Dodge's blog

Summary

Season #59 saw 12 drivers compete across 9 races (well, 3 events with 3 races each), and from those 12 drivers we saw 11 countries compete, all with something to prove (which we will get onto later on). Here’s a review of what went down.

Resident nations cup driver Vic Torious took convincing pole positions and victories across the season on his way to his second successive title and 19th overall, and the UK’s 25th overall, with only two fastest laps (races two and three of the Okutama event) having been taken by other drivers getting in the way of a perfect season, and earning all the available points, although thanks to this season’s points system offering a singular point for the fastest race lap, one of those fastest laps would see Saudi Arabia move up a spot in the nations cup standings (more on that later). Torious’ 190 points and fellow countryman Dylan Jenkins’ 30 points would see the UK score the most points out of the 11 countries competing in this season, re-extending a lead to Germany that had been eaten into over the previous few seasons.

The runner-up for this season would be American driver Nathan McKane, one of 9 drivers making his nations cup debut, and his 8 podiums and 146 points would see the USA pull away from 6th-placed Italy in the cup and close the gap to 4th-placed Belgium, who themselves had once again been overtaken in their ever-growing battle for third place with France, thanks to fellow rookie Théo Robert’s 61 points, enough for 7th in the final standings. France would also become the third country to break the 4000-point barrier during the season, and also have a further opportunity to extend their gap to their rivals next season.

Third place in the drivers’ championship would go to Saudi Arabia’s nations cup veteran Faisal Mahmoud, marking the fourth time Mahmoud has finished 3rd in the season. Having started the season in 29th place, Mahmoud’s 138 points would see the country move up two places, making light work of Israel early on in the season and with Mahmoud taking second place and the fastest lap at the aforementioned third race of the Okutama event (the final race of the season), the 18 points gained from this were enough to overhaul Slovenia, with the gap being so close that if Mahmoud hadn’t taken the fastest lap, Saudi Arabia would be 28th as they would be tied with Slovenia but thanks to having won less races, would lose on countback – proof that even 50+ seasons in, every point matters.

Fellow returnee Daan Vos finished 4th in the standings, which saw the Netherlands (already at an all-time high in 7th) close the gap to Italy, a gap that in a few seasons time could realistically be overhauled, continuing the rise of a nation that, despite a slow start, have become real contenders and a mainstay in the coveted top 10. Fifth place went to Portugal’s Afonso Oliveira, who took his country back into the top 20 after overtaking Bulgaria and Latvia, and solidifying Portugal’s status as the most successful nation from the group that debuted in season 16, and also further showed that being a late starter doesn’t mean it’s ever game over (bitch).

Sixth place would go to Levin Cavadini, whose country of Switzerland have recently found themselves in a battle for 10th place in the cup with season 59 absentees Denmark and Finland. Having been overtaken by both in the preceeding seasons, Cavadini’s 83 points saw the Swiss flag in the top 10 for a third time, although coming seasons may indicate that they’ll have to watch out for more than just Denmark and Finland…

Speaking of, Sweden finished the season in 8th in the standings, with Anton Olsson’s efforts extending the gap between themselves and 14th-placed Brazil, while the gap between Spain and Australia (8th and 9th respectively) also increased slightly thanks to this season, as both countries still find themselves in their all-time lows in the standings (at least Maria’s counting them in I suppose…) and fight to remove themselves and to return to their former heights of the top 5.

However, the main anomaly from this season has been Romania – having started the season in an all-time low of 101st, and in the dreaded bottom 11 (soon to be 12). Despite driver Stefan Cobzaru finishing in last every race, the 9 occasions he would receive a singular point he earned for doing so ensured that the next country to rejoin the top 100 would be its latest departure, as Romania climbed through the lower ranks to sit 95th by season’s end. Cobzaru’s 12th-place in the standings now has the honour of being the highest a Romanian driver has ever finished over a season, although whether you regard it as a good achievement is up to you.

What does it mean for the future of the cup?

While this isn’t a season that has seen as much activity as some previous seasons, it has certainly provided us with some action and story arcs – the continuation of the three-way battle for 10th, Portugal returning to the top 20 and Romania returning to the top 100 will have given the “relegated” countries (Denmark, Latvia and Barbados respectively) something more to fight for, and rather crucially, all countries find themselves on entry lists for the near future. In the meantime though, they will be hoping that in any seasons of absence, any competing rivals fail to take maximum advantage.