the outside curb but going just fast enough to roll the car through the apex. Turn 2 was a similar story. Earlier braking, and not pushing the car as hard as she would normally. The car responded very nicely as she eased her way through turns 3 through 6, coming down the hill for turn 7 she felt just a little front end slip so she tapped the brakes ever so slightly to get it to turn sharper.
Turn 8 was a very slow corner, and she had a tiny oversteer moment on the exit as she went over the hill. Turns 9 and 10 were going to be a problem later, so she took it slow and hugged the inside as far as she could without touching the curb. Smooth on the power coming out so she didn't have a repeat of turn 8 and she crossed the line for her first timed lap.
"First lap slots us into P7. That's a good start. I imagine pace will pick up as everyone gets settled in."
Akula finished his first lap not long after, slotting into a respectable P12. It didn't take long for the team as a whole to notice that the track was at a really strange crossover point. The track was seemingly dry in most areas, but there were also noticeable wet spots. Turn 11 especially had a river of water draining across the entire length of the track.
Not too far ahead of them, Shane van Gisburgen and Triple Eight had taken a gamble to see if the track could handle dry tires. He got around nicely until he made his way to turn 11. He entered the corner wide, and when he passed over the first river the front tires slipped. He understeered into the grass, which then caught his right side tires and spun him with no chance of holding onto it.
Viral and Akula were in turn 4 at the time, when they were made aware of Shane's spin. Viral was surprised that anyone had opted to go for slick tires… while Akula was just surprised to hear that Shane had spun at all, let alone this early into the season. Or as to why Triple Eight thought that dry tyres was a good idea to gamble on so early.
Akula made an easy move inside Garry Jacobson's #76 just as they went through turn 8. It gave him some clean air with Viral having picked up the pace a little bit.
"Just an update, Shane was running slicks when he spun." Chrysalis informed him.
"That makes more sense, does anyone else have slicks?"
"James Courtney, but I imagine he'll be changing his mind soon. We'll stay on the wets for now."
With room to pick up the pace a bit, Akula managed to bank a lap that was good for P8. He may have been confident with his car in the dry, but wasn't yet ready to push it in the current conditions. Viral meanwhile was mixing laps with the front runners early. She posted a time good enough for 3rd behind David Reynolds and Chaz Mostert.
She was about to push for a third lap when the #4 BJR Commodore of Jack Smith went wide in turn one ahead of her, and she backed off to let him rejoin the track. At that point she decided to back off a bit and eventually came back into the box.
Akula, meanwhile, wanted to get some more time on track to focus on a setup for a wet track. After a few more laps, he could only marginally improve before deciding to join Viral in pit lane. As he made his way in, The #11 Shell Mustang of Will Davison put up a new Fastest time.
In the garage there was some talk about the weather, while the track itself was not yet ready for slicks as evidenced by the spin from Shane, everyone was aware that it was no longer raining. After some deliberation, both of the AKV Motorsports cars swapped from wet tires to slicks, and waited for someone else to make a move.
The moment they waited for came with 13 minutes left in the session, as Shane posted the first 1:38 of the weekend on a set of slick tires. Immediately, Viral was on her way out and it didn't take long for Akula and others to follow. Before they even exited the pit lane, Will Davison further improved on Shane's time.
With ten minutes left in the session, everyone had minimal time to get some flying laps in the dry. Shane took the fastest time away from Davison, then Todd Hazelwood put together a fast lap of his own.
Viral managed to string together a lap that brought her back to 5th, but it didn't last long as the lap times kept tumbling. With under 5 minutes to go it was a race to see who could throw together a lap.
Just ahead of Akula, Nick Percat slid out of turn 11 which made him back out of his lap as Cameron Waters checked up just in front of him. The changeling cursed to himself as he got back into rhythm. He'd have time to put together one more lap to get an idea of where he sat.
Viral for her effort was finding pace of her own, putting together three green sectors to go 7th Fastest. Both of them had time enough to do one more lap.
Mostert went fastest, then Winterbottom one upped him. With less than a minute left the laps were tumbling down and it was do or die for both Viral and Akula. Viral completed her final lap just after the checkered flag and jumped up into 6th, but was quickly checked out to 10th as other cars improved.
Akula was in turn 8 when Viral completed her lap, having once again put up two personal best sectors. He took it easy through turn 11 which was still patchy wet, but eventually finished a lap that was good enough to slot into 6th place at the flag. After all had settled down, Viral had dropped to 14th.
For just the first practice session of the season, it was a ripper. Viral had been among the fastest when the track was wet, but still had some learning to do. Once the track dried, the more experienced drivers adjusted much better. Akula conversely was middle of the pack when the rain was falling, but unlike Viral had quickly found his form once a dry line had formed.
After a quick moment to do practice starts with the rest of the field, the team met in the garage to discuss the data and prepare for practice two, which would be later that day.
Author's Note
Special thanks to RDgamer321 for help in writing the racing chapters of this story!
Beaurepaires Sydney SuperNight Practice 2
“Weather is quite volatile today, isn’t it?” Viral noted.
“That’s how it is in Australia. One moment it’s clear skies, the next they open up the floodgates, and it can just as quickly dry up. Mother Nature just doesn't like being consistent with us.”
Just as they had pulled in from practice, the rain had started falling yet again. Calling the weather was like flipping a coin. Then, just as every team was preparing to get more wet laps in, the sun came out and the track was sun dried just like that. The good news was that it gave Viral and Akula more time to set up their cars in favorable conditions, but that of course could change at any moment. Nonetheless, the pair retreated to their respective cars and waited for the all clear.
It was Akula that led Viral out of the garage this time, right behind the two Truck Assist Racing Holdens of Todd Hazelwood and Jack Le Brocq.
“There is definitely a dry line here, but turns 4, 5, and especially turn 11 are wet off the racing line.” Akula was wisely monitoring track conditions as the lead car, though Viral herself was acutely aware of them.
As Akula ran some laps, Viral did her best to keep up with him. Matching his lines as best as she could to get an idea of where to brake and get on the power. Akula did stretch away from her as they completed their first lap however, his first lap slotting 6th fastest at the time with Viral’s first lap only 15th.
Viral wanted to run more laps than she did in first practice, to get a better understanding of the track. Following Akula would help with that, just like it helped when they were testing, but being able to lap the track in clean air was even more valuable if she could do it.
After a few laps to find her way around, her confidence in the car grew ever more. So too did the track begin to dry up further and further, and while Viral was mentally mapping her way around the circuit Akula was busy seeing how far he could push it. At one point he was the fastest car on track and one of the first drivers to do a lap in the 1:34 range before Andre Heimgartner bumped him off the top spot.
“Heimgartner just went to the top, 1:34.6. 1:34.6.”
“Track is definitely getting better, could use a little more front end bite, the front is washing out at 8 and 11.”
“Copy, pit in this time and we’ll see what we can work on.”
Viral was also finding a lot of improvement herself, having found a good rhythm. She managed to climb her way up to P8 and was growing comfortable with the car. However she was still getting annoyed by turn 1, and it was where she was losing most of her time.
“Any way we can get a little more bite in turn 1, I’m having to let off the throttle mid corner to keep the car from pushing wide.”
“I think we have some options, Akula’s coming in this lap anyway so we’ll run some things with him and Chrysalis. See what they think might help.” Neon suggested.
Just as both of them were preparing to box and adjust their setups, the #4 Commodore of Jack Smith carted himself wide at turn two and had failed to back out of the wet grass on the outside of the track. This in turn red flagged the session just as Cameron Waters in the #6 Monster Energy Tickford Mustang posted a new fastest time. With the red flag stopping the clock at just under half an hour it gave them some time to discuss and adjust.
While the recovery vehicle pulled Jack Smith out of the grass, the team got to work seeing what they could adjust to help Viral and Akula find more time around the track.
When the cars were released again, Viral went out in front of Akula. Along with the adjustments to the cars, both of them out on new Hard tires onto their cars. They had been using the same set of tires they had warmed in during first practice at the very end, so they figured it was a good time to try a fresh set. They were saving their Super Soft or "Blue" tires for qualifying and the race.
Most of the other teams went on blue tires though, so both of them began to fall down the timing board. With most of the field putting on their softer rubber, both of them only did an outlap before coming back to change to the softer compound themselves. Better to conserve the hard tires they did have.
It didn't take long to put on the new tires, and they were off. Viral once again leading as they started. As they started their first flying lap, Viral pushed her car wide in turn one and stepped out with the back end. She kept it out of the grass, but cursed herself as she made way for Akula and his flying lap.
Akula then pushed up into the top 5 on his first lap, while Viral warmed up her tires to make a second attempt. Akula also did a second lap, doing a personal best in the first sector and setting a new fastest second sector before setting the fastest time of the session.
Viral's second go through turn 1 was better, and a personal best in sector one and two. She was also much braver than before in sector three and set the fastest third sector to go 4th fastest.
The pace was shoeing with the adjustments they had made, but the conditions weren't quite optimal thanks to the weather. There were still patches of wet spots across the track which was diluting the pace.
As both of them went back into the pits, Chaz Mostert found his way to the top of the leaderboard, so there was still time to find while the track was drying. As it stood though, both of them were happy with their setups.
Akula got out of his Holden to go talk with Viral, who was still sitting in her car with her helmet on.
"It's still wet between 8 and 9, and turn 11 is still pretty dangerous. I imagine it can still be faster if the track dries fully." Akula noted, Viral nodding in response.
Out on track, David Reynolds did a Speedway drift at turn 11 which caught the attention of the members of the garage watching the live feed. He went 2nd fastest behind Mostert.
"I think I might take a crack at one more good lap." Viral stated.
"Knock yourself out V, just don't park it off the track."
With 4 minutes left, Viral went out to do one more lap before the death of the session. She came out on track right behind Cam Waters who set a new fastest first sector. She watched as he nearly dumped it at the end of sector 2, but followed him as they made their way up to the line. Waters jumped up to 2nd.
He continued on, Viral tucked in behind him. She did a personal best in sector one, and Waters made way for her in turn 4 as she continued on. She made a marginal improvement on her second sector time as well, but as she went Anton De Pasquale jumped wide at turn 1 and drove all the way across the grass into turn 2.
