The second half of the 2022 Porsche Esports Carrera Cup GB championship got underway on Sunday 27 March at a virtual Knockhill circuit. The championship's first visit to the challenging Scottish track follows its addition to the iRacing platform late last year. Replicating the established format, drivers took part in a one-hour practice session, a 17-minute open qualifying session and two 25-minute races broadcast live via the Porsche Twitch channel.

Knockhill's undulating terrain and nine challenging corners pushed drivers to the limit in a weekend punctuated by mistakes for even the very best. Kevin Ellis Jr arrived at a computer-generated Scotland tied on championship points with rival – and fellow Scotsman – Graham Carroll. It was Ellis Jr who snatched pole position and victory in the first race of the weekend having fended off his countryman's advances.

Starting from pole position gave Carroll the advantage in the second race, but Ellis Jr picked his way through a wall of spinning cars to challenge Carroll's lead in the closing stages of the race. The two championship protagonists delivered a thrilling duel at their home circuit over several laps, Carroll staying ahead to win. Ellis Jr now edges ahead of Carroll in the championship standings by 12 points with three weekends remaining.

Qualifying
Ellis Jr was the pacesetting driver in practice as drivers struggled to get to grips with Knockhill's 1.26-mile layout, underlined by several dramatic spins. During the first part of the qualifying session Ellis Jr topped the timesheet, first with a rather apt lap time of 46.992 – 992 being the type of the latest 911 GT3 Cup. Ellis Jr then improved with a 46.863.

The second half of the session saw Ellis Jr pushing harder still, his new time of 46.822 recorded with only three minutes of the session remaining, while just behind him came Carroll and Sebastian Job. With one minute left on the clock Job improved to second but was immediately usurped by an improving Carroll, making the front row an all-Scottish affair with joint championship leaders Ellis Jr on pole and Carroll alongside him.

Race one
Drama arrived before the lights went out for the weekend's first race when Peter Berryman, three-times a race winner in 2022, did not take the start from his grid position of ninth. When racing got underway Carroll immediately challenged for the lead, but the order at the front remained the same with Ellis Jr ahead while several drivers suffered dramatic spins. On the second lap Will Tregurtha was the driver on the move, he overtook Josh Poulain for seventh at the final corner. Poulain came straight back at his rival but could not pass, allowing Thomas Cope to close and make it a three-car fight.

With 16 minutes of racing remaining an error for Ellis Jr at the Chicane allowed Carroll to get a run on him on the approach to Taylors, however Ellis Jr stayed ahead. The pair went side-by-side down the pit straight and into Duffus Dip before Carroll spun at Leslies, failing down the order as a result. Ellis Jr now led Job from Thompson. A recovering Carroll – now eighth – quickly set his sights on a finishing position of sixth which would give him reverse grid pole position for the day's second race.

A struggling Job soon came under attack from Thompson who got ahead for second, Job then came under pressure from Will Chadwick in their fight for the final podium position. Further back an incident between Craig A Williams and Poulain saw the pair make contact before leaving the circuit. Next all eyes turned to Carroll's quest to grab sixth spot. He closed in on Cope and successfully overtook at Hislops for seventh before pressing Tregurtha for sixth and getting through.

With five minutes of racing remaining, Job found enough pace to challenge Thompson for second with a move at the exit of Clarks when the latter slid wide, the scrap allowing fourth-placed driver Chadwick to close up. The chequered flag fell to record the third win of the season for Ellis Jr, joined on the podium by Job and Thompson but, importantly, championship hopeful Carroll secured sixth and therefore pole position for the second race in Scotland.

Following the race, for an incident between Jon Derrick and Dane Baird on lap 13 five seconds was added to the race time of Derrick. For an incident on lap 21 between Dane Baird and Josh Poulain, 10 seconds was added to race time of Poulain.

Race two
The grid for the second race was determined by reversing the top six finishing positions from race one. Carroll got a clean start from pole position to retain his lead into the first corner. Meanwhile Job found himself swamped by his rivals, dipping all four wheels into the gravel out of McIntyres. Chadwick and Thompson were among several spinning drivers in the early part of the opening lap. From his starting position of sixth, Ellis Jr carefully navigated his way through the drama of spinning cars to emerge in third behind Carroll and Jamie Moone.

At the front Carroll began to build what looked like a comfortable gap over Moone while Ellis Jr settled into third. Job recovered from his adventures on the opening lap to run in fourth – up one place. The key battle at this stage of the race however was for fifth spot between Tregurtha, Cope and Leon Penn. Cope and Penn switched places twice as they raced in close formation, but Tregurtha ultimately managed to stay ahead.

With 15 minutes of racing remaining, Ellis Jr closed in on Moone for second, the move made into Taylor's hairpin. Ellis Jr then set his sights on leader Carroll ahead. An interesting battle developed between Chadwick and Dane Baird for ninth, Baird suffering an off at the final turn, the resultant concertina effect allowing Thompson to challenge Chadwick but it would come to nothing. When Penn and Cope made contact at Taylor's, Chadwick was able to capitalise, grabbing eighth spot with Thompson moving up to ninth.

In the final 10 minutes of the race, Ellis Jr closed down championship rival Carroll, clearly the faster driver at this stage of the race. The round nine winner arrived on Carroll's rear wing with several short laps remaining. What followed was a masterclass in professional sim racing from the two Porsche Esports Carrera Cup GB championship hopefuls. Carroll was forced defensive at certain parts of the lap, at one point the pair even ran side-by-side, but despite his best efforts Ellis Jr could not find a route by the leader. Carroll took his second victory of the season with Ellis Jr just behind in second and Moone an impressive third. Job came home in fourth.

Following the race, for an incident between Leon Penn and Thomas Cope on lap 14, ten seconds was added to race time of Cope. Derrick has now accumulated a total of 30 seconds of time penalties in the accumulated penalty time (APT) ranking. As a result, and in accordance with championship regulations, he will not be permitted to participate in the qualifying session for the Silverstone weekend.

With the second half of the season now underway just three weekends remain on the 2022 calendar. On 10 April the championship visits the Silverstone National circuit for rounds 11 & 12 before the penultimate weekend at Donington Park. Ellis Jr will want to continue his good form to keep a firm lead from primary rival Carroll, while reigning champion Job needs an excellent weekend to stay in the championship hunt. Keep up to date with Porsche Esports Carrera Cup GB news via the Porsche Motorsport GB Twitter feed: twitter.com/PorscheRacesGB

Championship positions:

1st - Kevin Ellis Jr - 192
2nd - Graham Carroll - 180
3rd - Sebastian Job - 174