There will be plenty of esports racing in April. Here are five must watch events that we think are worth following.
Image credit: SRO Esports
The new Formula 1 season began last month, Formula E is approaching the halfway point of its season, and other major racing series like IndyCar and MotoGP have kicked off. But the more racing, the better! Whether it be in the real world or virtual.
Some championships are continuing their seasons and some are just getting started, including a few LAN-only series. For the esports racing fans, here are our recommendations for esports racing events to watch in April.
Racing Unleashed
With the conversation going on regarding pro sim racers running cheat software, this series provides an interesting solution. Racing Unleashed is a chain of sim racing centres across Switzerland, as well as in Munich and Madrid.
But they also run a couple of championships with a €200,000 prize pool. The difference being that no drivers are permitted to compete from home. Instead, they all have to gather onsite at their closest RU lounge. The two leagues RU operate are called the Challenger League and the Racer League.
In the Racer League, the best drivers fight for the championship whilst the competitors in the Challenger League fight for the title and subsequent promotion to the Racer League. The RU championships have been going on for four years, with former F1 Esports driver Michal Šmídl winning three Racer League titles and the other being won by PESC racer Alejandro Sánchez.
The first round of the season will take place on 28-29 April, with the drivers tackling the Silverstone circuit. Racing in both the Challenger and Racer League are broadcast on their YouTube channel.
Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup
We are now halfway through the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup season, and none of the drivers are about to get complacent. The racing from last weekend on the Red Bull Ring was very intense, so it’s only going to get more so as the season goes on!
Altus Esports’ Jordan Caruso took his first win in the series after picking up the championship lead in the previous round. Charlie Collins and reigning champion Diogo Pinto are not far behind, with Alejandro Sánchez making huge inroads in the last two rounds. Will momentum be on his side?
The remainder of April will see the PESC drivers on two very different tracks. First is the short Watkins Glen circuit on 8 April, and then 22 April will be when they tackle the iconic Spa-Francorchamps. Both can be seen on the official Porsche YouTube and Twitch channels.
SRO Esports Sim Pro Series
Towards the end of April, the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup gets underway and along with that, the Fanatec Esports GT Pro Series. The real world pro drivers will gather at the dedicated space in the paddock to race on Assetto Corsa Competizione. There, they will race to bag some extra points for the teams championship.
Along with that is a brand new addition to SRO’s plethora of competitions on ACC. Some of the top esports drivers will compete onsite at all Endurance Cup rounds for a share of a €75,000 prize pool.
The championship is team based much like the Fanatec Esports GT Pro Series. Therefore it’s safe to suggest that the 24 teams involved will be fielding one driver per round, with one of those teams able to qualify onsite before the race.
The opening round takes place 22 April on the Monza circuit, it can be followed on the SROMotorsports Twitch channel and the GTWorld YouTube channel.
F1 Esports Challengers
Unlike the previous two years, in which F1 Esports Challengers started in January, the 2023 series for Pro Championship hopefuls will start in April.
Just like last year, Xbox players will race on Tuesdays, PlayStation players on Wednesdays and PC players on Thursdays. The top six from each platform will be eligible to compete in the Pro Exhibition, in the hopes of being picked up by a team to compete in the Pro Championship.
The first two races of each platform will be held on the Bahrain and Australian Grand Prix tracks respectively. The Xbox drivers will race on the 18 and 25 April, PlayStation drivers on 19 and 26 April, and PC drivers on 20 and 27 April. All the racing will be streamed to the official F1 Twitch channel.
rFactor 2 GT Challenge
Last but not least is the return of GT3 racing to rFactor 2. Last running in 2021, the series acted as a feeder category to the GT Pro Series with drivers being able to earn their way into that primary championship. Having been put on hiatus, GT Challenge is back as a singular series.
Every Monday for six weeks, some of the top rFactor 2 drivers will compete on American racetracks. They qualify through rFactor 2‘s online competition system, and the top split gets broadcast with commentary.
After two rounds at Long Beach and Sebring, it’s Ferrari’s new signing Dennis Jordan that leads the standings despite not winning a race. The remaining rounds will be held on Laguna Seca, Indianapolis, Lime Rock Park and Daytona every Monday for the next four weeks. All the top split races can be viewed on the rFactor 2 Twitch channel from 8:15pm CEST.
Which of these esports racing events will you be following? Tell us on Twitter at @OverTake_gg or in the comments down below!