"Anton's off at two, keep pushing to see if you can beat the flag."
With Neon's encouragement, she threw the car around turns 9 and 10. Fast through 11, and get a bit loose on the exit before powering down to the line. She improved to 7th fastest just as the red flag came out.
"We beat the flag, you're P7 now."
Her time was just behind Akula's, after Waters, Pye, and Will Brown had gone faster ahead of them. She made her leisurely drive to the pits, past the beached Pasquale, and as she entered the pits Race Control called the session.
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Beaurepaires Sydney SuperNight Qualifying 1 (+ Top Ten Shootout)
The track had completely dried overnight, even if it hadn’t several feeder series such as the Toyota 86’s and Touring Car Masters would have rubbered in the track regardless. The first qualifying session of the year was fast approaching, and all of AKV Motorsports were hard at work preparing the cars. Yesterday’s practice was good on paper, but the track was damp from rain and humidity at the time. Now, with the surface dried and previous series rubbering in the surface, it was going to be much faster.
They would need to adjust quickly to stay as competitive as they were the prior day, but both Viral and Akula were happy with where their respective cars were. The #98 and #24 Commodores were rolled out onto pit lane to await the start of the session. This was where there months of building, testing, hunting for sponsorships, all of it would need to come together.
They wasted little time when pit exit opened, coming out onto track one behind the other. Near the tail end of the queue as the last two car team in the lane. Viral backed off a little to warm up her tires and give herself some clean air to work with. As a train, the cars started their laps.
With how much drier the track was, Akula was much more confident with his car. He starting attacking immediately, but with the track surface changing overnight he anticipated having to brake earlier than usual. Viral did so as well, but ahead of them Anton De Pasquale, who had previously beached his car in Practice 2, went below the 1:30 mark. The cars hadn’t even gone below 1:34 the previous night.
When Akula and Viral crossed the line for their banker laps, they were 13th and 16th respectively. There was much time for both of them to find, now that they knew just how much harder they could push the limit of grip.
They did their cooldown lap and prepared for the second run, with most of the fuel burned off, the tires warmed up, and still full of grip it was time for the real push. Akula took turn one hard and fast, and hit the braking point pin perfect for turn two. He managed to find a good rhythm through turns three through seven, got onto the power very smoothly out of eight, putting up a new fastest second sector, and just about aced turn eleven, not quite getting to the curb on the exit. Crossing the line, he slotted up right behind De Pasquale in 2nd place.
As for Viral, she went into turn one just as hard and fast, but was half a line too wide. Just like in practice, she dipped a front wheel into the grass and needed to back out. She was heated in the cockpit, having ruined her push lap before it really even began. She dived into the pits at the conclusion of the lap and dropped her head into her steering wheel the moment she got parked up in her spot. The team brought her up on the jack, and started to change the tires, refuel the car, and clean the splitter for one last run.
Akula was in not long after, quite confident his lap would stick to get him in the shootout, he jumped out of his car to go help Viral collect herself.
‘It was a dumb mistake.”
“Hey, stop hitting yourself over the head over one error. Look, you still have time, the car isn’t damaged, don’t worry about the time. Just go out there and do your best, you don’t have to be the best. It’s your first race. You said it yourself when we were testing, you’ll adjust in time.” Akula gave Viral a soft touch on her right shoulder. “You can do this, it doesn’t matter where you end up, just give it an honest effort.”
Viral was back out on track, coming out with about three minutes to go in the session. She made way for the two Will’s Brown and Davison between turns four and five as she was warming up. She started her lap with about a minute thirty, so clean or not this was her last chance. She hit the apex of turn one properly and parked it up nicely in turn two, was smooth on the power through turns three, four, five, six, and seven. Got it stopped nicely on the curb in turn eight, then breezed easily through turns nine and ten, hugging the inside for turn eleven. When she crossed the line, she jumped up into 13th place. A late lap from Bryce Fullwood slotted her down into 14th.
It wasn’t a dream qualifying, but it put her in a spot that she could compete from. Akula meanwhile had lost spots to Davison, Van Gisburgen, Heimgartner, and Brown, but still found his way into the top ten shootout. It was a great start for him, being up there with the fastest teams and drivers in the series.
Akula watched from inside his Holden as Chaz Mostert left pit lane to begin his shootout lap. He would be going out next, all eyes on him for one lap to try and wrestle pole away. There were fast cars coming on after him, but he paid them no mind, he just waited his turn to get on with his lap. Once he was given the all clear, he went out. As he was doing his outlap, Chaz finished his lap to go P3. The current pole sitter was Tim Slade, the team right next door to AKV Motorsports.
It was full concentration and the team gave him full silence to work his magic, throwing the car through turn 1 just about as far as one would dare to but stopping nicely for turn two. His first sector was the fastest of the shootout at that point, first to break the 26 second mark. From that point on it was all about flow. His line through turn eight was tucked up to the inside curb, and he did the fastest 2nd sector of the shootout. Now it was all about stopping for nine, ten, and eleven, but as he got under the brakes for ten the car bobbled slightly as the rears locked and he had to lift out to get it stopped for eleven.
Coming to the line with the fastest first two sectors of the shootout, he missed out on Slade’s time by an annoying three-hundredths of a second, but it was still P2 after half of the runs had already been completed. The team as a whole got together to watch the rest of the runs. Will Brown slotted in behind Akula, then Andre Heimgartner squeezed his way in between him and Slade.
Up next was Shane, who surprised no one by being the man to take Slade off his throne, followed by Will Davison who looked strong until he locked his rear brakes at turn 8 and skidded wide. His lap was only good enough to split the Erebus teammates. Finally, Anton De Pasquale put together a flawless lap to snatch pole position. In the end, Akula found himself lining up on the third row in 5th. For the first shootout of the season, a great performance.
Beaurepaires Sydney SuperNight Race 1
…And brand new to the V8 Supercars grid in 2022 is the freshly created AKV Motorsports, fielding two full time entries this season with two of the hottest motorsport talents in the world. American hot shot Viral Velocity piloting the #24, and Queensland resident Akula in the #98.
“Here’s the new AKV Motorsports cars, back in January at Queensland raceway. Blank, nothing but a vibrant shade of red. Viral and Akula worked very hard over the winter to find some sponsorships, and boy did they find them. Let’s start with the #24, Axalta, works on automotive finishes and they helped design these liveries. From what I’ve been told, this look is inspired by Viral’s motorsport background in America, I think it looks great. Very unique, easy to spot in the field. The #98, Qantas, I like this, look at how they incorporate the spades from the fuselage into this livery. Fantastic, Two months ago these cars were a red shell, now they have their own unique and stylish designs. I tip my hat to Axalta and AKV Motorsports for putting together such great designs.”
Viral took a deep breath to get her nerves together, 8 years of racing did little to calm them. Every year there was a new opportunity, the first race of the season always put her on edge. Whether it was her time in NASCAR at Daytona, or when she drove open wheel, she always cherished the excitement of a new season.
She had her music with her as always, it soothed her, and got her into the motions. She could always count on it to straighten her up and get her motivated. Everyone on the team knew that when she was listening to music she was preparing to do work. Akula and Neon especially, having known her for years, were aware of this. No one questioned when she had her ears plugged as she prepared to head to the grid.
Akula was paying extra close attention to his own car, whispering to it as he would say. His own little ritual before the race. The weekend had been going well, Top five pace all weekend was a promising start, but he wanted to be one with the #98 behind the wheel today. It was going to be an endurance race at Sydney, and he wanted to make an impression on the series early. Both of them elected to start the race on standard hard tires for strategy reasons. Weather was always a possibility, but if it didn’t come then they would be better off.
Both cars rolled out of pit lane and around towards their grid slots with the rest of the field, Akula passing many cars on his way to the third row. Engineers from the team helped both him and Viral with final preparations. There was a lot of pre-race theatrics to attend to, including driver introductions. They and the rest of the drivers met at a truck at the front of the grid, with a large group of spectators waiting for pictures.
Akula gave Viral a friendly nudge as Tim Slade was the first to be introduced as a single driver team.
“Was that really necessary?” Viral asked with fake annoyance.
“Nervous?” Akula played with her.
“About seeing fans? Do you even know me?”
There were some faint chuckles from the drivers behind them, namely Will Brown who was no stranger to mucking about. He reminded Viral of Ricciardo.
“The youngest team on the grid, AKV Motorsports joins the Supercars lineup with two of the biggest talents in worldwide motorsport. Young, hungry, and with plenty of experience across multiple series and disciplines. In the Axalta Coating Systems #24 is an American driver with a vast array of Stock Car and Touring Car experience, and her teammate in the #98 Qantas entry is a local prodigy from Queensland, please give a warm welcome to Viral Velocity and Akula.”
The reception they received was incredible, the Australian crowd welcoming them with wide open arms. Viral wanted to take it all in, but there was only so much she could do before they had to step off the stage to make way for those behind them. They joined Tim Slade at the stand, awaiting the rest of the drivers for the group photo. Both of them kneeling down on either side of James Courtney and Thomas Randle on the bottom step.
Finally, they were released back to their vehicles, Viral once again began listening to music to collect herself. Akula took his final moments to whisper to the Qantas Commodore. Eventually, he proceeded to his vehicle and was strapped in, while Viral had her music taken away by one of her engineers and her radio connected.
“Is your playlist finally finished?” Neon began to play with her.
“Loud and clear Neon.” Viral responded to what was Neon’s intended question.
“Got you here V. Ready to do business?”
“Coming out of retirement.”
“You never really planned on retiring.”
“Never in a million years.”
Akula also got hooked in with Chrysalis.
“Loud and clear here.”
“Sounds good.”
“You know, it just hit me that this is the first time we’ve done this. I mean, 2019 you were driving for HAAS, 2020 was Kurt Busch and Cliff Daniels, and in 2021 you were hanging around at home taking care of everyone else. Yet, this just seems right. Your voice in my ear.”
“Oh I’m flattered, maybe later…”
“Uh, let’s keep the radio clear of... you know. Race Control can hear us.”
“Right.”
The warmup lap was on, and the tension began to rise. They had done this many times, but never as Owner Drivers, for a moment Viral had the worry about how they would deal with wrecked cars, but she snapped back to reality. Her job was to drive, if anything happened, that would be dealt with after the race. They began to form back up on the grid.
