October 28th, 2018

​Two rounds remain, two chances, two drivers locked in one of the tightest most exciting championship battles in lionheart history will face off at Road America and the finale at Auto Club Speedway.  What a fitting end to an exciting second Retro Series season.  The first of the two rounds will be on the greatest road course in the US; Road America, for the LPM Grand Prix at Road America. This is fitting as our two championship leaders have dueled this season to assert their road course dominance. However, the championship will be settled and won by the driver who dominates both road and oval disciplines. So far, Adam Blocker has proven to be the oval master, while Saunders has had the edge on the road.

Last time out in Montreal was the first time this season that someone not named Blocker or Saunders won the race, with real-world IndyCar driver capitalizing on a mistake by Alex Saunders in the last 10 laps en-route to a victory in only his second league start. Saunders would come home 2nd, with Adam Blocker 3rd. Andrew Kinsella was the only lead lap driver to run a 1-stop strategy, and used it to vault 3 places in the final standings to finish 4th. Marc Cohn came home an impressive 5th. With 2 races to go, the results in Montreal leave Saunders 18 points behind Blocker.

This fight certainly brings back memories of the S1 Lionheart championship which saw Jesse Vincent win the title over Richard Behr by just one point.  A lot has changed since the Lionheart Racing Series was formed back in 2014.  Back then, the only thing that was won was bragging rights, however, now the champions not only are winning the respect of their fellow drivers but now earn some serious prizes as well.  This year the Retro Series Champion will win a set of HPP Simulation top of the line pedals valued at over $1300.

Four drivers still have a mathematical shot at winning the championship with over 180 points yet to be decided thanks to the finale being double points.  Dustin Wardlow and Michael Goodman sit 3rd  and 4th  and will need a lot of help in order to make it happen.  They’re not out of it yet and are sure to give it everything they have to win this championship, but will need a lot of help, starting with the round at Road America.

Sage Karam has had a strong start to his first few races in the Lionheart Series.  Winning at Montreal over Alex Saunders.  Certainly, if Blocker or Saunders want the championship title they will have to contend with Karam for every point, and Karam could be the wild card that decides this championship one way or the other.

James Brant has had a strong season in the Retro Series with 3 top 5 finishes and 7 top 10’s. After last round, he has gained 3 positions in the standings and is now 12th overall.  Brant is certainly a driver to watch over the remaining two races.  If Brant continues this seasons success he certainly can finish within the top 10 in points for 2018.  Rumors around the paddock are that Brant will be moving over the IR-18 series full time for 2019.

The team championship has taken a swing after Montreal with Raven Motorsports gaining much needed ground over their closest rival 8 Ball Motorsports.  The difference is 100 points currently and Road America will be the final road event where each team can make up or lose ground before heading into the finale where a strong running can be a nail in the coffin for the other team. Adrenaline Motorsports sits 150 points back, and still have a shot at the title as well.

Last year at Road America, Adam Blocker was victorious over Wardlow by 4.5 seconds. David Altman rounded out the podium, while Travis Jegerlehner and Jason Galvin rounded out the top 5.
​
The 2019 season schedule has been finalized by league officials it is confirmed that 18 rounds will once again make up the season schedule.  The Lionheart series is happy to be officially announcing the inaugural running of both Imola and Sebring for season 3. Tune in to the season finale for more details .
 
But first, we have the penultimate round to get through. Tune in on Thursday November 1st, 2018 at 10:35pm eastern for all the fabulous Retro action only on the iRacing eSports Network and iRacing Live, presented by GSRC.