News
ARG gets back on track with unique online racing series
The Australian Racing Group is pleased to confirm that it will host an online motor racing league, broadcast directly into every home around Australia and the world, offering a racing fix during this difficult COVID-19 pandemic.
The competition, to be known as the carsales ARG eSport Cup, will be exclusive to race drivers from the carsales TCR Australia Series, VHT Australian S5000 Championship, National Trans Am Series, Kumho Tyres V8 Touring Cars and the Gulf Western Oils Touring Car Masters, plus other selected special guests.
The competition will prohibit ‘pro gamers’ from competing, allowing the race drivers you see on the race tracks around Australia to compete in the virtual world.
Drivers such as TCR race winners Dylan O’Keeffe, Nathan Morcom and Aaron Cameron have already confirmed, while S5000 stars Thomas Randle, James Golding and Tim Macrow will strap on their headsets in a bid to win the Cup.
Trans Am drivers George Miedecke, Nathan Herne and Brett Holdsworth are also confirmed.
The popular iRacing software will be used for the competition, where a mix of touring cars and open wheel racing will make up the e-Sport Cup.
The carsales ARG eSport Cup will kick off on Thursday evening, April 2, with qualifying and the races to be run in a short, sharp 90 minute race meeting.
The final regulations will be confirmed soon, with the competition to be run over consecutive weeks through April and May. Prize money will be awarded to the race winners, with all races to be broadcast via the TCR Australia and S5000 Facebook and YouTube pages, free of charge.
With the long-term implications of COVID-19 unravelling at a fast moving pace, ARG did not want to leave race-starved fans with no competition to follow, instigating this proven method of entertaining online content and competition.
More details, including drivers and car liveries, will be revealed in due course.
QUOTES
Matt Braid
CEO, Australian Racing Group
“This week has been a roller coaster for everyone, both here in Australia and around the world. This is a way for us to bring some normality back to our worlds as we are faced with our new environments,” said Braid.
“The initial response from drivers and teams has been very encouraging. I would not be surprised if we end up with a grid of around 40 cars, with dedicated drivers from the ARG stable of categories.
“The eSport Cup is open to all drivers and teams from the ARG categories, and there will be some really exciting entries keen to show their skills in the online format.
“More details will be available soon, however, we trust that all race fans will see this as a great way to fill the gaps before we get back to our real world racing.”