“3…2…1…stop.” Akula lined up on row three, position five.
“Keep coming, 2…1…stop. Little bit forward, good.” Viral in row seven position fourteen.
“Green flag.”
“Green green.”
They patiently awaited the start. The noise of Ford and GM V8s lit up the setting sun in Sydney as the red lights came on... then off as Commodores and Mustangs alike launched into action. Akula immediately got the jump on Andre Heimgartner and Tim Slade as they bogged down from row two. He swung inside as Will Brown swung around and they went side by side through turn 1 with Will Davison ready to pounce on the two cars they had just passed. Viral from her spot swung around to look for a way around Broc Feeney but got hung around the outside of turn 1 and had to slot back into line.
As the Axalta Commodore began to get attacked by Scott Pye, Akula went side by side with Will Brown through turn two and claimed third as he chased down Shane and De Pasquale. Will Brown gave him a bump into Shane, but everyone stayed strong on lap one. Viral found herself in a Team 18 sandwich with Pye and Winterbottom as Pye began to tussle with Nick Percat of Walkinshaw Andretti United. Just ahead of them, the Grove Racing Penrite Mustang of David Reynolds went wide into the wet grass but rejoined safely.
Then Feeney backed out of a move from Pye, which caught Percat by surprise as he had to catch his car, and Viral picked his pocket for the spot. She began to settle in behind the #88 and get out of the scrum happening behind her. Finally they began to run laps without issue. Akula began hunting down Shane and Anton, and Viral caught up behind Feeney.
Not too long after, Andre Heimgartner began to pick up spots. He picked off Will Davison and Brown before taking a look at Akula.
“Heimgartner behind, on Super Softs. Recommend we don’t fight him, we’ll only lose time.”
Akula picked turn eight to let Heimgartner through, and immediately blocked any attempt from Will Brown to follow off as he continued to charge. Heimgartner picked off Shane ahead, and began to go after Anton. Viral began to get conservative, holding a spot between Feeney and Percat.
On lap six, Neon came through with a weather update.
“Just a heads up V, we have a storm front holding on the hill over the west side of the track. It’s standing firm at the moment, but keep an eye on the horizon.”
“Thank you.”
In the meantime she was picked off by Nick Percat, who then grabbed a spot from her fellow rookie Broc Feeney. She was playing a slow game, conserving tires, just like she used to do in open wheel and IMSA. However a few laps later she saw a puff of smoke up the road coming from a battle between James Courtney and Scott Pye. She snuck around the inside of Courtney as he was re-entering the track, and Scott Pye continued to puff a cloud of smoke ahead of her, losing power steering and falling off like a rock. Broc Feeney got around him in turn 8, and Viral snuck a nose up in turn 11 and made her merry way, having side stepped a bullet, and grabbing two spots.
Finally, the race began to settle down for Viral as she began to chase Broc Feeney, with Akula holding strong in 4th place keeping touch with Broc’s teammate, Shane. Behind him was David Reynolds, also on Super Softs, who made a move on Will Brown. It would be a bit before he closed up.
A few laps later, Viral watched as the car she was closing down on made its first pit stop, promoting her up a position. From that point on it was a lonely race for the next few laps. On lap 21, Akula was promoted up a spot from Shane pitting from 3rd place, as was Viral. She also grabbed a spot from Brodie Kostecki when he pit, followed by his teammate Will Brown a lap later. It wasn’t long before David Reynolds and Will Davison took their stops behind Akula themselves as well as Fullwood and Thomas Randle. It was then that the team played their hand.
“In this lap, push and pit confirm.”
“Pit confirm.”
“Akula is pitting this lap, push on.”
“Copy.”
It just so happened that Akula timed his stop so that he was alone in the lane when they did it, the stop was clean, they put on a second set of hard tires, and he was away with no trouble. By sheer coincidence he just so happened to slot back onto the track behind Viral, who gave him an easy time to find his rhythm again as he began to charge after Feeney, who was a lap down, and Jack Le Brocq.
Viral then came into the pits behind Nick Percat and Tim Slade, having a similarly smooth stop and gaining a spot from Slade in the process. From here it was a simple job, run clean until the end of the race. Both cars would put Super Softs on for their final stop to sprint to the finish. As such, Akula held position behind Heimgartner and De Pasquale while Viral kept her eyes on Nick Percat. However as this was happening Mark Winterbottom and Tim Slade began to creep up behind them, conversely Cameron Waters and Todd Hazelwood began to fade back into them.
Viral made way for Frosty, who then started after Nick Percat and company. Hazelwood and Waters began to scuffle ahead. Percat, Winterbottom, Viral, and Slade tucked in behind them. Percat made his way through Hazelwood, then began to move inside Waters. Waters covered, and pinched Percat into the weeds. Percat then pinched Hazelwood inside to cover that move. Winterbottom benefitted and grabbed the spot from Hazelwood. Viral and Slade followed him through. After a couple more corners, Slade also found his way through on Viral.
She was still conserving tires, hoping to push at the very end. Akula was doing well himself, having picked off Andre Heimgartner and David Reynolds to move into 4th. Now he settled down, with cars ahead of him having already used their Super Softs.
Even with all this happening, the weather over the hill was still a looming threat inching closer and closer with every lap. So with the threat looming, Race Control declared the race wet on lap 41, allowing the teams to bring out wet tires should they need them.
A few laps later, Shane surrendered the lead with another pitstop, promoting Akula to 3rd. But after about a dozen laps, Shane rocketed his way up the order. Davison pitted, putting on Soft tires, and instead of trying to fight Shane with older harder tires, Akula wisely just put himself out of Shane’s way. It wasn’t his fight, and he was on a much different strategy. After a very long stint, Akula took his final stop and finally put on a set of blue wall Super Soft tires. The team put in the remaining amount of fuel they needed, and he was off joining in behind Chaz Mostert, also running the Super Soft tires.
Viral then took her stop, exiting in behind the #3 of Tim Slade. 20 laps to go, and a sprint to the finish. Akula began to shadow Mostert, who began to hunt down the cars ahead of him. He started with Heimgartner who was on worn out tires much older than both the cars behind him. Mostert made his move, and Akula took advantage of Heimgartner getting boxed out by Chaz to take that spot.
As this was happening, Viral started to show pace. She was shown as one of the fastest cars on the track.
“Personal best lap that time, that’s what I like to see. Keep going, see if you can close up to Slade.”
Further ahead, a few laps later, Courtney and Feeney came into the lane promoting Akula and Viral to 6th and 12th. Finally on lap 64, Shane activated his final stop, dropping into 3rd behind Brown and De Pasquale. Mostert was proving to be a tough nut for Akula to crack with his own set of Super Softs, but the pair was catching Will Davison.
Viral watched on as Tim Slade passed a fading Bryce Fullwood. She took her time, picked him up at turn eleven, and went on her way. She was one spot away from grabbing a top ten, but there were only ten laps to go. Meanwhile Chaz and Akula were nose to tail with Will Davison. Mostert made his move, sticking it up the inside at the top of the hill, and Akula followed suit in turn eight not wanting to be left behind.
Even better for both of them, Will Brown was beginning to drop like a rock. His soft tires were very old and didn’t have nearly as much grip as the two behind him. Lap 72, they closed to within a second. A few laps later, Mostert picked him up at turn 11. Akula tucked in behind Brown’s draft on the straight, and dived in on him in turn 2 with his much stronger grip.
“Awesome, that’s P4. You’re fighting Chaz for a podium, see if you can take him.”
That would be a tall order, but not a challenge he wouldn't put up. He did try running him down, but as the laps ticked down it seemed like there wasn’t anything the tires had left to give him. He would have to settle for 4th place. Viral was preparing to finish 11th herself, but a sudden and inexplicable pitstop from Andre Heimgartner promoted her up to 10th just as they started the final lap. Luck struck for her, and she went around one more time to finish up, as Shane van Gisburgen went on to win the first race of the season ahead of Anton De Pasquale and Chaz Mostert.
“Checkered Flag, P4. You gave it a good crack.”
“Yeah, that’s a good way to start off the year. Where’s Viral?”
“Coming across the line now, P10.”
“And, checkered flag. P10, top ten. Very smooth, that’s how we do it.”
“Starting off strong, Akula?”
“P4, just missed out on the podium. We’ll meet you both in the garage.”
Author's Note
Sydney Supernight Race 1 Results
#97 Shane van Gisburgen
#11 Anton De Pasquale (Pole Position)
#25 Chaz Mostert
#98 Akula
#17 Will Davison
#99 Brodie Kostecki
#2 Nick Percat
#9 Will Brown
#3 Tim Slade
#24 Viral Velocity
#88 Broc Feeney
#5 James Courtney
#6 Cameron Waters
#14 Bryce Fullwood
#34 Jack Le Brocq
#35 Todd Hazelwood
#8 Andre Hiemgartner (Fastest Lap)
#18 Mark Winterbottom
#4 Jack Smith
#76 Garry Jacobson
#56 Jake Kostecki
#55 Thomas Randle
#10 Lee Holdsworth
#96 Macaulay Jones
#22 Chris Pither
#26 David Reynolds
#20 Scott Pye-Retired
Beaurepaires Sydney SuperNight Race 2
“The rain has stopped, but there is more on the way right now.” Vectora had her eyes glued to the radar since the end of qualifying. “Assuming no shift in wind, I’d say about ten to fifteen laps in we’ll get our first downpour.”
“Might as well throw the Super Softs on early.” Viral suggested. “Get them on to try and to build up a lead as the showers hit. I can run in light rain for a while with the temps building in.”
“Good call, I’ll forward that to the others. Maybe Akula can make use of the Super Softs to get his way up the field early.”
“Has any of your fellow drones told you that you’re incredibly smart?”
Vectora blushed at Viral’s comment, unsure how to react. Akula joined in on the conversation.
“You two discussing something?”
“Weather.” Vectora continued. “We’re basically certain that there’s gonna be rain around ten laps in. The idea was to get you both on Super Softs to try and utilize the grip advantage to make up ground before the showers hit. They should last more than long enough after what we saw yesterday.”
