Rallycross is a relatively new motor racing discipline, having come about in the 1960s. Modern rallycross combines the best attributes of circuit racing and rally to produce one of the wildest and most exciting forms of racing today.
Challenge Description
This challenge aims to try to capture the excitement and feel of the FIA World Rallycross Championship, with a realistic ruleset (with concessions to make it more fun and challenging for entrants), running through a simulated season of twelve rounds. The team that accumulates the largest amount of challenge points will be crowned the champion!
Rules and Overview
This will be once again a very complicated and ambitious challenge, with both a user-driven driver simulation and pace control system (more on both of these later!) that entrants can interact with to give a greater sense of realism and interactivity. Combined with car to car interactions, this is not your average spreadsheet-based Automation challenge!
Series Overview
The Automation Rallycross League Season two will feature two classes of cars, and a multi-tier league in the top class.
Supercar Class
The single class from Automation Rallycross League Season One returns, rebranded as the Supercar class. This is the fastest class of car, with the cars resembling their road car siblings largely in shape only; with huge horsepower, exotic materials and cutting-edge technology, the Supercar class will produce some of the fastest cars in the racing world. New as for Season Two is the tiered league system:
This is the top league in the Supercar class, where the fastest and best compete. For Season Two, all returning players from Season One will be granted automatic entry into the ARX Premier League.
This is the second tier of the Supercar class, running the same rules, but separate from ARX Premier League. For Season Two, all new Supercar entrants will be entering this tier.
Supercar Class Car Specifications
Cars will be made in accordance with the following ruleset:
The Engine Specification Calculator and Tire Size Calculator can be found on Google Sheets by clicking here!
New for Season Two, the Automation Rallycross League introduces a more affordable spec-racing series below the Supercar class. This series is intended to provide entrants with the option of a simpler challenge, but no less competitive. Additionally, Super 1250 will offer the opportunity for entrants to “develop” young drivers at a faster rate than if they were in the Supercar class, adding double the skill points season to season.
Three cars are eligible for ARX Super 1250:
From left to right: Kadett Club by @CorsicaUnknown, Evgenis Valkyrie by @Cheeseman and FABEL Sport Etoile 1250RX by myself. All three cars are tuned to be as close to perfectly balanced in terms of their aggregate lap times as possible, but each car comes with its own strengths and weaknesses compared to the other two. Since Super 1250 is a spec-car series, tuning options are very limited, and it will require more attention to the driver simulation and pace control aspects of the challenge than the Supercar class.
The ARX Super 1250 Car Pack is found here.
Super 1250 Class Car Specifications
The Super 1250 Downforce Calculator is found in the Unified Rules and Calculator Sheet!
Challenge Structure
All league levels and classes of cars will run twelve rounds, spanning the world of rallycross. Each round will run in the following format:
-
Qualifying – All entries will run in a four-lap heat, of which one lap must be a joker lap, in each of four qualifying rounds with up to seven other entries. The times from all the heats in each qualifying round will be tabulated, and each entry’s Qualifying Points will be assigned in relation to the rest of that round’s elapsed times. At the end of the four qualifying heats, each entry’s Qualifying Points will be added together, with the field for the semi-finals being determined from the top finishers in the qualifying rounds. Additionally, the top twenty finishers in qualifying will be awarded Championship Points, that count toward that entry’s total for the season.
-
Semi-Finals – Entrants that finished in the top half of the qualifying rankings automatically advance to the two semi-finals, where entrants with even qualifying ranks will race each other in one semi-final, and entrants with odd rankings will race in the second semi-final. Each semi-final race is six laps long, of which one lap must be a joker lap. The top half of each race will then advance to the final, with all entries in the Semi-Finals being awarded Championship Points based on the order of finish.
-
Final – Entrants that placed in the top half of each Semi-Final will advance to the final. The final is six laps long, of which one lap must be a joker lap. All entries that make the final will be awarded Championship Points based on the order of finish.
At the end of the season, the top six finishers in the ARX League One will be promoted to the ARX Premier League for Season Three, while the bottom six finishers in the ARX Premier League will be relegated to the ARX League One. There will be no time restriction for promotion or relegation; a team relegated to a lower league in Season Two can be promoted back to the higher league for Season Three, for example.
