Max Verstappen and Lando Norris find alternative ways to race as F1 stars turn to eSports
by Editor 2019
Formula One drivers Max Verstappen and Lando Norris were racing on Sunday but, with the season-opening Australian Grand Prix cancelled due to the coronavirus, it was against invisible opponents on virtual racetracks.
The world of eSports came to the rescue in the absence of a race in Melbourne or indeed of any single-seater series with the Formula E and IndyCar calendars also ravaged by the fast-spreading virus.
Red Bull’s Verstappen finished 11th in an ‘All-star Esports battle’ with a cast of other real racing drivers and professional gamers.
McLaren’s Norris finished sixth in another virtual race, the ‘Not the Aus GP’ organised by Veloce Esports and shown live on Twitch.TV and YouTube.
The 12 lap all-star race, organised by Torque Esports and The Race, featured a virtual version of the Nuerburgring – a German track no longer on the F1 calendar – and was won by Slovenian Jernej Simoncic.
McLaren Shadow’s Kevin Siggy was second with Rudy van Buren, winner of the inaugural 2017 World’s Fastest Gamer competition and the prize of a simulator role with McLaren, finishing in third place.
Torque had stumped up a total prize pot of $10,000 with $4,000 for the winner.
“More people watched today’s ‘The Race All-Star Esports Battle’ online than watch a Formula One race on Sky TV in the UK. That is an incredible statistic,” commented Torque CEO Darren Cox.
“During the race we were the biggest gaming or eSport stream in the world. Bigger than Fortnite.”
IndyCar drivers Felix Rosenqvist and Colton Herta were the highest-ranked real world drivers in seventh and 10th places respectively.
Verstappen won one of three qualifying heats from pole position but qualified ninth for the final using rFactor’s Formula ISI 2012 package.
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Created with Sketch.F1 driver line-up 2020
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Created with Sketch.F1 driver line-up 2020
1/21 F1 2020
The Formula One grid shows just two changes from the Class of 19, meaning there will be a fair few familiar faces returning next season. Here’s how the grid lines up.
REUTERS
2/21 Mercedes – Lewis Hamilton (No 44)
Heads into his 14th season in F1 as a newly-crowned six-time world champion and is showing no signs of allowing his stranglehold on the sport to ease. Will once again be the man to beat, but his future could well prove the biggest talking point in 2020.
AFP via Getty Images
3/21 Mercedes – Valtteri Bottas (77)
Bottas comfortably made second place his own in 2019 but he still needs to find an extra gear or two if he is going to really challenge his teammate. Whether or not his divorce affected him mentally throughout the season only he will know, but a more focused and driven Valtteri Bottas could arrive on the grid next season if his distractions are out of his mind.
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4/21 Ferrari – Charles Leclerc (16)
Based on results in 2019 the Ferrari No 2 should step up and become the Ferrari No 1, but will that actually happen? Regardless, Leclerc impressed immensely in qualifying last season, taking five pole positions including four in a row, and he finally found himself on the top step of the podium in a sign of things to come.
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5/21 Ferrari – Sebastian Vettel (5)
Perhaps the most under-pressure driver in the sport in 2020, Vettel knows another year of failing to meet the grade will almost certainly end his time with Ferrari, particularly with so many good drivers on the market in 2021. Vettel showed signs of the fire within him still burning with his win in Singapore, but much more will be expected from the four-time world champion.
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6/21 Red Bull – Max Verstappen (33)
A year wiser and with a car that improved rapidly as the season wore on, Verstappen could prove the biggest challenge to Hamilton and Mercedes in 2020 if Red Bull can find that top level consistency they crave. Verstappen is also out of contract next year and will be as sought-after as Hamilton, and a season-long duel between the two would spice up that uncertainty no end.
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7/21 Red Bull – Alexander Albon (23)
Has convinced Red Bull enough in his half a season with the team to bag himself the second seat with the team for next year, or at least for the start of it. Looked a calm head on talented shoulders in 2019 and should have had a deserved podium in Brazil had it not been for Hamilton’s rash overtake attempt, but now he will have to start closing the gap to Verstappen if he is to secure a long-term future.