“Very well, I like that. And hey, V, do your thing.”
“You too.”
The team put together final preparations, fitting both cars with the blue wall tires and joining the rest of the field on the grid. Viral drove through the entire roster to park underneath the ArmorAll Pole board, She was easily the center of attention on the grid, and just in front of her the broadcasters were out doing their pre-race work on the grid.
As she took some time to compose herself, her music was interrupted by one of the engineers trying to get her attention. She popped an earphone out to listen, but instead she was given to Neil Crompton, one of the head commentators.
“Sorry to interrupt you Viral seems like you were quite busy there with some tunes.”
“Nah it’s fine, just trying to relax before the race you know.”
“I tell ya my secret Neil, I love to send it when it’s raining. Nah, nah, but for real It feels great to have a pole to my name this early into the season. I tell you I don’t think anyone worked harder over the winter than the boys and girls back in that garage to get these cars ready as quickly as they did, and to put this Holden where it is, clear track ahead, I’m pumped I can’t wait to get going.”
“Right and I’m sure your excited to know that we might have even more weather coming, tell me how is it that you do so well in these tricky conditions like we had in qualifying?”
“I mean good car control is key in any form of motorsport, I mean it’s a key skill to have. Being able to understand how much throttle and brake you use, how much steering you give it. You have to find that balance of power and control to keep it just on the edge of spinning. Not so slow, but not too fast either.”
“I’ve just looked down you know to see what tires on it, and that’s quite telling. Got a bit of blue on here, we can see here brodie Kostecki same story, and further back Anton on a bit harder tire. With Brodie on the cleaner side of the track do you think the key to getting a result revolves around getting a good start?”
“Yeah, it’s not the end of the world but getting that launch and getting out front…maybe get a bit of a lead going before the weather hits us, could go a long way to getting that result.”
“Think a win is on the table?”
“I’m a dreamer Neil but I’m worried about cursing myself if I get too confident.”
“Good call.”
Neil began to wonder off and talk to others, leaving Viral to finish preparations before the race. She got strapped into the car with her helmet and got on with checks.
“Got a reading?"
“I’m all ears now.”
“You look pretty good on TV Sheila, well It’s a long way from the front of the grid to our pit box so I’m really hoping the weather stays on schedule cause I’d rather stay dry if I can."
“You’ll be fine Neon.”
“Ah, says the one inside the vehicle."
While Neon and Viral were bickering, Akula also finished up with his pre-race preparations.
“Not where we’d like to be, but we also have faster cars behind us. We’ve got plenty of time to pull our way back up so let’s not rush this and get caught up in something messy. Make moves, but don’t get too ambitious."
“Weather really scrambled us up, I mean Shane, Slade, Will Brown.”
“Fast cars behind us, slower cars in front of us. It's gonna be a long day.”
“Thirty seconds.”
That was the countdown to the warm up lap, which Viral led the field for. It was all calm in the cockpit for the pegasus, she had been in this position before. Not in Supercars, but in many other places. Akula was in strange territory though, all the way back in 16th.
They were looking at two very different races ahead of them, and with weather looming it could shake things up even more in the coming laps. For now, Neon guided Viral into the number one grid slot.
“Three…Two…One..Stop, perfect. Go get after it.”
“Two..One…Stop, good here.” Akula lined up on the outside of the 8th row. He watched Garry Jacobson enter the pits, for he and Tim Slade had to start in the pits for putting on wet tires before the race had been declared wet by Race Control.
“Green Flag”
“Green Flag”
Engines were revving, and Viral’s heart began to thump violently, but she didn’t have time to care. She had a race start to get on with, and get on with it she did. Brodie Kostecki did not get off the line and De Pasquale snuck up his inside into turn one. Viral had bolted from pole and immediately got into her leading rhythm.
Akula’s start was fine, but he didn’t get a jump on any cars ahead of him and so settled into 15th place going through the first turn. As Viral put her Super Soft tires to use and began to build a lead on lap one he set out to cut his way through the field. He found a moment to jump to the inside in turn two. There was some push and shove going on around him, but he managed to hold from making any contact as he sorted his way through on lap one.
He found himself following Chris Pither through the first sector, and was three abreast with Heimgartner and Bryce Fullwood for position as they came through turn four. In his mirrors he caught a glimpse of Macauley Jones ride over the left front fender of David Reynolds.
Viral meanwhile had built a gap from De Pasquale to just over a second. Brodie eventually passed him on lap two but by then Viral had a healthy margin to run her race with. Akula took little time to grab spots first from Heimgartner, then Will davison, and began to run down Chris Pither who was also on Super Softs.
He made his move at turn eight on lap three and moved himself up to 11th spot, then Frosty the next lap at turn two. He was a little more patient with Scott Pye, but by lap six went for the move once again at turn two. Then repeated it on James Courtney on lap seven. With the faster tires, he and Will Brown as well were cutting their way through the pack early.
The threat of weather still loomed, and with the drops starting to fall the race was declared wet by race control.
“Get those wet tires ready, soon as this stuff starts coming down I want to be ahead of the curve.”
“Copy. Just give us the word."
Next on his list was Scott Pye, which he dispatched on the same lap at his other favorite overtaking spot turn eight, the car next up was Waters, but he was nearly three seconds up the road.
Viral was having a perfect start to her race, maintaining a two second advantage to Brodie and company while also managing her tires with smooth driving.
“Getting some drops down here V. Weather’s a bit ahead of schedule.”
“It’s nothing yet, I can stay out if it stays like this.”
“All clear, keep doing what you’re doing."
The rain began to come down more over the course of the lap, but Viral soldiered on. In the background though, Akula saw something. A bluish/white car, it looked like a Triple Eight Engineering car. It spewed off behind him in turn eleven at the end of lap seven. Broc Feeney was way ahead of him, so that could only mean…Shane had spun at turn eleven again.
He didn’t let it disturb his rhythm, but seeing Shane make repeated errors was quite surprising. Then again, the rain was definitely coming down. He didn’t have time to make the call at the end of lap, but he made it pretty quickly.
“Box, pit confirm?”
“Confirm, Box Wets?"
“Yes, wets.”
“Copy, stop this lap for Wets."
Behind him, Garry Jacobson, Bryce Fullwood, and Shane, having wrestled his car from the mud and grass, took the initiative to stop for those wet tires. Akula eased his way around the track, made his way into the lane with Lee Holdsworth and James Courtney, got onto the wet tires, and added in a little of the fuel they needed before he was sent off.
“Akula has just boxed for wets, box is clear when you are ready."
“Tires are still hot, I’m staying out. Give me updates on his laps, and the gap behind to Brodie.”
“Copy, gap to the #99 is 2.3 seconds. I’ll have a lap report for you soon."
Viral kept going, the surface was slick but still drivable. If she surrendered the lead too early then she may lose time to those she was racing with. She had to wait until one of the top five runners made the move, so she could try to cover it off. She completed lap nine feeling good about where she was.
“Last lap was a 1:37:6, gap to car behind is now 2.5."
“Cars on wets?”
“Holdsworth, Akula, Courtney, Pither, Fullwood, van Gisburgen, Jones."
Todd Hazelwood spun around as well at turn eleven, with some help from Brodie’s brother Jake Kostecki, who was given a time penalty for the contact. Meanwhile, Akula and the rest of the wet tire runners were beginning to lose touch with the rest of the field.
“Akula’s last lap was a 1:40.5."
“Copy.”
Safer option or not, the wet tire was noticeably slower than the dry tires with the current conditions. Those on wet tires were over a minute behind Viral and the rest of the top five. On lap thirteen Viral managed to lap a quite frustrated Shane van Gisburgen.
With the rain lightening up and the pace difference staring him in the face, Akula realized he had made the wrong call, but he laid in the grave he had dug for himself regardless as the leading car on wet tires. Hoping that the rain would pick up and give him a reason to justify the move. Yet, as he went on Shane decided to bail on the Wets, only for the Red Bull Ampol Racing Team to butcher the stop on the left rear
Viral had lapped Jacobson and Fullwood, and was on her way to Jack Smith. Holdsworth bailed off the Wets, Jack Smith followed suit. It was beginning to get harder for Akula to stay the course even with the weather just over the horizon. After several more laps Chris Pither also abandoned the wet tires.
Viral had a nice gap built up now, hovering around three seconds, but she was closing quickly on her teammate who was still riding around on the wet tires he thought were the right call at the time. She began easing up a little bit, with Akula now the only car still running the wet tires by the end of lap 21.
However there was some good news, with how long Akula had gone on the wet tires he had driven into his Super Soft to Soft pit window. On lap 22 he finally came in, put on the Softs, and was off. If he could pick the pace back up, he might be able to stay on the lead lap through cycles.
Surely enough, on lap 28, the front runners also began to take scheduled stops. Mostert, Kostecki, De Pasquale, and Waters all pitted for a new set of dry tires. Viral and Feeney followed suit and soon Akula was back on the lead lap.
Viral slotted into a nice 5th after her stop, Brodie Kostecki putting less fuel into his car allowing him to jump her in the cycle. As she began to chase after him, Jake Kostecki spun it around at the treacherous turn eleven just ahead of the leaders. Viral navigated her way around him, but it only brought out a sector yellow for the time being.
He tried to get it going again, but with all the traffic flowing through he couldn’t get it spun back around, eventually stalling around the outside of the corner. Problems compounded as Garry Jacobson had a similar stalling issue at the top of the track near turn five, due to low fuel pressure. With two separate incidents, the first safety car of the season was scrambled, and with it Akula’s race was rescued.
A lot of cars did pitstops, but both Viral and Akula opted not to. They had stopped very recently, and so did not see much benefit from it. Viral had the two Erebus Motorsport cars in front of her now, while Akula had miraculously found himself back where he started in 16th between Percat and Holdsworth. .
“I’m seeing a larger storm on its way, but it won’t be here for some time. We can still save this race."
“You’re faster than these guys, but we still have a long way to go. More weather on the way too."
It took a while to recover the two stricken cars at separate areas of the track, but the racing eventually resumed at the start of lap thirty-five. Viral had to deal with two teammates ahead of her, but only one of them was on a similar strategy to her, that being Brodie.