Once you have completed your entries, send it via PM to me, and you will receive a Scrutineering Report back from me, with the car’s overall compliance level. Cars that do not pass scrutineering by the deadline will not be allowed to participate!
Driver Simulation
In this challenge, entrants will be able to customise their driver’s skills and perks according to their desires. These skills affect how a driver is able to drive their car on paved surfaces, unpaved surfaces, how talented they are at overtaking/blocking overtakes, how much they are affected by weather and how consistent their lap times.
-
Paved Pace (0 to 10) – Each point over/under 5 represents a 0.5% improvement (over) or 0.5% penalty (under) to an entry’s baseline pace on paved surfaces only.
-
Unpaved Pace (0 to 10) – Each point over/under 5 represents a 0.5% improvement (over) or 0.5% penalty (under) to an entry’s baseline pace on unpaved surfaces only.
-
Overtaking (0 to 10) – Each point over/under 5 represents an exponential increase in a driver’s ability to overtake or block overtaking moves by others, and also increases/decreases the likelihood of a driver being able to make overtakes over longer time gaps.
-
Weather Driving (0 to 10) – Each point over/under 5 represents a 1% improvement (over) or 1% penalty (under) to any grip penalty associated with bad weather.
-
Consistency (0 to 10) – each point over 0 represents a 5% reduction of the consistency penalty, to a maximum of 50%. This means drivers will be less subject to random lap time fluctuations.
Driver Skill Development
New for Season Two, is a driver development mechanism. Any drivers returning from Season One will have Skill Points added, beyond their Season One total according to the following rubric:
| Age | Skills |
|---|---|
| Under 25 | +1 skill point, to random skill |
| 25-40 | +1 or -1 skill point, to random skill |
| 40 and over | -1 skill point, to random skill |
Driver skill development for Super 1250 drivers is discussed in the ARX Challenge Guide.
Further information can be found on the Automation Rallycross League Driver Entry Form, found here for Supercar class drivers, or here for Super 1250 class drivers.
Please do not use the Driver Entry Forms unless you have received your TeamID in your Scrutineering Report!
Reward Ballast and Pace Control
In this challenge, a reward ballast system has been implemented. After each round, the top sixteen entries that earned the most Championship Points will have weight added for subsequent rounds, in accordance with the following charts:
| Position | Weight Added |
|---|---|
| 1st | +100 kg |
| 2nd | +80 kg |
| 3rd | +70 kg |
| 4th | +60 kg |
| 5th | +55 kg |
| 6th | +50 kg |
| 7th | +45 kg |
| 8th | +40 kg |
| 9th | +35 kg |
| 10th | +30 kg |
| 11th | +25 kg |
| 12th | +20 kg |
| 13th | +15 kg |
| 14th | +10 kg |
| 15th | +10 kg |
| 16th | +10 kg |
| Position | Weight Added |
|---|---|
| Last | -50 kg |
| 2nd Last | -40 kg |
| 3rd Last | -35 kg |
| 4th Last | -30 kg |
| 5th Last | -25 kg |
| 6th Last | -20 kg |
| 7th Last | -15 kg |
| 8th Last | -10 kg |
The bottom eight entries that did not retire will have reward weight removed. The maximum permitted reward ballast for any entry is 250 kilograms, and the minimum possible reward ballast is -120 kilograms.
To allow entrants to attempt to control when/how much reward ballast their entries accumulate, a pace control system is a central mechanic in this challenge. Entrants will be able to choose a baseline pace, from 0 to 10, that their drivers will drive their car in Qualifying, the Semi-Finals and the Finals. The maximum change in pace is plus or minus 1 percent, with a value of 5 being no change from baseline. Entrants can change their entries in the Pace Control Form once per week, with the cutoff for changes being Saturday at 2359UTC prior. Notice will be given when the deadline is for each week of the challenge.
Finally, any entrants not wishing to participate in this aspect of the challenge, and any entrants that have not submitted anything will run at a default 5-5-5 setting, or the last submitted setting.
Please find the ARXL Pace Control Form here.
Please do not use the Pace Control Form unless you have received your TeamID in your Scrutineering Report!
