4. F1 2013 Season Challenge

Start your Season Challenge by the main menu right after you complete the Young Driver Test. In this Semi-career, you will play a total of 10 races which all of them are 5 laps long. Since you will win the Championship on this Challenge, for the first year, you will be required to stay with the same team throughout the season. Selecting a good team is KEY to winning. Either Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren, or Mercedes AMG. In Season Challenge there are 11 achievements in total.

NOTE: Each race will have a tip on how to win it, what to look out for as in drivers, weather, and tight corner etc.; the full explanation of the race will be given in the Career Section. Please refer to it for further information about each individual race.

Right before you start race 1, you will select your first rival. Select any driver of your choice. You will be given the opportunity to defeat him and take his position in the team. However, as explained before, this season, you will stay in the same team through-out.

RACE 1: FORMULA 1 GRAN PREMIO D'ITALIA 2013
5 Laps / 3.60 Miles / 11 Turns / 218 MP - - - Weather: Clear Qualification, Clear Race.
Recommended set up: 1+ (to the right) HIGH speed, LOW downforce.
The very first race of your season challenge. Monza. Here, you will have your very first One-shot Qualifying session. Start session you will notice that there is already a cutscene of your car. You will be thrown into the Monza track at full speed. The tip for winning this qualifying section is to deploy your DRS as soon as you start. On the very first corner, use the brakes fully between the 200-150 Meter mark. To be precise, at 160M. Make sure to take the very first corner cleanly, so you keep a valid lad. Followed by the second corner right after that makes a left then a right. Brake BEFORE the 100 Meter mark, otherwise, you'll go off the track. The rest of the track is easy.

You will unlock both of these achievements for finishing first. Upon finishing the race, you will unlock these 3 achievements:

The Heat is On

You have set a valid lap time in One-Shot Qualifying.

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Podium Finish

You finished a race in the top three in Career or Season Challenge.

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It Only Takes One Shot

You have taken pole position in One-Shot Qualifying.

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Every time you win a race (Place 1st) you will receive 25 points for your Championship. This is what we are aiming to win. If you have done this correctly, taken pole position from One-Shot Qualifying and Winning the race, you will also unlock:

Achiever

You passed all of your objectives over a race weekend in Season Challenge.

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RACE 2: FORMULA 1 GROSSER PREIS SANTANDER VON DEUTSCHLAND 2013
5 Laps / 3.20 Miles / 15 Turns / 182 MPH - - - Weather: Clear Qualification, Clear Race
Recommended set up: 1+ (to the right) HIGH speed, LOW downforce
Come second race day, this circuit will take a few tries to master but even then, it's not too challenging. The objective here will be for the player to achieve first place on One-Shot Qualifying. Brake right at the 100M on the first corner to the right. They key to keeping a good speed to the track is to be tenacious. There are 2 sections which are high speeds, one goes uphill while the other one goes downhill. These two sections, ride them out at full speed. Don't worry about the downforce as the car will stay in track if you stay on the racing line. Estimated qualifying time: 1:35:000.
Complete your second race and beat the rival you have chosen to obtain the following:

Nemesis

You have beaten your first rival in Season Challenge.

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Once you beat a rival, you will receive a contract e-mail on your HUB with the chance to replace the driver you have defeated and take part of that team. However, in our case, because of this guide, you will press (Y) to REJECT the offer and to continue to stay on the same team the whole season. Note: you cannot go further until you either reject or accept the contract, so make sure you reject or the Auto-save will get you.

RACE 3: 2013 FORMULA 1 SANTANDER BRITISH GRAND PRIX
5 Laps / 3.67 Miles / 18 Turns / 182 MPH - - - Weather: Clear Qualication, Clear Race.
Recommended set up: 0 (right in the middle) MEDIUM speed, MEDIUM downforce.
Silverstone is widely known in other games like Forza Motorsports to be a repetitive pain, especially in certain corners. However, in F1, Silverstone stands out as one of the fastest circuits in the season. Qualifying is not a challenge here but mastering the section where the car snakes its way left to right twice is here key to staying on top and winning this race. Big tip also is to learn the final chicane. Reason for this is that you can over take anyone in this section since the AI, no matter the difficulty, doesn't do well on it.