She had one more stop to worry about, so she was fine with where she was on track, keen to sit behind Brodie should he make a mistake. Akula meanwhile was desperate to save some points from this race, but with the track still somewhat slippery is was going to be a task.
On the restart Viral had Scott Pye in her mirrors, but that was quickly replaced by a very fast De Pasquale utilizing his set of Super Softs. Viral decided not to fight it at turn eight, and De Pasquale went after the Erebus teammates with haste. Brodie and Brown traded spots, De Pasquale made the move on Brown at the end of the lap, and Viral waited for a moment to scoop up the #9 on the following lap at turn eleven.
Akula was having a heck of a battle with both of the WAU cars Mostert and Percat, trying to find a way to fight back into the top ten. It went on for a few laps, Mostert continuing to be a tough match for the changeling regardless of the conditions, but even then he didn’t let it get to him. There was still much more of the race to go, and keeping up with Mostert could prove beneficial once the #25 got up to speed again.
Viral’s gap to Brown was steadily increasing, while managing to keep in touch with Anton and Brodie ahead, an ideal scenario for the final sequence of pit stops, where all of them would be on equal footing. Viral had been in position to maybe win this race before the safety car, but she would have been ecstatic for a podium regardless. For her, it was going to be simply keeping it steady through the changing conditions.
As the laps went by and the positions in the field settled, there were two main factors at play. Weather was the more obvious curveball in this race, but more so was the strategy of the teams, especially after the safety car. Would the teams pit again for dry tries, sacrificing track position and praying for the rain to be held at bay, or gamble on the rain coming in force and using that change of tires to cover their remaining pitstop?
Akula and Viral had differing opinions on the matter, but after Akula’s initial decision had gone awry, the team eventually formed similar strategies. There was definitely rain coming, they had enough fuel and tire life to make it, but they would need to drive conservatively to make it that far. Consistent lap after consistent lap followed, a podium finish for the team lay in the balance of the weather.
Akula did manage to make some headwind whilst chasing Mostert, a pass on Andre Heimgartner on lap forty-two moved him into 13th, but it wasn’t much more than that. James Courtney was fast behind, Mostert was fast in front, and Akula was in between the two of them. Thankfully, Mostert began to pick up the pace, picking up a spot on Winterbottom on the subsequent lap forty-four, with some commotion ahead as Scott Pye was falling fast from a mighty 5th, being passed by Davison, Waters, Feeney, and Slade.
Akula did not want to lose Mostert, even as the #25 looked to be the next car to overtake Scott Pye. Chaz made the move at turn four, and after some friendly persuasion Akula followed suit at the next corner. It brought him back up to eleventh.
He got around Pye at a good point, as his downfall inevitably brought on trouble. After Pye’s teammate got past him, Nick Percat took his chances, diving up the inside at turn seven. They locked wheels and spilled off into the gravel. Pye made it out, Percat did not.
When the second safety car came out, Viral had already passed the pit lane entrance, but that was good for the team so that they didn’t need to double stack. They could fill the cars with the rest of the required fuel now, and not have to worry if and when the rain returned. Akula was in first, the last of the fuel filled in and the final set of Hards put on. Viral had to cycle all the way around the track, but the team were more than ready for her by the time she got back around. There was a bit of a hold as a couple cars entered the lane, but she managed to get out of the box safely and without impeding any other drivers.
When she filed out, it was behind Mostert. The only driver that had kept pace with her in the rain all weekend. In the end she was fourth, sixth counting Courtney and Holdsworth who stayed out. They had lost time simply from where the pit box was located, and no one could do anything to prevent that.
Akula, having to dump a lot of fuel into the car to make it to the end, was released into 15th place, but now he was free to attack as he pleased. Eventually Percat was released by the gravel trap, and after a short cleanup the race resumed with another scrambled order.
Chaz Mostert got ambitious early, trying to move alongside De Pasquale on the restart, and Viral got a great view of the battle of Holden and Ford going into turn one and through turn two. Mostert escorted Anton wide at turn two and Viral just managed to squeeze a fender inside on the exit. They ran side by side for the next few corners, Viral managing to hang on the outside for three and four before finally clearing on the inside of turn five.
Back into podium contention, and pressing on for more. It was obvious that Mostert was the car that she needed to chase. He had gotten the better of both AKV Motorsports cars for most of the weekend, but there was still time to flip that script. Brodie Kostecki found his way through Lee Holdsworth, Mostert and Viral soon followed with De Pasquale closing.
Akula was having a scrap with the two Truck Assist cars as he was once again fighting through traffic. If there was an award for most overtakes in the race, he probably would have won it, but in his mind he was just trying to find any way to get a decent result out of this wacky race. Next up for him were the two Penrite Mustangs of Holdsworth and Reynolds as well as Will Brown.
The fight for the lead raged on, Brodie Kostecki finally dispatching James Courtney was Chaz Mostert on him like a wild dog, Viral not too far behind them. Mostert then immediately attacked Brodie, performing an over under move at the top of the hill, completing the move at turn seven. Viral was encouraged by this to not get stuck behind, and so when they came around through turn eleven and into the front straight, she pulled alongside the #99, side drafting all the way into turn one, and committed to the overtake with authority. All that was left in front was Mostert
Akula had his own battle going on with the other Erebus car of Will Brown, with the weather on it’s way every position mattered to him. Shane was still stuck in 18th, but now he was back on the lead lap and with the pace he showed in the previous race it was only a matter of time before the defending champ wrestled his way back into contention.
Try as he might, Brown was fighting hard and fighting well, and the rain was incoming. Viral was fighting for a chance at victory, Akula was fighting to even keep himself in contention. With the weather oncoming, he resigned to racing behind Brown for the time being. Hoping that Viral would extend a gap long enough so that they could pit both cars with double stacking. He believed that the team was capable of delivering a fast stop, this would be the true test.
The laps began to tick by, and Will Brown closed up to Broc Feeney looking for a pass. Akula was happy to pick up the move as well, breaking into 11th place as Feeney began to muscle around with the Truck Assist cars right behind him, getting off into the dirt between turns seven and eight but managing to keep it straight, and then beating and banging with them later as they went down the pit straight.
Even with the tire disadvantage, Viral was holding Mostert to within a second. The rain would be coming soon, but the #25 was pulling away ever so slightly as the laps ticked by. Viral could have smelled the win, but she was trying too hard, and just like in practice and qualifying made the same mistake in turn one and lost a bit of time.
She resigned herself to second for the time being, she was still pulling away from Kostecki. 2nd place would still be incredible, but she would need to stop making unforced errors.
“Weather is inbound, very likely we’ll be getting rain before this is over."
That was all Viral needed to hear, she would have time to maybe close this up a bit more. The laps ticked by, the weather was on it’s way, but all she and Akula could do was concentrate and wait. On lap sixty-one the first drops began to fall, and it only got heavier over the course of the next couple laps. Viral had the gap to Mostert within two seconds, and the same back to Brodie. Akula was still hot on the heels of Will Brown, both of whom were closing on Cam Waters.
“Give me a heads up on when someone bails onto wets, I want to be ahead of the curve here.”
Akula would be relying on someone else making the decision first, but the team had a set of wet tires ready for both cars. Heavy rain was beginning to form, and they still had fifteen laps to go on a very long circuit. On the start of lap sixty-four Lee Holdsworth and James Courtney pitted for wet tires first, but the team held off just one more lap. They figured they could try and pinpoint the crossover period to get the maximum benefit of the tires.
Viral and Mostert were in their own league, the only two drivers maintaining competitive pace despite the worsening conditions.
“Rain is getting heavier V, I trust you know what you are doing but don’t be afraid to come in at any time."
Finally at the start of lap sixty-six, Akula turned into pit lane following Brodie Kostecki and Tim Slade whilst being followed by van Gisburgen and Winterbottom. The weather was not going to slow down, and he most definitely did not want to interfere with Viral’s race or get caught in a stack. This was the true test, no fuel, just a quick stop to put wet tires on and get going.
He gingerly eased the car onto the mark, and within seconds the #98 was away with its newest set of wet tires. There was no time to celebrate the stop, the more important one was coming around any second. Chaz and Viral were alone in their own little bubble on track, but Brodie undercutting threatened to cut that gap down if they didn’t respond.
The stop from AKV Motorsports was incredibly smooth, the front tires were bolted on at the same moment, the rear left matching them, and the rear right not far behind. Viral was off, but WAU had done enough to get Chaz out in front. For the first time since Chaz took the lead, Viral had it in her head that she could pull this one off.
The pit crew had done their job, Akula and Viral just needed to finish up. Meanwhile, a very brave Jack Le Brocq remained on track with his slick tires, trying desperately to make a miracle happen in the #34. Viral began very smoothly closing down the gap between herself and Mostert to less than a second.
Akula, well he found himself fighting Shane for 11th spot on track, the first on track battle between the #97 and #98 Commodores, but between Shane’s experience and wet weather expertise, Akula did not press the issue. He was more concerned about finishing this race. 12th spot would be more than okay, especially knowing that Viral was making an effort to do what he could not do the prior day, after Mostert had snatched a podium from him the previous night.
So with Le Brocq leading a daring strategy and Viral and Chaz battling for the lead should it not pay off, the final ten laps would become a thriller. Viral wanted to be patient, the rain could swallow anyone up at any moment including Mostert and even herself. If she tried to force anything, it could ruin her race or both of them.
Ten laps cut down to eight, and Le Brocq was caught and passed by the #25 and #24 cars, with the traffic out of the way it seemed that the fight would go down to the two of them. Yet, Le Brocq could only survive so long on those slick tires, and one lap later with seven to go, the slicks finally could grip the track no longer. Le Brocq simply slid off line into the gravel and was beached.
A final safety car ensued, bunching Chaz and Viral back up with Brodie, Anton, and the rest of the field. Akula was just on the fringes of a top ten finish, and this brought hope that it may be possible.
The race restarted with three laps to go, and Akula engaged in a battle with Brown, Reynolds, and Slade in a fight for a top ten. He was side by side with Reynolds, with Slade side by side with Brown ahead. He had to concede the inside line to Reynolds for the moment, but held firm in twelfth looking for an opening as the three ahead of him did battle. An opening presented itself in the form of Brown and Slade going wide in turn two.