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8/21 McLaren – Carlos Sainz (55)
The ‘best of the rest’ last season will hope to build on the late podium that he secured in Brazil that ended McLaren’s long five-year drought, with aspirations that the British team will be looking up at the top three rather than down over their shoulder.
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1/21 F1 2020
The Formula One grid shows just two changes from the Class of 19, meaning there will be a fair few familiar faces returning next season. Here’s how the grid lines up.
REUTERS
2/21 Mercedes – Lewis Hamilton (No 44)
Heads into his 14th season in F1 as a newly-crowned six-time world champion and is showing no signs of allowing his stranglehold on the sport to ease. Will once again be the man to beat, but his future could well prove the biggest talking point in 2020.
AFP via Getty Images
3/21 Mercedes – Valtteri Bottas (77)
Bottas comfortably made second place his own in 2019 but he still needs to find an extra gear or two if he is going to really challenge his teammate. Whether or not his divorce affected him mentally throughout the season only he will know, but a more focused and driven Valtteri Bottas could arrive on the grid next season if his distractions are out of his mind.
Getty Images
4/21 Ferrari – Charles Leclerc (16)
Based on results in 2019 the Ferrari No 2 should step up and become the Ferrari No 1, but will that actually happen? Regardless, Leclerc impressed immensely in qualifying last season, taking five pole positions including four in a row, and he finally found himself on the top step of the podium in a sign of things to come.
Getty Images
5/21 Ferrari – Sebastian Vettel (5)
Perhaps the most under-pressure driver in the sport in 2020, Vettel knows another year of failing to meet the grade will almost certainly end his time with Ferrari, particularly with so many good drivers on the market in 2021. Vettel showed signs of the fire within him still burning with his win in Singapore, but much more will be expected from the four-time world champion.
Getty Images
6/21 Red Bull – Max Verstappen (33)
A year wiser and with a car that improved rapidly as the season wore on, Verstappen could prove the biggest challenge to Hamilton and Mercedes in 2020 if Red Bull can find that top level consistency they crave. Verstappen is also out of contract next year and will be as sought-after as Hamilton, and a season-long duel between the two would spice up that uncertainty no end.
Getty Images
7/21 Red Bull – Alexander Albon (23)
Has convinced Red Bull enough in his half a season with the team to bag himself the second seat with the team for next year, or at least for the start of it. Looked a calm head on talented shoulders in 2019 and should have had a deserved podium in Brazil had it not been for Hamilton’s rash overtake attempt, but now he will have to start closing the gap to Verstappen if he is to secure a long-term future.
Getty Images
8/21 McLaren – Carlos Sainz (55)
The ‘best of the rest’ last season will hope to build on the late podium that he secured in Brazil that ended McLaren’s long five-year drought, with aspirations that the British team will be looking up at the top three rather than down over their shoulder.
Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
12/21
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EPA
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The Dutch 22-year-old spun at the first corner, dropping to 18th, but then showed his familiar overtaking skills and aggression to carve his way back up despite another spin.
Others who took part in the heats included Indianapolis 500 winner Simon Pagenaud and former F1 drivers Juan Pablo Montoya and Rubens Barrichello, as well as their respective sons, and double Formula One eSports champion Brendon Leigh.
“Shame we didn’t make the final. Got tangled in someone else’s shunt. Need to work on it as well. Was an amazing event. Can’t wait for the next one,” commented Montoya on Twitter.
Veloce reported 180,000 live viewers across all channels for their event that also featured Real Madrid goalkeeper and avid gamer Thibaut Courtois, as well as former McLaren F1 driver Stoffel Vandoorne.
“This is a huge opportunity for eSports because for people who may have been watching the real sport and want to have something to watch and give them that fix, this may be able to provide a bit of that,” Veloce’s Jamie McLaurin told the BBC.
Formula One has said it expects to start the season in Europe at the end of May, subject to review, while Formula E is temporarily suspended and hopes to race again in June.
US-based IndyCar has cancelled all events through March and April.