RACE 4: 2013 FORMULA 1 SHELL BELGIAN GRAND PRIX
5 Laps / 4.25 Miles / 19 Turns / 192 MPH - - - Weather: Clear Qualification, Clear Race.
Recommended set up: 1+ (to the right) HIGH speed, LOW downforce.
SPA is well known in the F1 series, especially because it had that horrible challenge that was to be completed on F1 2012. This year however, the track has not changed much except there are a few newer things to keep in mind. Here, you have a clear weather. Wet weather on this track can be a nightmare because the track goes downhill, uphill, and there are plenty of wide turns. The DRS can be vital if you are behind on cars. The section here is after the track goes uphill but having to be within 1 second of the car ahead can be a challange. Don't be afraid to go fast as the track is long. The final turn is right down the weirdest part. Hit the brakes at 100M as usual and then drop right then left sacrificing large speed. It is essential to keep some KERS here so if you have any left over, use it. The first corner will decide the race, keep this in mind.

RACE 5: 2013 FORMULA 1 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX
5 Laps / 3.43 Miles / 20 Turns / 182 MPH - - - Weather: Clear Qualification, Clear Race.
Recommended set up: 1- (to the left) LOW speed, HIGH downforce.
The Austin track is more of a silly dance than a serious ballad. The first corner is a right tight U-turn that allows you to overtake major positions. The left to right turns is really fun and can be done at mid-speeds so keep a good speed while not necessarily touching the brakes. The track has nice turns but the best one is nearly at the ends which can be done full speed before the last 2 where you actually slow down. The high downforce here will keep the car from going off the track at high speeds but it will definitely show how much you've given up during the long straights.

RACE 6: 2013 FORMULA 1 UBS CHINESE GRAND PRIX
5 Laps / 3.39 Miles / 16 Turns / 192 MPH - - - Weather: Rain Qualification, Rain Race.
Recommended set up: 2- (2 times to the left) VERY LOW speed, VERY HIGH downforce.
This is the first race of the season challenge in which the track will be wet. Here, you'll need high downforce sacrificing speeds to turn properly on the corners. The Shanghai circuit has weird turns and a long section of the track that is one mile of a run. This section, since there is no DRS, the player can draft behind opponents to overtake. Driving in this circuit, no matter what set-up, will most likely make the car under-steer so braking ahead of time is vital because of the wet track. The AI also does exceptionally well on wet conditions so this will be a challenge to qualify on if you are not a season driver. To keep ahead of the AI, don't get greedy on the corner at the end of the very long straight. Brake after 125M and tap the gas on the way out. Too soon, you'll be off the track. Too early, the AI will take pole position.

RACE 7: 2013 FORMULA 1 AIRTEL INDIAN GRAND PRIX
5 Laps / 3.19 Miles / 16 Turns / 199 MPH - - - Weather: Clear Qualification, Clear Race.
Recommended set up: 0 (In the middle) MEDIUM speed, MEDIUM downforce.
The Buddh Circuit can cheat on you on a flash. You'll feel like you are owning the track at one point, the next you could be thrown off it, just like that. The first corner can be taken with some aggression while the second corner is very tight to the right, so brake early and throw the car right. Once you're on the long straight, full speed, use 40% of your KERS to gain advantage over the AI and leave them behind. The most difficult part of the track is the fast left and rights in the sector 2. Here, keep a good speed but don't overdo it as you'll go off the track very easily. Keep a finger firm on the left trigger ready to brake in case of over going out. This is a very fast track.