Now it was Reynolds side by side with Tim Slade, he needed to be patient on what was now a very wet track. Finally Reynolds made his way around Slade at turn nine, and Akula managed to find a gap to get alongside at turn eleven, making the move under brakes at turn one on the subsequent lap. He would remain there in eleventh.
The race for the win however was still on with two laps to go, but as he had before in practice and qualifying, Mostert proved to be formidable for Viral. Even with the elements, Viral’s lack of experience with the Supercar allowed Mostert to muster up an impenetrable defense for the final two laps.
Yet, it did not matter at all. Viral resigned from fighting Mostert by the time the white flag fell. She did not need to make a mistake now, not when a second place finish was on the table. Mostert would round the final corner with a celebratory weave as he crossed the line for his first win of the season, taking control of the championship after two consecutive podium finishes.
However, it was the car behind him that was the real story of the race. Converting a stunning pole to a respectable second place finish, Viral did a flyby of the pit wall to take home the teams first podium as an individual outfit. A long winter, having to earn back the reputation they had built for years in motorsport, building their own team from the ground up, rocking up and showing the world and Supercars that in fact…AKV Motorsports was going to be a real threat.
The action behind them was not over however, as the cars began to cool down after crossing the line, Mark Winterbottom and Todd Hazelwood spilled off into the gravel trap after the finish.
There were celebrations in the cars and in the garage, Akula heading over to meet them after a very up and down race for him, but Viral was on her way to the podiums stand with Mostert and Kostecki. Taking off her helmet, and replacing it with her first yellow podium cap of the year.
“Viral Velocity, started on pole, first podium of the season as a rookie and with a brand new team. Congratulations, you drove like a true champion today.”
“Yeah, unfortunately Chaz was ultimately better. He and I have been at each others hips in practice and qualifying all weekend so I find it fitting that we ended up finishing one and two. These cars are so fun to drive, especially in the wet, maybe with a little more experience I can fight for a win in this situation. Hey, first podium, there are still ways we can improve, especially with how young this team is.”
“Congrats, and great job at the shootout to grab that pole position. Now go and celebrate with your team.”
“I will.”
But first, there was a podium ceremony to attend alongside Mostert and Brodie.
“In 2nd Place, from the Axalta Racing Team and AKV Motorsports, Viral Velocity.”
She joined Brodie on the step, shortly before Mostert and his glorious blue hair arrived at the top step between them. Viral had to spread her wings and balance on her hind legs to receive the 2nd place trophy, but it was worth it after the long weekend and the effort every member of the team had put in to get to this very moment, but she quickly set it down…gently as to keep it safe.
Once she had the chance, she grabbed the champagne and immediately went after Chaz and his hair with her favorite fizzy spray, Brodie too joined in the assault, and Chaz gave his engineers a drink as Viral and Brodie left the stage.
Author's Note
Sydney Supernight Race 1 Results
Chaz Mostert
Viral Velocity (Pole Position)
Brodie Kosteki
Anton De Pasquale
Cameron Waters
Andre Heimengarter
Shane Van Gisbergen
Will Davidson
Will Brown
David Reynolds
Akula
Tim Slade
Broc Feeney (Fastest Lap)
Mark Winterbottom
Todd Hazelwood
Thomas Randle
Scott Pye
Lee Holdsworth
James Courtney
Jack Smith
Bryce Fullwood
Chris Pither
Macauley Jones
Jack Le Brocq
Nick Percat
Jake Kostecki
Garry Jacobson - Retired
Three weeks later... Central Plateau, Tasmania
"You know, I wish I could do stuff like this more often. It’s not like we get to go on detours and road trips all that often, but with how long we have between events it really opens up opportunities to see all the great places this country has. I know a lot about America, all the places we can go to, but I’ve always wondered what it’s like here you know. Such a diverse ecosystem.” Viral was captivated by the environment around them, Tasmania was a place revered for its unique habitat, rugged terrain, and being so close to Antarctica in terms of geographical location made its climate unique compared to other regions of Australia.
While the team was packing up to head to Symmons Plains, Viral and Akula had their own business to attend to in a secluded little vacation spot known as Thousand Lakes Lodge. Repurposed from an Antarctic Training Facility, the lodge was created and owned by Marcos Ambrose, retired V8 Supercars Champion and NASCAR race winner.
Viral had wanted to reunite with the native Tasmanian after having met him when she was just a Truck Series rookie in 2014, but with Ambrose having resided in such a remote part of the country, they would need to take a trip out to the lodge to meet with him. Akula thankfully had a vehicle for the job, a rugged Mitsubishi Pajero could easily maneuver the wild Tasmanian terrain on the way there.
“We do get a lot of freedom don’t we, not just from the breaks in between events, but also since we own the team we don’t have any bosses telling us what we can and can’t do in our downtime. Honestly, it’s a major perk of the experience. Not being shackled down by the suffocating media presence in Formula One...” Akula paused mid sentence, not very fond of the memories of the sport he once held in high regard. “...tch. Great, now I’m thinking about the upcoming round at Melbourne…”
“I get what you mean.” Viral continued. “I appreciate it myself, leaving a lot of the stress behind. It was the thing I hated the most about the whole ordeal.” Akula nodded to let Viral know he heard her but didn’t respond. “Look, I think that’s the lodge just ahead.”
It was a remarkable sight, and waiting for the pair was the man himself Marcos Ambrose. He waved them down as they came to a stop, and led them inside to a fire heated room where the three of them shared greetings.
“So nice of you two to come and visit, I really appreciate having visitors come to the lodge. Viral, wow it feels like we barely know each other but it’s so good to see you. I know we kinda didn’t really have the chance to get personal when I was in America but being here with you after all you’ve done in and outside of America is a pleasure.” Marcos complimented his fellow former stock car driver. “Akula, much respect to you as well mate. Always good to see a local prodigy do his work. I’m really happy to be talking with you both.”
“Likewise Marcos…” Viral started. “Thought I’d visit you since you were one of the first people I thought of when I started working in Supercars. Two time champion in 2003 and 2004, of course I knew you better for your NASCAR success but knowing where you came from and actually doing it myself has been great.”
“That’s good to hear, I’m sure our friend has told you just how heavy the competition is around here, but given what you’ve already done I think you’ll do fine. And hey, when you get to Bathurst really take it in. You only get one first time at the Mountain, and you never forget it.”
“He makes a good point V, there’s not any experience better than truly going one hundred percent around Mount Panorama. Course that’s a long way away from now, October I believe.”
“October 9th…your birthday if I recall.” Viral confirmed.
“One hell of a birthday present huh?” Marcos exclaimed. “Yeah, Bathurst man. Loved that place. She didn’t really love me back that much but I never enjoyed racing more than when I was doing it there. Course, now I have this place. It’s all I could ever really want and need.”
While Ambrose was speaking, Akula turned his head to look over at Viral. It would only make sense if she asked him herself. After all, it was her idea. Viral nodded quickly and got Ambrose’s attention.
“Speaking of, we’re still working on our driver pairings for the Bathurst 1000. Akula and I are really the only members of the team that have any racing experience and it’s hard for us to find any that are open to the prospect of riding with us. They are either already booked elsewhere or already have a spot in the race lined up…you were one of the first people I thought of when I was going through options. I feel like having your experience in the car will be invaluable…” Ambrose cut Viral off there.
“Viral, I do really appreciate the offer, but I’ve been retired for six years. After I came back I almost immediately began working on this place.”
“Marcos, I’ve looked into your history. Don’t tell me you don’t want one more chance. One chance to at least be on the podium. The one place you didn’t scratch off, I wouldn’t think of any other drivers to have my first Bathurst 1000 with Marcos. We’ve been friends for years, just do it once.”
Ambrose bowed his head in thought for several seconds, pondering the offer to go back and finally get his revenge on Mount Panorama, His white whale which eluded him for a decade. Despite his resume, he had only finished a best of fourth at the iconic race. It would be the final accomplishment to add to his stellar career.
“Tell you what, and this is for both of you. I’m going to be at Symmons Plains for the Tasmania SuperSprint. I’m going to be taking part in a Gen3 demonstration while I’m there too. I want to see something special from you both, show me you have what it takes to conquer the mountain, and I’ll consider being your partner for the 1000. Just going back out on track is going to be a big commitment for me, I haven’t driven a race car since 2015, but I wouldn’t do this for anyone but the both of you. I know you both are passionate, competitive, you have the experience, the backing, you have just about everything, but the mountain requires something more. It doesn’t just bend to the will of anybody. If you can show me that you have that something extra to really make your mark on the mountain, I’ll be honored to go a thousand kilometers one last time.”
“I understand, thanks Marcos. It really means a lot to me that you’d come out of retirement to do this. It saves the worry of having to hunt for one later.”
“Of course, though while you are here I wouldn’t mind showing you around. We do have some time to kill after all.”
"That's an excellent idea, Marcos, you're the host here. What do you propose?" Akula inquired about the activities they could do in the downtime they had.
"Well I have a great fishing spot not too far, we could easily walk there…" Ambrose got out of his seat. "I'll go grab some gear and meet you outside, time for a hike."
The true range of the Southern Plateau was impressive, Viral hadn't done much high high elevation flying in her time compared to her peers but she got some elevation just to take a look at the scenery. Being able to experience Australia was like coming to an entire new world for her.
She returned to a low hover above the two locals, Ambrose carrying a set of fishing gear.
"Man it's so much cooler here than it is in America. You just can't find this sort of environment. I might just end up making permanent residence in Australia when this is over."
"Hey, if you ever want to, you're free to book yourself a stay. Just remember I'm technically running a business here myself so if you ever do come back…"
A couple hours of hiking later and Ambrose dropped his gear at a small pond, surrounded by several other ponds in a sort of marshland.
"Have you ever caught a fighting trout before Viral?" Ambrose asked in excited curiosity.
"I'll be honest Marcos, I haven't done much fishing at all."
"Ah we'll be releasing anything we catch, come on I'll give you a hand."
