The sim racers have been hard at it, racking up the laps over the weekend in an attempt to qualify for a coveted seat with one of the 12 teams from the ABB FIA Formula World Championship in the series' new esports competition, Formula E: Accelerate.
Ultimately, they're aiming to earn themselves a place on the virtual grid of 24 in the new esports series and the chance to compete for a share of the €100,000 prize-pool and some real-world seat-time with laps in a Gen2 Formula E car.
Topping the timesheets
As of Monday afternoon it is Red Bull Racing Esports driver Frederick Rasmussen with the quickest time, storming around the Berlin Tempelhof Circuit - site of the Berlin E-Prix - with a 1:08.5s lap time.
The leaderboard is already incredibly close with hundreths of a second covering the top entries. The lead three qualifiers currently comprises of Rasmussen's Red Bull Esports stablemate Joni Tormala and pro sim racer Samuel Libeert.
im trying to qualify for the formula e accelerate competition, looking good so far, still 6 days to go though😬pic.twitter.com/BwZCoUTpwk
— Frederik Rasmussen (@G2Frede) January 8, 2021
The biggest names in esports
Formula E: Accelerate appears to have captivated the digital racers, as heavyweights from around the sim racing world all attempt to grab the attention of the Formula E teams and thrust themselves into the spotlight.
The timesheets are filled with recognisable names from the Race at Home Challenge, and of them, leading the charge is Peyo Peev in ninth. The Bulgarian will be remembered for his performance winning from Round 2 of Challenge Grid competition.
Also in-amongst these familiar sim racing names is that of current World's Fastest Gamer, James Baldwin, who sits in 27th position after initially topping the board on the opening day. Baldwin earned the title in Las Vegas last year and has already ventured into real racing having competed in British GT with Jenson Button's Team Rocket outfit.
Top 10: Monday January 11
- Frederik Rasmussen - 1:08.541
- Joni Tormala- 1:08.558
- Samuel Libeert - 1:08.577
- Nikodem Wisniewski - 1:08.595
- Michal Smidl - 1:08.625
- Manuel Biancolilla - 1:08.683
- Risto Kappet - 1:08.689
- Dennis Jordan - 1:08.707
- Peyo Peev - 1:08.708
- Martin Stefanko - 1:08.734
For the full timesheet click here. N.B cars used in Qualifiers do not indicate teams drivers are representing.
The high calibre of entries so far would suggest Formula E: Accelerate is already shaping up to be as hotly-contested and keenly-fought as any Formula E campaign - and we'll be getting underway with the opening race on January 28.
Do you have what it takes to add your name into the mix? Set your fastest lap before the open qualifiers close at 23:59 GMT on January 13.