© @bcampbell_photoEsports Bulls Endure Tough Afternoon In 4 Hours Of MonzaRound one got the 2021 season up and running in Italy
AtoughqualifyingsessiononFridayandearlyracedramameantitwasn’ttobefortheEsportsBulls,withjustonetop-10finishinthefirstLeMansVirtualraceof2021.
- Car number: 11
- Car: Oreca 07 LMPS
- Drivers: Alex Siebel, Dennis Jordan and Timmy Hansen
- Laps: 147
A spin in qualifying meant that Dennis Jordan and the LMP team began the race in P18. Jordan started the race well, getting past three cars before pitting shortly after for a stop and go penalty due to a late driver change. After coming out in P17, Jordan was on the charge, getting up to P14 and then P7 following some early pit stops.
After 1 hour and 13 minutes the car made another pit stop, coming out just over a second behind car number 966 of Team Fordzilla in P16. Some strong and consistent driving saw Jordan make it up to P13, before taking two more places as the top 10 was in sight. After more pit stops ahead, the car was up to P7 and running well before pitting 1 hour and a half into the race. Jordan left the pits in P10 and continued to push hard with some solid lap times.
Strong Driving At Monza© @bcampbell_photo
Alex Siebel took to the wheel with just over an hour left and looked steady in P10 before jumping up into P9. With 27 minutes to go, Siebel entered the pits in P8 and came out in P9, setting up an exciting final stretch with the number 10 car of Mahle Racing who was 12 seconds ahead. Siebel only managed to close the gap to 8.8 seconds, but it was a strong performance from the LMP team who managed to climb nine places from where they started the race.
Dennis Jordan on how the race went:
“Going into the race event knowing we were to receive a stop & go penalty due to a late change in our pro driver line-up, we knew it was going to be difficult. Keeping it clean and staying out of trouble were the most important things and we did those well.
“Getting more on top of the car lap by lap, finishing P9 may not sound exciting, but can be considered a job well done by the whole team from the situation we found ourselves in after that penalty.”
Dennis Jordan is hopeful ahead of the next Le Mans Virtual round:
“As a team, we will put our heart and souls into the preparation for that race, clearly the biggest of the season, maybe the entire year. But for now, we will just do our job day by day, race by race. If we do that well, we will be in a great position already.”
Great Team Performance From LMP© @bcampbell_photo
- Car number: 111
- Car: Corvette C8.R
- Drivers: Yuri Kasdorp, Nestor Garcia and Denis Lund
- Laps: 133
Pro driver Denis Lind began the race for the GTE team that started in P12 in its class (P33 overall). A great first lap saw the Corvette C8.R jump two places and up into the top 10 early on.
Lind and the team’s race got turned upside down after 25 minutes as the car was shunted from behind by Signatech Alpine driver Tom Lartilleux. After spinning off into the gravel at Parabolica, Lind found himself with the uphill task of battling right from the back of the grid. It was later revealed that Tom Lartilleux had a technical issue and the accident wasn’t caused by driver error.
After such a race-defining incident, the Bulls battled on and 30 minutes later, Lind made it up to P16, and continued to push hard to chase the rest of the pack. The Danish driver needed to be on high alert to avoid a second big accident. Race leader Gordon Mutch of R8G Esports lost control of his car on the second chicane, as Lind drove past the spinning Oreca.
Bringing The Pace To Le Mans© @bcampbell_photo
Lind was switched out for Nestor Garcia just after the halfway point, and he was immediately involved in an exciting three-wide battle at the first chicane. Garcia moved to the outside, before cutting the corner and taking the escape road to avoid a collision. The place had to be given back but Garcia kept fighting and managed to get ahead and up into P14 (GTE class).
Dutchman Yuri Kasdorp was swapped in with over an hour remaining, as the team finished in P13 in the GTE class (29th overall) – a great drive from the trio following early drama that saw them fight back from last place.
Yuri Kasdorp’s reaction:
“Starting P12 the goal was to stay out of trouble and Dennis had a great start avoiding any issues and sitting nicely in the train of cars until we got hit into the wall.
“That contact broke our car and we lost 2 laps in the pits which in a 4 hour race means race over. The pace we had after looked for top 5 maybe but nothing more.”
Yuri Kasdorp on the team’s spirit:
“It feels very good being part of a team that's all working towards the same goal. Helping each other out when driving and getting along well makes it a lot easier and in the end. Once I get into a good rhythm I can keep going for long stints.”
Full Charge On Straight At Monza© @bcampbell_photo
This new championship, created by Motorsport Games Inc. will be using the rFactor2 platform and consists of five races starting in September and running until January 2022. The first four rounds will be held strictly online, with the final round – 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual – being a live televised event within the 2022 Autosport International motorsport show in Birmingham, UK on 15-16 January 2022.
The races will be held at some of the world’s most iconic tracks with the series beginning on 25 September with a four-hour race at Monza before the series moves to Spa-Francorchamps on 16 October. From here the racing heads to Nürburgring on 13 November, Sebring on 18 December and then the live finale on 15/16 January at Le Mans.
For the series there is a $250,000 prize fund with the team winning the final race of the series collecting half of that fund, so the Red Bull Racing Esports drivers will be fully focused on being crowned champions!
You can follow all the action on the series’ YouTube and Twitch channels.
The second race at Spa starts as 14:00BST on 16th October. To show your support for the Team, why not check out the Red Bull Racing Esports Shop.
Get Ready For 24 Hours Of Le Mans© @bcampbell_photo