RACE 8: 2013 FORMULA 1 JAPANESE GRAND PRIX
5 Laps / 3.61 Miles / 18 Turns / 194 MPH - - - Weather: Rain Qualification, Rain Race.
Recommended set up: 2- (2 times to the left) VERY LOW speed, VERY HIGH downforce.
The Suzuka circuit is the most difficult track of the entire Season Challenge. For 2 main reason. The first is that Suzuka doesn't yield way for too many mistakes. It's got zig-zags, uphills, downhills, straights, fast straights and an insane chicane. The second reason why this challenge is difficult is because it is raining. Not only you have to cope with AI who are superior under wet conditions, you'll have to fight your way to the tap if you are overtaken. The first sector will give you the famous zig-zags. Here, is all about balancing the car without either braking or accelerating, so it's more gliding over to keep your focus and ahead of the AI. The tricky part here is the first U-turn in sector 2. Slow down and pull that turn with as much speed as the car allows you and don't let yourself be over take here otherwise, you'll have to claw your way to pole. Sector 3 is where the long straight is, so here, full speed until the chicane where you will brake at 110M throwing the car right then left. Fight it, this one is yours if you are persistent and tenacious.
Upon completing the Suzuka track, 2 achievements will unlock for you. The first one is for beating 4 rivals in 1 Season Challenge. The second achievement will be for winning the Drivers' Championship in Season Challenge. Congrats!

Unrivaled

You have beaten four rivals in one season in Season Challenge.

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Winning!

You have won the Drivers' Championship in Season Challenge.

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RACE 9: 2013 FORMULA 1 KOREAN GRAND PRIX
5 Laps / 3.49 Miles / 18 Turns / 199 MPH - - - Weather: Clear Qualification, Clear Race.
Recommended set up: 1+ (one to the right) HIGH speed, LOW downforce.
After winning the Championship, you still have 2 more races to finish on this Season Challenge. So from here, start the Korean circuit, it will not matter whether you win or lose here, but why give up now? To start, if you get ahead of the AI on the first turn, you're golden. The circuit has 2 very long (1.2 KM) straights. Although, the description says you should use high downforce, don't worry, it is not necessary. This track is yours once you dominate the long straights because in the turns, the AI is slower, so defend your rear if you see the AI drafting on you.

RACE 10: GRANDE PREMIO DO BRASIL 2013
5 Laps / 2.68 Miles / 15 Turns / 195 MPH - - - Weather: Clear Qualification, Clear Race.
Recommended Set up: 0 (right in the middle) MEDIUM speed, MEDIUM downforce.
This is it! The final race of the Season Challenge. For the Sao Paolo circuit, you don't need neither downforce nor speed. So a well balance car will help you lots. The first corner is the hardest part of the track, because it goes left then right. DOWNHILL. At fast speeds, this is tricky because you need to slow down around 110M before the corner. Here is the best over-taking section of the track. Without hitting anyone the rest of the track are a trance of sways down the hill mostly left turns. The distribution of KERS in this track will be almost 25% on each tight curve. Just remember to save some extra for the final curve. Full throttle after the last one and the burst of KERS to either attack or defend picking up incredible speed. That right there is how you dominate this track.
Once you complete this race, you will receive the following achievement for staying with ONE team throughout the entire Season Challenge.

Family Ties

You stayed with the same team through the whole season in Season Challenge.

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SEASON CHALLENGE YEAR 2:

Instead of explaining each track as before, each player can go back and review them once again for the tips on each circuit. However, here in this section, I will explain what it is the MOST important aspects of playing on HARD difficulty and how to survive the most difficult achievements in the game. By the time you reach this section, each player should be a well-seasoned driver so we will all have an idea of what we are getting into. So first, I will explain the best tips and then the achievements you will obtain.

First and most important, from the main menu, go to "MY F1", select DRIVER INFORMATION and then select DRIVER DETAILS. Right here, you have the option to TURN OFF the auto-save. This step is extremely important because it can save each player loads of time. Once this option is off, back out to the main menu. You will be given a warning as the auto-save is off, but skip this. The reason in why we have the option off is because minor mistakes can cost you the entire achievement. You must go back to the main menu and MANUALLY save your progress, only when you are satisfied enough with the progress you have made. If by any reason you do a poor performance, you can dashboard and re-load from the point you are comfortable from.

