Think you’ve got what it takes to compete in the 2022 MotoGP eSports Pro Draft? This is what you need to do!
Photo credit: MotoGP 21
MotoGP’s 2021 edition of their main esports contest, the 2021 MotoGP eSport Championship, has already got off to an intriguing start, with Lorenzo ‘trast73’ Daretti and Adrian ‘adriaan_26’ Montenegro joint at the top of the standings after round one. The MotoGP eSport Rising Stars Series, however, is set to get underway later this week. It acts as a feeder series to showcase up-and-coming talent for future seasons of the Global Series.
MotoGP eSport Rising Stars 2021
Rising Stars‘ main prize on offer is a guaranteed slot in the 2022 MotoGP eSport Championship Pro Draft, in which the MotoGP teams will select their riders for the 2022 Global Series season. An open qualification system means that any MotoGP 2021 player can compete for a spot in the series, unless they are already a Global Series rider.
A place in the 2022 Pro Draft is up for the taking! 👀
— MotoGP eSport (@MotoGPeSport) June 30, 2021
This is how Challenge #1 of the #MotoGPeSport Rising Stars Series will be 🎮#eSportshttps://t.co/IxofPvFzS9
One contender in the first ever Rising Stars season, Piero ‘PieroRicciuti55’ Ricciuti, was selected in this year’s Pro Draft by the LCR Honda Castrol team. His example is one that any participants in the Rising Stars Series will be keen to follow. Another graduate of the series is Michael ‘Vindex813’ Amara, who emerged victorious in the European final of the series in 2020. He now occupies the role of reserve rider for Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP in the 2021 Global Series.
Format and Calendar
There are two main phases to the Rising Stars Series. First are the Online Regional Challenges, which are essentially the qualifiers for the main event. These are open for gamers around the world to participate in and they consist of time attack challenges. In these rounds, riders will be awarded more points the faster they lap at the given circuit. Only the upper echelons of lap times will score points, so the challenge will certainly be tough!
These challenges, of which there will be four, will run from July into August. Each event will feature a different layout and a different motorcycle on which the runs must be completed. The first of these events begins on 1 July and features the Ducati of Francesco Bagnaia at the TT Circuit Assen. The following events will take place at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, the Sachsenring, and the Red Bull Ring in Austria.
So this is exactly how the #MotoGPeSport Rising Stars Series will play out ⬇️
— MotoGP eSport (@MotoGPeSport) June 28, 2021
4 Challenges ➡️3 Final Races (1 per region) 🎮#eSports pic.twitter.com/wAlPKGTQP7
The regions for both the qualifier challenges and for the Regional Finals will be split into three: the Americas, Europe and Africa, and Asia and Oceania. At the end of the Online Challenges, eleven drivers from each region will qualify for the Online Regional Finals. These finals will be just one race per region, meaning that stakes will be high and the pressure higher still for the Rising Stars riders to perform. The winning rider in each Online Regional Final will qualify for the 2022 Pro Draft.
Are you planning on trying out for the MotoGP eSport Rising Stars Series? Tell us on Twitter at @OverTake_gg or in the comments down below!
