Formula 1 is pushing its own boundaries beyond track limits as the 2018 Esports Pro Series has been a huge success.
We ended our inaugural campaign taking second position in the Constructors’ Championship behind Mercedes, courtesy of the brilliant results from our sim drivers: Frederik Rasmussen, Patrik Holzmann and Cem Bolukbasi.
Our series was highlighted with a third-place finish from Frederik in the Drivers’ Championship, as he put on some spectacular battles against the series second-time winner, Brendon Leigh.
Frederik Rasmussen [Denmark]:
- Race 9: P5 (10 points)
- Race 10*: P3 (30 points)
- Driver Standing: 3rd – 127 points
“Overall, the 2018 Series was quite successful for the team as we finished second in the Constructors’ Championship. Personally, I grabbed third position in the Drivers’ Championship which I’m proud of. As for the last races, in Austin I loaded the wrong setup, so apart from being slow my tyres dropped down quickly and fell behind in the pack.
“In the final race in Abu Dhabi, the result was decent, but it wasn’t a good race for me. The racing I saw from Brendon was certainly questionable, he was brake checking and going 50kph too slow through the corners to break my front wing…at least he’s been penalized!”
Patrik Holzmann [Germany]:
- Race 7: P7 (6 points)
- Race 8: P12 (0 points)
- Race 9: P3 (15 points)
- Race 10*: DNF
- Driver Standing: 8th – 51 points
“In Germany, I was competitive from practice and then went into Qualifying, where it was tricky conditions as it started to rain after a lap. However, I qualified in P3 which was a good starting position and I was happy with that, I had a good start and kept P3 in the first stint, keeping a good advantage. I lost a bit of time in the pits and dropped to P7 in the end, which was disappointing considering I had a lot of pace. Even if I was on course for a podium, still there were some decent points for the team.
“The second race in Singapore started pretty well. My teammate and I were a bit unfortunate in Qualifying getting caught out in the mixed conditions. We were the last cars on track so it was wetter for us than for the others, which meant my starting position wasn’t that great, finishing in P10. I tried an alternative strategy in the race and started on the Hard tyre, but getting places back around Singapore is quite difficult. It was tricky with the penalty I got, as I made an overtake and went off the track. I finished P7 but was dropped to P12.
“Austin was a good race for me as I started fourth and was able to overtake Frederik in the race. It was a clean drive and I was able to defend well to end up in P3.
“I started from eighth for the final race in Abu Dhabi, which was a critical one as it was for double points. I had a good start but I was a bit unlucky when a car in front of me spun and I couldn’t avoid it, there wasn’t much I could do and I was out of the race.
“The whole series as a team was really good, P2 was a great result for us. Well done to Mercedes for winning, and we can be proud of what we have achieved. Personally, it could have been better, but two podiums in eight races was still good, and my teammates did a great job as well, and I’m sure we will be stronger next year.”
Cem Bolukbasi [Turkey]:
- Race 7: P8 (4 points)
- Race 8: P6 (8 points)
- Driver Standing: 12th – 32 points
“For the German race I had a small issue in Qualifying and unfortunately I couldn’t set a good lap time, which made me start from P16. The race went well, I decided for an alternate tyre strategy and the race pace was there so I managed to finish P8, right behind Patrik. It was kind of like damage limitation, so it worked well in the end to get some points.
“In Singapore, I had another issue in Qualifying with the force feedback. I wasn’t happy with the qualifying result as I was 15th, but I had a good strategy and a solid race to finish P6 and bring some more points home.”
Constructors’ Championship:
- Mercedes AMG-Petronas Esports – 382 points
- Scuderia Toro Rosso Esports – 210 points
- Sauber F1 Esports Team – 119 points
- McLaren Shadow – 101 points
- Hype Energy eForce India – 99 points
- Red Bull Racing Esports Team – 81 points
- Williams Esports – 69 points
- Haas F1 Esports Team – 27 points
- Renault Sport Team Vitality – 23 points