Andrew, pretty much ditto what Martin said.
I am in that back of grid group too. I reckon that my race pace is usually a little closer to the quickest than my quali pace is and was expecting a similar afternoon to Martin.
I won't know as a driver decided to attempt to go 2 wide into chicane #1 (Nurburgring) on lap one and spun. I hit his car and my race ended on lap 1.
I didn't like Magny Cours at all. Struggled all week with practice and was appr 2.8 sec off the pace by quali.
IMO its got one half decent corner (T3 Estoril) and even it is spoiled by a blind entry and a big bump on the road surface on the racing line.
But before anyone thinks I'm a "track whiner" I'll add as Nietsche said "that which does not kill me makes me stronger". I learned stuff and a 1:29 on day 1 became a 1:24.xx. If I didnt despise this track I would have done another 100 or two laps and poss got a 1:23.xx.
The top guys here are some of the best available.
If we guys who are in this group can focus on our own little derby and try to be say "the best of the pay drivers" and set goals like being unlapped in a race by the end of the winter season we will have some fun and get faster and faster.
Also the fixed setups takes that bogey out of the room and we just race drivers not engineers.
So come and give beating me a go. Ill be out to beat
@Martin Bulgin and
@David Cook