Sirois Survives Four-Wide Chaos to Win Indianapolis

Indianapolis, IN — Round 11 of the ISRA Sim Gaming Expo Retro Series brought the Lotus 79s to the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway for a 100-lap, 250-mile “half-scale” running of the greatest spectacle in racing. With the championship battle heating up, French Canadian David Sirois arrived as the points leader with five wins, facing a high-stakes event where every point counted toward the final standings.

The race began with Lewis Hayes on the pole, but he was immediately challenged by Vern Hawkins, who took the lead into Turn 1. The early laps were characterized by intense drafting and frequent lead changes among a competitive front pack that included Richie Hearn, Chris Stofer, and Matt Wagner. Wagner, known as the “Ovalmeister,” made a particularly impressive charge, picking off cars one by one to take the lead in a three-wide maneuver.

Pit strategy became the focal point as the race reached its midpoint. While most of the field aimed for a two-stop strategy around lap 40, Matt Taylor executed a lightning-fast pit stop of only 27 seconds, significantly shorter than the 37-second average, propelling him to a massive 6.2-second lead. This gap held for many laps as the chasing pack, including Hearn and Hawkins, struggled to cooperate and draft back to Taylor’s rear wing. Meanwhile, Craig Forsythe attempted an “early peel” strategy, pitting on lap 50 to ensure he could reach the finish without further stops, banking on a late-race caution.

The race lead eventually cycled to Jim Herrick, who was the last driver to pit on lap 88. Herrick held a narrow lead, but he was quickly hunted down by a six-car train consisting of Sirois, Alex Guyon, Lionel Calisto, Wagner, and Cristobal Valenzuela. Just as the battle for the win reached a fever pitch, a caution was triggered on lap 96 by an incident involving Hayes and Hawkins in the back of the field, setting up a single-lap, 2.5-mile shootout to the checkered flag.

The final restart was nothing short of “the humanity.” Coming off Turn 4, the leaders fanned out four-wide in a desperate sprint for the Yard of Bricks. A massive collision occurred at the finish line, resulting in cars cartwheeling across the track. David Sirois emerged through the chaos to secure his sixth win of the season. The podium was completed in bizarre fashion, with Cristobal Valenzuela finishing second despite hitting both walls, while Matt Wagner took third with only three tires remaining on his car. Most remarkably, Lionel Calisto was credited with fourth place while crossing the finish line upside down on his roll hoop.