It is hard to believe but true. Last week, after having played Fusion irregularly for a couple of months and having unlocked it 100% and completed it about 80-90% (I still have to complete some Time Trial and most Zone mode) I decided to try an arcade race with the damage simulator turned off (which I hadn't done until then) and weapons off as well.

And I must tell it's a so much better experience. Specially leagues. With this set up the game is more about the racing and less about the weaponry.
Having to get into the pits every lap no matter how well you raced because you fear getting 2 or 3 quakes in a row which would get you out of the top of the league even if you still have more than half of your shields is definitely tiring.
Racing without weapons and without damage simulation gets the game nearer to the experiences provided by 2097 or 3 where good racing allowed you to fly with AG-5Y5, Assegai or Icaras even though their shields were pityful.

This doesn't solve bad scraping, crappy free zones, stupid energy walls or lame physics engine but it certainly provides a much better experience.

As I said in the beginning, hard to believe but true: Fusion is the WipEout where it is funnier to play arcade (or league) mode with no weapons.