PREVIEW: UKDirt F1 2012 Shootout Finale

[DanSkin]

 

A little update on the Shootout prior to the final round!

 

TomD seems to have done all of the hard work on his path to retaining the Shootout title, gathering up an impressive 305 points over just 7 meetings with a devastating average of 43.6 points! With just the Shootout Finale round remaining the gap to second position DanSkin is 67 points, with Dode trailing in third spot by a further 162 points. Dodge is out of contention for the win with a total of 113 points, while Mike and Green opted to cease there participation after the half-way point.

 

Full points table:

112 Tom D 305 pts ( gap )

236 DanSkin 238 pts ( -67 ) *

151 Dode 143 pts ( -162 )

560 Dodge 113 pts ( -192 )

1 Mike 43 pts ( -262 )

115 Green 42 pts ( -263 )

 

The Shootout however, has its own little twist – with the final round counting as double points for the contenders (not toward National Points). This means a potential maximum score of 162 points – that’s assuming winning every race, including the grand national, from the handicap (and that car numbers dictate a single grand national… if there are two grand nationals, it would be 146 points).

 

So… mathematically we can see that only three drivers remain with the possibility of winning the Shootout – TomD, DanSkin and Dode.

 

Dodge will start the meeting at Belle Vue knowing he cannot take the overall win, but the double points would allow him to move into the second position by the end of the night. The spell starting from superstar looked troublesome in the early rounds as he struggled to pick up many points, but, particularly in the last two meetings, things have been looking up. Opting not to drop out of the Shootout he’s relishing the opportunity to start at the back, and has integrated with the other superstars in this battle without issue.

 

Dode is a definite outsider for the Shootout win - needing a perfect maximum score (from a single GN meeting format) combined with a no score for TomD and low score for DanSkin. His banger racing background could come in very useful if he decided to really apply himself to this problem… But mathematically he could be out of the running before the meeting even starts (if car numbers dictate two grand national races), or as early as his first heat if the results are not going his way.

 

DanSkin stands a little better chance, but still needs a big swing in results / points in his favour to make up the difference. Realistically the final win, and a healthy serving of double-double grand national points would be the best chance of closing up to TomD… but 67 points is a sizeable deficit to overturn! By the numbers, and dependant on results and format, there is a small possibility that DanSkin could win the Shootout before the grand national race(s).

 

TomD is sitting pretty, Dode can be ruled out very early in the meeting (if not before it starts by the format). And if his meeting tally reaches 96 points, then the title is decided regardless of DanSkin’s results! Depending on the combinations of results, TomD could wrap up the title as early as the end of his third heat, or we could be in for a meeting long, drawn out, nail-biting battle of epic proporitions! (Note: this comment maybe slightly biased and optimistic on my part.)

 

Another interesting little snippet, in the event of a tie the drivers best individual meetings scores will be used to decide the winner. Anyone scoring enough points to catch TomD and finish level would be putting up the best score of the Shootout. So TomD cannot afford to tie! It is impossible for TomD and DanSkin to tie due to the gap being an odd number, and the double point scoring factor!

 

Good luck to all participants!

 

 

* Late amendment due to disciplinary DanSkin gains 1 point and so the gap is 66 points into the final round.

 

[Matty300]

nicely building the atmosphere Dan, bring on the posts & wires ,roll on thursday!