At this point, you will complete a total of 4 races. Start your Season Challenge on ANY difficulty for now. You can select EASY if you like. Select a low ranked driver. Example: MAX CHILTON who is #22. Qualify and race the first 4 races however you see fit making sure you stay ahead of your rival. At the end of race 2, accept the contract offer to switch teams to MARUSSIA. Once you are there, select the very same team you select at the beginning of this challenge. Then, win the next 2 races to win your spot back on your starting team. Remember that you will NOT save this 4 races because there is no point since once you obtain the achievement for going back to your original team, then you will dashboard.

Back to the Beginning

You returned to your starting team in Season Challenge.

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Back from the Dashboard, Load your game and then Start the Season Challenge on HARD. You will notice that only 2 teams are available. CATERHAM and MARUSSIA. These are poor performance teams and the cars will struggle to keep up with better ones. So your goal is to move to a better team as soon as possible. When selecting a rival, it is important to choose a player you can beat, but I have a personal strategy that works almost ALL the time. Each 2 races you beat your rival on, you will move to a whole new team. Your target here is to move to 4 different teams. So here are the list of Rivals you should select every chance given:

RIVAL 1: SERGIO PEREZ > TEAM: VODAFONE MCLAREN
RIVAL 2: NICO ROSBER > TEAM: MERCEDES AMG
RIVAL 3: MARK WEBBER > TEAM: INFINITY RED BULL
RIVAL 4: FELIPE MASSA > TEAM: SCUDERIA FERRARI

Following each of these drivers is key to winning, however, if you feel like alternating between these, go right ahead. These are the best 4 teams and you want to be on their place. By the beginning of race 9, the achievement will pop for swapping teams 4 times in a season.

Trading Places

You raced for five different teams in Season Challenge in a single season.

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Here are some KEY tips to staying ahead of your rival while going for the Championship:

- First and most important, have CAR DAMAGE SIMULATION on FULL. The reason for this is because the back of your car is VERY strong while the front is extremely weak. You can change this from the main menu on the MY F1 tab. When defending a position on HARD difficulty, you can slam the brakes and have the car behind you hit you damaging its front wing. Most of the time they even retire from the race because of high damage. This comes in very handy if you are trying to hold off your rival. Disqualifying them or making them not finish will net you that spot on their team.

- The AI is on HARD is tenacious and extremely persistent but they are NOT perfect by any means. Taking advantage of the AI's mistakes will help you pass them or over take them. They do very well on wet tracks so expect to have a very tough time with them.

- Qualifying is THE MOST IMPORTANT aspect of winning the championship. Most of the time, you will qualify either 10+ and even sometimes around places like 17-20. Don't feel discouraged. This can easily be fixed during the race. Unless you have either a steering wheel, or you are a professional F1 driver, or are very lucky, expect this.

- The AI takes slow corners. They are not bad at them but they aren't good either. So here, usually on the first corner, over take EVERYONE. The key to winning each race is to take top 10, even better, top 5 position, at the beginning of the race. From here you can claw your way to the top or defend this position to net you points.

- Being top 5 is the only way to win. From my experience, I had top 3 in 8 out of the 10 races with 6 #1 spots. If you qualify bad and end up being lower then 10, dashboard.

- Is not about being the best, is the consistency. Consistent clean and fast laps go a very long way to defeating a hardcore AI. Remember, you are the player and you are better by nature.

- Defending is the second most important fact to winning. When you see the white lines behind your camera, which means that the AI is closing him. Use your car to block them and not let them pass. The AI will always slow down to not take a penalty. They slow down enough as far as 1 second behind so you don't have to. Rarely, you will have to defend against 2 people at the same time, fight one off, and then move on to the next one. It’s you or them, and it rather be you than them.

- On WET tracks, it might be a good idea to swap your brakes to the front. This increases the pressure on the front so the downforce is applied on the front of the car. To do this, simply press left on the D-Pad and select the brake options from there.

- Remember NOT to get a penalty at all. If this happens, dashboard immediately. This is why you need to save manually after every race. Mistakes can happen.

Follow these tips and you will win the Drivers' Championship on HARD difficulty giving you the most difficult achievement in the game! Congratulations!

Hardcore Champion

You have won the Drivers' Championship in Season Challenge on hard difficulty.

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