While the two former stock car drivers prepared to do a little fishing, Akula finally got a message he had been waiting for. He was also looking for his co-driver. He had originally planned on picking up one of Marcos' old rivals, Greg Murphy, but not long after he learned that he had already booked a ride for Erebus alongside Richie Stanaway at the Mountain. Undeterred, he settled for the next best thing. His former co-driver and champion in his own right, Rick Kelly.
He had been waiting on Kelly's availability, and to his thankfulness it seemed Kelly had open books to the Mountain. Now it was a matter of securing Viral's pick.
Viral was sitting on Ambrose's lap like a young daughter, while both of them held onto the pole. As Akula returned, a twitch from the pole nearly pulled Viral out of Ambrose's lap and into the water, but with some guidance she managed to wrangle back some control from the fighting fish. After minutes of struggle, them began to make headway, using a slack and reel technique to keep it hooked.
Eventually the struggle concluded, a fine catch even if it was only an adolescent trout. An adult may have actually managed to bring Viral into the drink.
However it was getting quite dark, they would need to leave soon to try and make it back to Symmons Plains before it got too dark to drive without being tired. Ambrose led the group back to the lodge, putting away his gear and returning to say his goodbyes.
"I'll see you both at the track, sometime tomorrow. I hope you do well, cause you've got a lot of potential to do great things with this project." He gave the pair a handshake, and with that the two departed from the Lodge, preparing to get on with another weekend of intense racing action at a very short circuit.
On their way out they caught a glimpse of the Southern counterpart to the Northern Lights. A vibrant combo of pink and green, though only just visible in the sky. Every hour it seemed this place had more and more of its natural beauty to show Viral, something she would have never gotten back home.
NED Whisky Tasmania Supersprint Practice 1
Viral was leaning against the rear window of her Commodore with her rear legs crossed, bopping her head up and down to the rhythm of a good song. It was to pass time, first practice for the Tasmania SuperSprint would be starting shortly. First session of the day, in fact, as most of the support series had done their practice and qualifying earlier in the week. With them out of the way, it was time for the V8s to get on with it.
Viral had at least put all her gear together while she waited, and Akula soon joined them with a few minutes left to spare before they needed to get in the cars. The crimson pegasus plucked her earbuds out with her two wings and tossed them over to Neon, who promptly caught them and put them in a safe place for Viral to return to after the session.
“Clear skies throughout the entire weekend this time V, Symmons Plains is a short track so we’re gonna need to minimize mistakes.” Akula brought them onto the same page.
“I’ll be honest, I’m a little bit nervous this time. I had the weather kinda skewing things in my favor back in Sydney.”
“You’ll do fine, you just need some time to get your bearings. That’s what practice is for ain’t it?”
Viral nodded slowly as Akula got into his car. In Sydney the weather and track layout had put them on even playing fields, but Symmons Plains was an entirely new environment for Viral. Akula meanwhile was very familiar with the short circuit, and it was one of his favorites on the calendar. Viral was expecting him to make her look like an amateur this weekend, at least for the first couple of sessions. Ideally she wanted to be somewhere around his pace by the time they got to the final race on Sunday, but she was willing to accept that this first practice session was going to make them look like they were driving completely different cars.
She took a deep breath as she closed the door to her car, strapping in and allowing the mechanics to push her onto pit lane with the others. Akula was not far behind, and a couple minutes later pit exit was opened. As per routine, Viral would follow Akula out for practice hoping to get an idea of the lines and braking zones of the track by studying the local.
As they rolled their way into turn four, a heavily banked hairpin at the end of a long straight, Viral tensed up slightly. This was the corner she was most worried about, heavy braking zones being one of her weakest areas, in stark contrast to Akula who made a living on being the last of the late breakers. But once she understood how to take it, she could find her way around this track fairly smoothly otherwise.
They got on with their first flying laps, and Akula was already pulling a gap from Viral at a fairly steady rate, quite confident with the car while the pegasus was tentative on both the throttle and brakes as she got her bearings. The first flying laps were spread a bit all over the place, but a second lap for the field made it clear who was fast.
No surprises as the Triple Eight Engineering, Dick Johnson Racing, and Tickford Racing cars all topped the timing sheets, but Akula snuck his way in between Shane and Will Davison for a comfy third early on. Viral however was languishing early in 17th, but slowly improving as more laps ticked on by.
A few minutes passed by, Akula continued to battle for the top of the timing table while Viral slowly mustered up the confidence to push. She had found a nice rhythm to attack turns one and two, but when she got to turn four on this lap she had a massive left front lock, stopping her car just a few meters short of the gravel trap. She spun her car around, kicking a bit of the gravel out with her rear tires, and waited for traffic to clear before she got on her way and returned to the pits, slightly more red than usual under her helmet.
Had the HANS device not been keeping her head locked in place, she may have slammed it into her steering wheel in frustration. Viral did not take mistakes well, always pushing herself to be as close to perfect as possible. Maximizing everything she could out of whatever she was driving.
She was showing on the leaderboards in 12th, while her teammate was trading fastest laps with the best of the grid. She didn't ask for many changes to the car, a few minor things to help the front end turn more, but she just rested her head back and took a moment to relax.
After a volley of laps, Akula finally made his way back in. The team got to work on his car for a moment as he got out to cool off. Viral kept to herself just trying to collect her bearings, thinking it was best to let the lead driver do his thing.
She had plenty of time to figure out all of Symmons Plains' secrets over the weekend, but in this session she only had a few minutes to see if the changes the team made were trending in the right direction.
She had about eight minutes left to try it, and instead of trying to push and be competitive she decided to fall into a slow and smooth pace. The car was a lot sharper in the front, just how she wanted it. So she got on with it, slotting in behind the two Shell Mustangs.
This time she did an earlier trail brake into turn four, braking gradually into the corner rather than all at once. It was how she used to drive Open-Wheels, it helped with tire wear and consistency as the cars they were driving had much thinner tires than a GT car.
Akula came out late to continue attacking the times, veteran Mark Winterbottom posted a superb lap that was usurped by the Monster Energy Mustang of Cam Waters.
The two AKV Motorsports cars had a few more minutes to get used to their new setups. Viral jumped up to P10 momentarily having set all personal bests with three minutes left.
Akula got his final run started shortly thereafter, having slotted behind Broc Feeney, their fellow rookie. As he was getting started Viral finally got a good turn four and was able to finally break into the 50 second margin. She had time for one more run, Akula meanwhile would be cutting it close but was quickest in the first sector on the lap he had going.
Shane and Will Davison traded new fastest laps, with Will breaking the series track record to the tune of a 50:345, but Akula was looking to continue the team's competitive pace. Two further personal bests as Feeney got out of the way on his final lap to jump up to 4th. Viral crossed the line shortly after, but was also slowing down after her final run. She finished in P15, but she was still satisfied with the improvement. After all she had another practice session later to fully dial in for the weekend.
NED Whisky Tasmania Supersprint Practice 2
“...And look, I know we’re talking about the established guys. Mostert, De Pasquale, Shane, but we have a couple wildcards in this fight too. AKV Motorsports, they showed a lot of pace in both qualifying and the races at Sydney, pole and podium for Viral, Akula was contending for a podium and he was fast here in practice. Yes, new team, new experience, there were some growing pains, but the track record those two have, only a matter of time before they start doing that every weekend. "
The team was preparing the cars for second practice, well everyone but the two drivers who instead had their eyes on the broadcast monitor in their garage. Ambrose was accompanying Garth Tander and the pre-show host Jessica Yates, the trio discussing championship favorites like Mostert and Shane, but Ambrose made a point to look out for them. They hadn’t formally announced the Bathurst ride yet, it wasn’t put into place, but Viral could feel that Ambrose wanted it to work out. The pair smiled at each other, Viral shrugged, and Akula snickered at her mock ignorance.
“I think it’s time for you both to take a break from spectating and get back to work.” Classic Neon Shock banter as the engineer had been eyeing her driver and her teammate from the rear spoiler of the #24 Commodore.
The pair bumped hoofs and got into their respective cars just in time for the start of second practice. Same idea as the first, Akula out in front and Viral shadowing. The track was so short that by the time they had begun their first flying lap, the leading cars were already starting to finish up their first laps. Viral got her first lap in and snuck in behind Shane’s #97 to get an idea of what the defending champ was doing to be as fast as he was. Akula didn’t need that, he was already matching the front running pace. Chris Pither locked up at the second to last corner and stumbled into the dirt as the changeling slipped through.
He pushed on to stay up with the rest of the front runners, and Viral managed to find a good rhythm to her laps. She was running race trim fuel, practicing some consistent laps while running around other cars. It didn’t look good on the timing sheets, but it was practice she most certainly would make use of over the weekend. Akula however dove into the pits after a few laps to try and work on the car. Looking for that last bit of time that could be the difference at such a short track like Symmons Plains.
Scott Pye had a moment at turn 1 and crossed the sand to cut the track, while Lee Holdsworth did exactly what Viral had done in first practice almost perfectly. A couple minutes later and Will Davison put up a new fastest lap of the session with triple purples, not quite the pace he set the prior session but still fast nonetheless. This put Akula in a solid 5th, but just as he was readying to get back out on track Jake Kostecki of Tickford ran into some terminal electrical issues and brought out a session red flag, closing pit exit. It was a bit annoying, but not at all worrying with almost twenty minutes left to run. following some of the faster drivers, Viral had a much higher head than during first practice when she got back to the garage. She was feeling confident to start running a couple flying laps once the pit exit was opened again.
Once the red flag was cleared and practice continued, the teams really began to hone in on one lap pace. The session itself was quiet, with marginal improvements across the board up until every team brought their cars in with about five to six minutes left in the session. Teams put on brand new sets of Super Soft tires for the qualifying sim runs.
With about three minutes to go, cars started leaving pit lane, Viral left ahead of most of the field to grab some heat in her new tires, while Akula merged in behind the two fastest cars on circuit in Shane van Gisburgen and Will Davison. While Davison took an extra lap to get to pushing, Shane started them off proper and early. While Viral was also getting going onto her lap, she was being followed by Todd Hazelwood’s #35 as he sneaked his way to the fastest time, though it didn’t last very long. Heimgartner was the first car behind him with a new top time. Shane of course did one better, before Will and Akula began to see what they could do to match it.
