Esport drivers ready for the Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans

Teams

To start, we will talk about Esport teams. There are only two of them and they are to be distinguished from the others present on the grid. Most of the teams participating in the Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans are either classic motor racing teams embarking on the adventure of sim racing or a brand that has decided to field its drivers to get some publicity with a new audience. While the two structures that are Williams Esport and Veloce Esport were created solely for the purpose of competing in sim racing.

Williams Esport

The WEC Rebellion team has partnered with Williams E-sport to field four cars in the virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans.

If the Formula 1 team Williams Racing is at the bottom of the pit, the same cannot be said of its Esport team. It has managed to establish itself in the industry to become a reference in certain championships. This contrast between the two entities even allowed them to separate from each other. Williams Esport has been able to gain acceptance and recognition in the community, something that many teams have not managed to do, as their Esport branch was more of a gimmick than a real project.

In addition to competing in the major championships in Formula 1 gaming, the F1 Esports Series and AOR, Williams has expanded its influence in games such as Forza and especially iRacing with varying degrees of success.

Veloce Esport

Veloce Esport commits three cars in LMP2 at the virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans. A leading team in simracing.

The arrival of Veloce Esport in the world of sim racing was a real bomb. It was one of the first structures to put so many resources into such a project. But above all, it did so in a very modern way by hiring many content creators and big names. They quickly allowed it to become the structure that most F1 Esports drivers want to be a part of. If Veloce did not have the help of a motorsport team like Williams Esport, it was co-founded by Jean-Eric Vergne, former F1 driver for Toro Rosso and double Formula E world champion. Proof that the French driver knows how to find success where others saw no future.

After signing a partnership with Alfa Romeo in 2019 to ensure its drivers a spot in the F1 Esports Series, Veloce also teamed up with McLaren in 2020 to offer two additional seats to its proteges.

Team Redline

The team fields a car under its own name and has entered into a partnership with the Jota team (WEC) for two additional cars.

If we were to compare Redline to a Formula 1 team, it would be Ferrari. The two are the oldest or at least one of the oldest in their field but especially the most successful. This team is so renowned that it has F1 drivers like Max Verstappen and Lando Norris. Redline is the horse on which it is safest to bet for this upcoming race weekend.

The pilots

We will list here the big names of Esports who will be present at the Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans.

-James Baldwin, pilote Veloce Esport: le Britannique a fait une carrière prestigieuse en sim racing en remportant notamment les Fastest Gamers Award ce qui lui a permis de tremplin pour sa carrière en sport automobile.

-Nicolas Longuet, pilote Renault aux F1 Esports Series, le Français courra sous les couleurs d’Alpine la semaine prochaine. Celui-ci a notamment participé au sacre de Red Bull en 2019 grâce à une deuxième place remportée en Italie dès sa première course.

-Rudy Van Buren, ayant remporté la compétition Esport McLaren Shadows, le Néerlandais s’est vu offrir le rôle de pilote simulateur au sein de Woking, une belle récompense pour avoir battu près de 30 000 adversaires. Il courra sous les couleurs de la Team Redline pour ce weekend prochain.

-Greger Huttu, le quintuple champion du monde de Iracing est un des plus grands et un des plus anciens sim racers. Son rôle sera d’aider Verstappen et Norris à remporter la victoire pour la Team Redline.

-Jarno Opmeer, le Néerlandais courra avec Veloce Esport dans une semaine, sa nouvelle équipe pour les F1 Esports Series puisqu’il pilote désormais pour Alfa Romeo après avoir quitté Renault qui n’a pas été en mesure de se battre jusqu’au bout pour le titre.