Other Questions
Will there be a BeamNG component to this challenge?
No. It’s already complicated enough as it is, and it would exponentially increase the amount of time it takes to run this challenge.
What tracks will we be running?
| Round | Round Name | Track | Lap Length/Joker Length (metres) | Paved/Unpaved % (Joker) | Paved/Unpaved Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Disco Systems RallyX Suomi | Tykkimaki Circuit | 1060/1054 | 64/36 (67/33) | Snowy Pavement/Snow |
| 2 | Coma RallyX de Espana | Circuit de Catalunya-Barcelona | 1133/1236 | 60/40 (63/37) | Asphalt/Gravel |
| 3 | Whineykin RX Benelux | Circuit Spa-Francorchamps | 913/922 | 60/40 (85/15) | Asphalt/Gravel |
| 4 | Gulp Oil Rallycross of Great Britain | Silverstone Circuit | 972/1017 | 40/60 (40/60) | Asphalt/Dirt |
| 5 | Team Staboil RallyX Norway | LĂĄnkebanen | 1010/1103 | 75/25 (63/37) | Asphalt/Gravel |
| 6 | RX Sweden Presented By Blotify | Höljes Motorstadion | 1210/1250 | 63/37 (61/39) | Asphalt/Dirt |
| 7 | Tyrelli World RX of Canada | Circuit Trois-Rivieres | 1351/1381 | 59/41 (58/42) | Asphalt/Gravel |
| 8 | Air Trance RallyX de France | Circuit de Lohéac | 1088/1051 | 26/74 (50/50) | Asphalt/Dirt |
| 9 | Boscc RallyX of Latvia | BiÄ·erneiki National Sports Base | 1294/1346 | 60/40 (62/38) | Asphalt/Gravel |
| 10 | Snackers RX Nurburgring | Nurburgring | 1029/1115 | 65/35 (72/28) | Asphalt/Gravel |
| 11 | Fujisaki Tires RX of South Africa | Killarney International Raceway | 1067/1158 | 57/43 (66/34) | Asphalt/Dirt |
| 12 | Sea Fuels RallyX of Abu Dhabi | Yas Marina Circuit | 1197/1234 | 65/35 (88/12) | Asphalt/Gravel |
Wait, different track surfaces? How’s that going to work?
Each track surface type has a time penalty associated with it; inside the simulation model each lap is divided into four sectors, which are all broken down into paved and unpaved sections. The appropriate time penalties are then applied in kind to each car. Different surfaces have different time penalties, and will react differently if there is weather.
Weather too?!
Yes, weather. Each round of racing will have different weather for each Qualifying round, as well as both Semi-Finals and the Final. Weather forecasts will be published beforehand, so entrants will have a chance to adjust their strategies for each week of racing.
This sounds pretty complicated…
It’s a complicated challenge, yes. For those looking for more information, I have written a challenge guide, with some insights into how the simulation model will work, as well as an overview of how this challenge will work, found here:
ARXL Challenge Guide
Tracks
I have created a pack of the twelve tracks the ARXL will be running this season, found here:
Automation Rallycross League Track Pack
Submission Guidlines and Deadline
To submit your entry to me, please send your entries in the following formats:
ARX Premier League - for players returning from Season One ONLY:
Car Model and Engine Family Name: ARX-(Your Username Here)
Car Trim and Engine Variant Name: (Your Trim/Variant Name Here)
Please indicate to me if you wish to have your Season One driver return for Season Two.
ARX League Two - for new entrants:
Car Model and Engine Family Name: ARX2-(Your Username Here)
Car Trim and Engine Variant Name: (Your Trim/Variant Name Here)
ARX Super 1250 - Open to anyone, including participants in either Supercar class:
Please submit this to me via PM, along with team’s name, your car number of choice and your car’s country of origin. Car numbers will be assigned on a first-come, first-serve basis only.
Participants are allowed to enter both the Supercar class as well as Super 1250.
Entries must be received before Monday, November 2nd at 23:59 Eastern Time (0459 GMT on Tuesday the 3rd, 5:59 AM CET)
Please note that due to the complexity of this challenge, entries are capped to a maximum of 64 per league!
Many thanks to @Simmer22 for the banner art!
