NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series 2018 Power Rankings: Race 9
Ryan Luza moved Ray Alfalla out of the way to win his third race of the season at Michigan in Race 8 of the NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series. Now, the world’s best sim racers look ahead to the only road-course race of the season: Sonoma Raceway, at 9 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
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1: Ray Alfalla (+1)
While Ray Alfalla’s never won a road-course race in the NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series, he’s been the model of consistency in 2018 so far -- his worst finish in eight races is 12th.
2: Bobby Zalenski (+3)
Not only is Bobby Zalenski the defending race winner at Sonoma, he’s also finished in the top 10 in every other race this season. That means after his 12th-place finish at Michigan, he’s due for another single-digit finish if the pattern is accurate.
3: Ryan Luza (+5)
Luza’s back. After missing two races, Ryan Luza returned to the track and picked up right where he left off after two victories early in the season, claiming the checkered flag at Michigan after a late-race bump-and-run on Ray Alfalla. Luza has one career road course start -- a 38th-place DNF in last year’s race at Sonoma -- but it’s tough to deny the No. 6’s momentum.
4: Keegan Leahy (-2)
Aside from two blemishes -- Las Vegas and Charlotte -- Keegan Leahy's finished in the top five each race this season. It’s an impressive feat, made even more impressive when you remember the driver second-place in points is a series rookie.
5: Nickolas Shelton (-1)
Nick Shelton, racing in his first full-time season, faces a new challenge: a road-course race. Luckily for Shelton, his Slip Angle Motorsports teammates Ray Alfalla and Bobby Zalenski sit atop our Power Rankings this week. They’re almost always correct, except for the times they aren’t.
6: Logan Clampitt (-5)
A 19th-place finish wasn’t the day for which Logan Clampitt had hoped at Michigan, but he looks to rebound at Sonoma, where driver No. 46 finished in the top 10 last year.
7: Matt Bussa (-1)
Matt Bussa has scored top-10 finishes in three of the last four races this season, plus our numbers say he’s a solid road racer, finishing fourth at Sonoma last year.
8: Nick Ottinger (NR)
Nick Ottinger has slowly rebuilt his season after a slow start following his victory at Daytona. After scoring his second top-10 finish of the season at Michigan and a solid third-place finish in last year’s race at Sonoma, it’s not unreasonable to consider the seventh-place driver in points a contender in Wine Country.
9: Michael Conti (-2)
Michael Conti’s record on road courses in the NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze iRacing Series is impressive: three top-three finishes (including a win at Watkins Glen), and one 39th-place finish.
10: Christian Challiner (--)
Christian Challiner’s a solid bet for a top-10 finish at Sonoma, where he finished eighth last year. The Dynamic Autosports driver’s riding a wave of momentum that’s carried him up to ninth in the overall points standings.