Now that Viral had some confidence back, she attacked the circuit with a little more bravado. With a clean lap she snuck into the top ten very briefly. Shane pulled aside for Davison and Akula as both of them set equivalent first sector times. Davison could not improve on his second and third sectors, and being behind the Mustang hurt Akula’s lap, he wanted one more. Thankfully Will saw the Qantas Commodore closing rapidly in his mirrors into the hairpin and got off the line, allowing him to push on and throw up a new fastest first sector, and while his second sector was marginally off his personal best, his third sector was improved. His final lap slotted into third behind Shane and Heimgartner. Viral threw up her fastest lap at the end of the session too, her best all weekend, and it brought her up to 11th. With that, practice for the weekend was finished and qualifying would be soon to come. Perhaps this weekend could be the teams breakout effort.
Author's Note
Feels good to bring this one back, after all I love writing for you all and this project was one I had a lot of investment in.
I'm going through some things right now, so developments will be somewhat slow, but I'll try as hard as I can to get new chapters out for as many of my stories as I can, including this one.
Farewell, see you all again soon.
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Beaurepaires Sydney SuperNight Qualifying 2 (+ Top Ten Shootout)
A new day at Sydney came with another shower, as AKV Motorsports and the rest of the paddock awoke to find the sky opening up yet again after last night's rain had proceeded over the track. By the time scheduled events were due to start, the rain was so heavy race control delayed proceedings for an entire hour due in part to flooding.
It was nice, it allowed the teams an extra moment to rest but Viral could do anything but. With the weather in her favor, she wanted to get on with it before it went away. As the day proceeded, the rain stayed, and after a very long two hours that saw a multitude of support series see the track it was finally almost time for qualifying.
Viral’s excitement was tipping the scales, and it helped the mood in the garage despite the downpour. The wet tires were on, the cars were ready to be rolled out onto pit lane, and the final day of the Sydney SuperNight was almost ready to kick off. Akula was in high spirits from his top five finish the previous night, and so was equally as eager to continue for the final day.
Finally, after hours of delays and other series, pit exit was opened and qualifying began. Viral led Akula out this time, the more effective rain driver leading the pair. The track wasn’t so much wet as it was damp, but after so many hours of rain no team was taking chances trying a dry tire yet. Everyone was taking their time around the circuit on their outlaps, but spread out quite nicely as they got going.
Mostert got them started off, and was the only car to do a 1:39 until Viral finished up her lap and slotted into P2. Already she felt comfortable with the elements, she understood the limits of the track, and was getting up to pace nicely. But Mostert was not done, in fact he pressed on and shaved a further three tenths off his lap. Viral took this as a challenge, and raised him by closing to within two tenths of him. A battle of time between the #24 and #25 commenced.
Akula meanwhile was taking his wet qualifying quite leisurely, sitting 15th after his first two laps. He was saving his best for the very end of the run, hoping to sneak his way into the top ten along with Viral. However, across pit lane the teams were preparing to make a calculated risk. Everyone was setting up the dry tires for their final runs. Viral and Akula joined the pits to do the same, no sense in risking it when everyone else was doing it. If it worked out, they would be bounced out immediately.
Those who were doing so were validated when Bryce Fullwood, the first car out on dry tires, did a purple second sector. With that, everyone began to file out of pit lane to see what they could do with a final couple of laps. As everyone began to heat up their new dry tires, Fullwood took the chance to put together an impressive lap. Even before that Feeney set a new fastest lap.
With that, both Viral and Akula got on with it. Viral felt quite comfortable even with the dry tires on. She put together a nice lap to go right behind Fullwood, but she knew she could go faster. Akula also did a solid lap and jumped into P8 for the time being, yet as more and more drivers got onto the dry tires, more and more faster laps were being done. Mostert once again played a hand with the first 1:37 and Viral matched his punch with her own 1:37, only for Broc Feeney to jump both of them.
Now with some confidence in the car, Akula got on with a strong lap. The times kept dropping as the track kept drying. Mark Winterbottom was the first to go into the 1:36 range. This was going to be Akula’s final lap, putting together three personal best sectors, and jumped up all the way to 7th spot. Meanwhile Shane got busted for track limits on his final lap, and by proxy was going to be out of the top ten. Feeney however was not nearly as unlucky as he jumped up to the top just after Akula finished his lap.
Waters bumped Akula down to 8th spot, just before Viral slotted herself into a healthy 2nd behind Feeney. Courtney then bumped Akula down to 9th. Heimgartner then came up to put him down into 10th, and unfortunately he was knocked out of the ten by Will Davison, before De Pasquale put in a new fastest time and dropped Akula to 12th. While he would end up settling in 16th between Scott Pye and David Reynolds, it was unfortunate to miss out.
Where one side of the garage just missed out, the other made it in soundly. Viral finished the session in P5, so for the second day in a row AKV Motorsports would put a car in the top ten shootout.
The rain had come again since the end of qualifying, so once again the lap times were in the high 39’s. This gave Viral just that little bit of extra confidence in herself to put together a competitive lap. She had the whole team behind her, and as she waited for Waters to leave pit lane and start his lap she had no nerves at all. The first race had passed her, so the butterflies were no longer present. As Waters got on with his lap, she was released from pit lane. Waters did a good lap, 1:39:842 was the new benchmark with only Viral, Feeney, Brodie Kostecki, De Pasquale, and Mostert left to run.
Viral got on with her lap, and immediately fell into rhythm from the get go at turn one. After having gone through the track nearly 100 times in three days she was more than aware of the optimal way around Sydney Motorsport Park. So aware in fact that she blasted the best sector that Frosty had set, she was already well on course to put it on pole, and she wasn’t stopping. She smashed Cam Waters’ 2nd sector time, and her cumulative began to show an insane picture. Four tenths up on Waters, and now everyone was paying attention.
She didn’t lift for turn nine, and her lines through ten and eleven were the best she had done in the wet all weekend. She crossed the line, and got the word. 1:39:417
“Currently P1, that was incredible. Love to see that.”
Viral knew she was fast in the wet, but even she couldn’t hold herself together that well. Even so, she was caught by surprise when the commentators got on her radio chatter.
“Viral, Neil here. That was a stonking lap mate. We expected to see you strong in the rain today but that lap was incredible.”
“Thanks Neil, you know you run enough laps around a track you start to understand it inside and out. The car is great, hooked up nicely, everything did what I needed it to do. The team worked hard to get these cars ready over the winter. As you said I do love a little bit of rain in my driving.”
“Very good, it’s great to have you here in Supercars.”
“Pleasure’s all mine Neil.”
Viral was met in the pit lane with several pats on the back from the team, but everyone’s focus was on the runners to come. First was Broc Feeney who looked strong from the first sector but nearly dumped it at the top of the hill in turn four and his lap only notched him P3. First bullet dodged. Next was Brodie Kostecki, and he nearly matched Viral’s first sector time as he went by. From that point on the team was holding their breath. There was a little bit of relief when he skated wide at eight and lost a bit of time. When he got to the line though everyone jumped up a little bit as he one-upped her third sector time and just barely missed out by little more than a tenth.
Bullet two missed, but only barely. Anton De Pasquale was next, but the rain was beginning to come down harder. Even the weather was beginning to shift in her favor. Even then, the team once again held their breaths as Anton’s first sector was nearly equal to Viral’s. Yet as he went to turn in for seven he over drove the corner massively, keeping it on track but losing a lot of time. His cumulative fell behind Brodie and he finished his lap in P3. Bullet three dodged, but now was the true threat.
Mostert had been the one driver matching Viral’s wet pace in qualifying, and now he was the only one left who could dethrone her. The entire team was watching on, and the camera crews were now focused on them and Walkinshaw Andretti United. Two days ago, they were lucky to get camera shots on passes down the field. Now, the focus was all on them, with Viral sitting in the center of the shot as Mostert began his lap.
However the track began to deteriorate from the weather even more, it seemed as though going out early may have saved Viral as Mostert’s first sector was short of hers by over eight tenths. It was over a second by the time he got through sector two, and at that moment it began to sink into everyone, but Viral was still processing it herself. Mostert could only manage 8th in the conditions presented, and when he crossed the line Viral folded her head into her hooves in disbelief. Pole, in only her second career Supercars start. It was the first big moment for the team, and it got everyone talking. AKV Motorsports was not coming to just fill slots on the grid, they were here to compete at the front.
“Yes boys, YES!” Viral simply could not contain herself. So she embraced every member of the team she could find.
Eventually she was pulled aside by Garth Tander, a retired Supercars Champion, and presented with the ArmorAll Pole sign to present the $1,000 bonus, and conduct an interview.
“Viral Velocity, first career pole position in just your second start. You’ve done it despite these shocking weather conditions. The way you handled that car around this wet track, it was like you’ve been doing it your whole life.”
“Wish I could say I have been doing it my whole life, but I couldn’t have been out here if it wasn’t for this team. Akula, my Engineer Neon Shock, everyone put their heart and soul into this team over the winter doing everything they could to get these cars ready for this race, this season, and to come out here and put this car on pole right away, it just feels special.”
“Indeed, in fact you and this team have really come out of nowhere to start this season. Obviously Akula and yourself have a lot of driving experience but, well you spent most of your career in America. How was it adjusting to sitting on the opposite side of the car?”
“Funny you should ask that. Honest answer it was really weird when I first got into the car during testing, but in the end the instincts of being a driver overtook the instincts of ‘hey why am I sitting on the right and not the left’. No it hasn’t hindered me in any way as you could probably see.”
“Your team did have really good pace right at the very end of the race yesterday with your strategy, how do you plan on attacking it with the weather coming tonight?”
“The weathers been off and on all weekend, so it helps to have a car that can hold itself together in both the dry and wet. We showed pace yesterday in the dry, and we showed it today in the wet, I think that’s a good sign. Can’t forget to give a shoutout to Axalta, they’ve been with me for seven years now, we’ve hung it out through a lot of tough times, and it feels right to have them on board for my first Supercars pole.”
“Well you’ve ticked that box, now go out and win it. Good luck this afternoon.”
“Thank you sir.”
“Call me Tander, please my dad might be watching.”
Tander, Viral, and the commentators and camera crew watching all busted their guts laughing at the banter as Viral made her way back to the team.