Bobby Zalenski has been called The King of the Road Courses in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series. Zalenski reaffirmed that status by leading every lap to win the Logitech 45 at the virtual Chicago Street Course on Tuesday, July 2.
It was Zalenski’s second win of 2024 and the 16th of his eNCCiS career, completing a sweep of the road courses this season in his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Zalenski, a resident of Fresno, California, became just the second multi-race winner of 2024, joining defending champion Steven Wilson.
Parker White kept Zalenski honest throughout the night but ultimately finished second, followed by Wilson in third. Vicente Salas and Casey Kirwan completed the top-five.
“Shoutout to [Parker White],” Zalenski said on the Sunoco Post Race Report. “He pushed me last year, and he pushed me this year. Thankfully, I was able to stay ahead of him.”
Four eNCCiS drivers raced live from the Navy Pier in Chicago: Matt Bussa, Garrett Manes, Tucker Minter, and Nick Ottinger. Out of those four, Ottinger placed the highest in 12th.
Brian Mercurio finished 18th substituting for Collin Bowden in the No. 17 RFK Racing Ford.
TONIGHT’S ACTION
For the second time this season, series officials divided the race into two sections: a 15-lap sprint race and a 30-lap feature race. This format was previously used at Brands Hatch in England, the other road course on the 2024 eNCCiS schedule.
The top eight drivers in qualifying prior to the sprint race earned series points, with Salas getting eight points for the fastest time, all the way down to one point for White in eighth. The top eight then had their spots inverted for the sprint race, meaning White started on pole.
SPRINT RACE
White led the field to the green flag, but he did not stay there long as Zalenski went by to lead the opening lap. Behind them, a couple of multi-car wrecks shook up the running order in the mid-pack on lap 1.
Zalenski and White quickly stood out as the drivers to beat, pulling away from third-place Wilson by over two seconds and then another four seconds back to Dylan Duval in fourth.
With White right in his tire tracks, Zalenski held on to lead all the laps and claim the top starting position for the feature race. White maintained second place, followed by Wilson, Duval, and Kirwan.
FEATURE RACE
Zalenski and White made up the front row for the start of the 30-lap feature. They remained side-by-side for the first half of the opening lap until Zalenski cleared White in turn 6 to secure the lead.
Meanwhile, Darik Bourdeau and Timmy Holmes both ran into early trouble and had to get a virtual tow back to pit road.
As the drivers passed the halfway point, Zalenski continued to hold the top spot over White just a few car lengths behind him. Wilson lurked within striking distance in third, only 1.5 seconds back of the two leaders.
With everyone able to go the distance on one tank of fuel, pit strategy did come into play all evening.
Between that and no full-course cautions, the race ran green all the way to the finish. White stayed close to Zalenski the whole way, but he could not find a way around as Zalenski led all the laps on his way to victory.
POINT STANDINGS (TWO RACES LEFT IN REGULAR SEASON)
| Steven Wilson | 3 Wins |
| Bobby Zalenski | 2 Wins |
| Vicente Salas | 1 Win |
| Tucker Minter | 1 Win |
| Garrett Lowe | 1 Win |
| Dylan Duval | 1 Win |
| Wyatt Tinsley | 1 Win |
| Parker White | +76 |
| Nick Ottinger | +43 |
| Casey Kirwan | +5 |
| Kaden Honeycutt | -5 |
| Jordy Lopez | -12 |
| Graham Bowlin | -20 |
Malik Ray and Keegan Leahy both have wins this season but currently sit outside the top 20 in points.
NEXT UP
The eNCCiS returns in two weeks for 60 laps around the virtual Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Tuesday, July 16. Race coverage starts at 7:30 p.m. with Countdown to Green, followed by the green flag from The Brickyard shortly after 8 p.m. on enascar.com/live, youtube.com/iracingofficial, and twitch.tv/iracing.
About the author
Andrew Stoddard joined Frontstretch in May of 2022 as an iRacing contributor. He is a graduate of Hampden-Sydney College, the University of Richmond, and VCU. He works as an athletic communications specialist at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, Va.
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