Ever wondered what goes on at the annual ADAC SimRacing Expo? Well here is everything you need to know about one of the biggest events of the esports racing year!
Photo credit: ChampionJoe
Once per year, some of the biggest esports racing brands, teams and drivers get together at the Nürburgring in Germany for the ADAC SimRacing Expo. This year, the Expo will run from 17-19 September. We here at OverTake will be attending the event and bringing you to the heart of the action here on our website as well as over on our YouTube channel fairly soon, so stay tuned!
As the name suggests, the Expo aims to put all of the various aspects of the esports racing world on a pedestal for onlookers to watch, play, or try for themselves. But what exactly goes on at the Expo, what is it like and who can you expect to be there?
What does the Expo have to offer?
In the words of the organisers, the ADAC SimRacing Expo is “the racing event for the whole family – where virtual and real motorsport merge”. This latter claim refers to the location of the event, at the world-famous Nürburgring, as well as the fact that it takes place at the same time as the 1000km race at the Ring. There are attractions for both fans of sim racing and fans of the physical thing!
For the esports enthusiast, there are high-level competitive races such as the two SimRacing Trophy races and the Digital GT500, which take place at the Expo every year. The SimRacing Community Trophy will feature open qualifiers for anyone and everyone at the Expo itself. The fastest six in GT4 machinery will qualify for the final race, which is set to take place on 18 September.
Everything comes together piece by piece. We are looking forward to seeing you tomorrow! 🔥#SimRacingExpo @imsimofficial @fanatec pic.twitter.com/C9Lilp891N
— ADAC SimRacing Expo (@SimRacingExpo) September 16, 2021
The SimRacing Professional Trophy is a step up from the Community version. It pits professional esports competitors against each other in GT3 cars using Assetto Corsa Competizione. The final will feature the 6 drivers who managed to qualify, and those six will battle it out for the €10,000 prize pool.
Then there is the Digital GT500. This race features 28 teams of drivers, who will compete against one another over two races at the SimRacing Expo. This competition also makes use of GT3 machinery, but this time the simulator of choice is iRacing. Once again, the prize money on offer comes to €10,000.
These races will be available for viewing not only among the event’s attendees,but also in the form of livestreams, so that fans from around the world can witness the action. If you want to see the schedule for yourself, take a look here.
Who will you see there?
Over the last few weeks, there has been a steady trickle of announcements on the SimRacing Expo twitter page regarding the various high-profile attendees of the event. For example, the likes of Fanatec, Heuskinveld and Mobiuz, as well as many more, will be present, putting their hardware on display for people to try out or witness for themselves.
Trying to get the logo just right aint easy. #SimRacingExpo #Fanatec pic.twitter.com/r9Y9rVFmp3
— Fanatec (@fanatec) September 16, 2021
If you’d rather hear from game developers, there will be a few of those too! 505 Games and Kunos Simulazioni, the developers behind Assetto Corsa, are attending the Expo. Representing tournament organisers, there is VCO, the powering force behind competitions such as the ProSIM series, and the newly announced 2021 Cup of Nations series.
At this year’s Expo, they will be putting on the show for the 2021 running of the SimRacing Professional Trophy, which you can catch live on YouTube. On top of that, they will also be hosting a special edition of their esports racing awards show, the Simmy Awards. There will be five awards given out for Expo orientated categories such as: best hardware announcement, best booth design and best Expo driver.
What are you hoping to see at the ADAC SimRacing Expo this year? Tell us on Twitter at @OverTake_gg or in the comments down below!
