Getting into multi-class racing can be a formidable undertaking for newer and less experienced sim racers, mainly due to the fact that unlike single-class racing series where all you need to do is focus on driving against cars of similar pace level you need to keep an eye on your mirror – or well ahead of you – for significantly slower or faster machinery that could trip you up in but a second.
Thankfully, iRacing’s newly formed Falken Tyre Sports Car Challenge series provides a shorter and more condensed experience that allows lesser experienced racers to learn the basics of multi-class competition.
The Cars
The Falken Tyre Sports Car Challenge utilizes two separate classes within its ranks, with lower-powered prototype and GT’s sharing the tarmac at some of the world’s most exhilarating circuits – the series allowing open set-ups to allow you to tweak each vehicle to your heart’s content.
LMP3
The premier class of the Falken Tyre Sports Car Challenge is represented by the small-but-mighty Ligier JS P320, a prototype machine designed to bridge the gap between the now defunct GTE rule-set and LMP2 prototypes – the latter possessing a huge amount more downforce and therefore lap time than even the very quickest GT3 car.
While not being capable of the same kind of corner speeds as its LMP2 brother, the Ligier is still a more-than-capable machine in the twisties while providing a more stable base in the slower bends, more akin to that of a GT car.
Different tracks may require different set-ups to get the most out of the unique qualities the Ligier possesses as a result of its downforce package, and Coach Dave Academy provides a well-tested and developed setting for all tracks on the season 3 schedule.
GT4
The series features the popular GT4 class of vehicle that competes alongside the LMP3 field, a rule-set that sits below the well-known GT3 class.
The difference between the two is stark though as compared to the relatively high downforce machinery that makes up the GT3 category, GT4 cars produce very little in terms of pure downforce due to being heavily based on their road-going counterparts and instead heavily utilising mechanical grip instead – making them easier to handle in slower turns.
The Collection
This series features all five of the GT4 race cars that iRacing currently features, consisting of:
- Aston Martin Vantage GT4
- BMW M4 GT4
- McLaren 570S GT4
- Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR
- Mercedes-AMG GT4
As a GT4 driver you will need to keep an eye on the mirror at all times for fast-approaching LMP3 cars, doing your best to calculate the most efficient way to run your race while being passed by significantly faster vehicles.
While all five GT4 cars are kept closely matched on pace with the use of BOP, each has its own set of characteristics – so if you cant choose the machine for you, we at Coach Dave Academy have previously created the definitive rundown of each GT4 car so that you can find the best fit for your future racing activities.
Need Setups For The Series
Our iRacing Setup Subscription allows you to focus purely on your on-track performance. And, with access to our free Coach Dave Delta app, installing them couldn’t be any easier.
- Race setups
- Qualifying setups
- Onboard laps
- Data packs
- All crafted by professionals
Race Series Format
Unlike some of iRacing’s other multi-class series – such as the European Sprint Series, that we have also covered at Coach Dave Academy – the Falken Tyre Sports Car Challenge does away with the worry of pit-stops and instead provides more of a sprint-race format.
The races take place every two hours, with each session beginning at half-past every even hour – for example 12:30, 2:30, 4:30 etc.
License needed to Race
To compete in this series you will need a C class road license and if you have planned your iRacing career out, you may have already experienced multiclass racing at D class license with the Sim-Lab Production Car Challenge.
This follows a similar format with a short private qualifying that grants you two qualifying laps but with a 30-minute race instead of a 20-minute race. This series is the last of the easier-going multiclass configurations that is reflected by the fact you only need to have a C-class road license to participate.
Series Costing
As with most iRacing series’ each season consists of 12 rounds, with the Sports Car Challenge sporting a premium-based calendar that features ten paid circuits. If you haven’t purchased any of the ten along your way to this point, it can cost you upwards of $120 USD to get through the twelve weeks, though two free tracks are also present to provide a sample of the championship should you already own one of the cars that take part in the series.
What’s so special?
The beauty of starting out with the LMP3 and GT4 machinery in a multi-class setting allows you to understand the dynamics of prototype vs GT machinery in terms of navigating traffic and making the best of opportunities that arise at a much slower speed, meaning you can make mistakes and not suffer such a huge penalty in terms of time loss or damage.
- The lack of pit-stops takes out another aspect that frees up your mind to focus purely on driving the car.
- The series helps you focus in minimizing time loss in traffic at a slower speed without needing to focus on other external factors.
- The series allows you to elevate your level of race craft before stepping up in future to higher series that feature much faster machinery such as the GT3, LMP2 and GTP categories.
You Learn How To Race Multiclass
One of the key tips to succeeding in this series is working out how to lose as little time as possible, which goes for drivers piloting both the LMP3 and GT4 cars – racing between the two should be kept to an absolute minimum, with courtesy given between both classes with the knowledge that both are fighting in completely different races.
Should this be heeded, you’ll find that you’ll make dramatic progress on other drivers that fail to take this extremely important aspect of multi-class racing into account.
Finally, be sure to download the free Coach Dave Delta App to access the entire catalogue of setups for this series so you can beat the competition today.
