Using Esports as a launch pad to a motorsport career would have been unthinkable just 5 years ago but Jarno Opmeer is one sim racer who is following this new and very modern path.
I also look at how simulators are integrated into real world racing with an example of their use during a race weekend, how Veloce added real world racing to their esports portfolio, wheel setting tips from GT3 and sim racer Daniel Morad and Max Verstappen’s sim racing rig.
All this and much more in this week’s Sim Racing Roundup on Motorsport Prospects.
From Sim Racing to the Real Thing
In the video above, two-time Formula One Esports Champion Jarno Opmeer recently shared his racing story to the world in a TEDx Talk back in February. You can watch his TEDx talk above.
“In his talk, Jarno speaks on his unorthodox racing path, one that has become more of a reality with esports and sim racing in today’s day and age. It wasn’t always in the cards for the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Esports Driver to be in the position he’s in today. Starting off in real-world racing, eventually he found his place among the greats in sim racing, and now that’s led back to the real-world with opportunities he would have never had otherwise.”
Sportscar365 has a great article that illustrates how the use of a simulator can help a team competing in real world racing during the actual race. “After FP1 we had some serious issues and we had the guys back in Munich on the DIL (driver-in-the-loop simulator) trying to replicate it and solve them,” he explained. “We re-wrote code between then and now and fixed it.”
Motorsport.com explains how how Veloce transformed itself from an esports team to become a race-winning force in Extreme E. “Veloce had been keen on expanding its presence beyond the virtual realm for some time, but it was only after the launch of Extreme E in 2021 that it found a championship that provided excellent bang-for-buck while keeping costs to a minimum.”
Feeder Series looks at the path that sim racer Deagen Fairclough took to get to British F4. “I think becoming an underdog – well, not underdog, really, because I’ve won an eSports series – I think everyone’s going to be looking at me going, ‘I want to beat him’. So I think going through the year, we just want improvements, but I want to be fighting up the front.”
The FFSA Academy has been equipped with a simulator specially designed for single-seater training. It is a model designed and developed by MOB-SIM, a specialist in this field for several years, which uses rotating central cylinder technology to best reproduce the perception of the yaw movement by the driver by generating cockpit rotation around a vertical axis. The simulator can be accessed as part of an complete training session or in individual sessions by the day or half-day. More details are available here.
Alex Lynn reckons Chip Ganassi Racing is well prepared for the European leg of the FIA World Endurance Championship as a lack of testing mileage has been compensated by intensive simulator work. “I think so,” Lynn spoke. “I think we’ve been doing a lot of hard work in the sim, just in general, like really building up the program.”
Competitive Sim Racing News
Here are more headlines from the world of competitive sim racing:
- Motorsport Australia launches a new Esports website
- Early out for Porsche Coanda Esports at round four of the ESL-R1 series
- Dáire McCormack: the secret to ESL R1 success
- SAU SIM Racing Team Prepares to Compete in Olympic Esports Series
- Mercedes Completes Big Heist by Signing Star Red Bull Driver Ahead of 2023 F1 Esports Season
- Sim racers from Southeast Asia now invited in 4th Ferrari Esports Series
- Max Verstappen disrupted by Kelly Piquet’s daughter during sim race
- Lando Norris Brags About His Sim Racing Skills By Explaining How He Matches the Lap Time of His Professional Friend
- Red Bull to open its largest esports venue in Denmark
- ESL R1: Pejic and Baldwin claim Mercedes-AMG one-two
- Formula E’s Esports competition includes Gen3 cars and €40,000 prize pool
Sim Racing Tips & Techniques
In the video above, GT3 driver and sim racer Daniel Morad reveals the most realistic wheel settings for sim racing. “Dial in your wheel force feedback settings to feel like a real race car with this ultimate guide. I will take you through each setting and how it feels in relation to my real life race cars.”
Sim Racing Tech Roundup
Curious as to what Max Verstappen’s sim racing setup looks like? SportSkeeda has all the details.
Interested in Sim Racing? You could win a Ford Cockpit from Next Level Racing! Get the details here.
Here is a roundup of the latest sim racing tech news and reviews from around the world.
- Thrustmaster Unveils T818 Ferrari SF1000 Simulator: A High-End Racing Wheel and Base Set for Ultimate Sim Racing Experience
- Does Screen Size Matter When Sim Racing?
- GSI’s newest entry level wheel is the X-29, preorders begin 1st May
- The Cammus C5 is a direct drive sim racing steering wheel, minus the base
General Sim Racing News
- Every real-world SRO GT World Challenge track not in Assetto Corsa Competizione
- EA SPORTS F1 23 Closed Beta applications now open
- 10 Best SUVs In Forza Horizon 5
- Race the fastest lap on the Red Bull Ring
- GamerFest returns to RDS next month
- iRacing Downshift #48: Staff Racers, Console Games, and More
- Sim Racing Cockpit Market 2023 | Booming Industry Size in 2023-2030
- 12 Best VR Games You Can Play Without a Controller
- iRacing’s Next Console Game Is a Futuristic Off-Road Arcade Racer
Motorsport Prospects Joins the Weekly Motoring Goodness Newsletter!
I am excited to announce that Motorsport Prospects has teamed up with the motorsport-mad folks at Racing Edge to become part of their Weekly Motoring Goodness newsletter! The first edition with content from Motorsport Prospects was part of last week’s April 14th newsletter. You can subscribe here: https://motoringgoodness.beehiiv.com/subscribe
Looking forward to having you along for the ride!
Author: Mark Boudreau
Mark is the publisher of Motorsport Prospects. As a former lawyer, he applies his legal background and research skills to assist race drivers by showcasing the resources they need to make their motorsport careers happen.