SRO Esports returns in 2023, with a new addition to the roster in the form of the SRO Esports Sim Pro Series, an on-site invitational series which follows the GTWC Endurance Cup rounds. The International GT Challenge Esports (powered by Mobileye) returns for another series and is the only official endurance series for SRO. The Sprint Series returns too, but is region locked.
A global calendar across the Spring, Endurance and Pro racing series’ will run races from May to September. Qualifying for the online Sprint and Endurance Races took place in March.
The online events see Sprint and Endurance races. The Sprint races are split into three regions – Asia, America and Europe – and will consist of five rounds with 24 Pro drivers and 24 Silver drivers. The Endurance races are international but consist of the same number of rounds and drivers from both Pro and Silver classes.
The on-site Sim Pro races in Europe will see 24 Pro drivers compete across five rounds.
The Pro class is made up of the top drivers and teams across the Esports community and Assetto Corsa Competizione. Often, the class includes some of the best sim racers in the world. The car line up for the Endurance races are nominated by manufacturers and will consist of at least two pro drivers at every round. Similarly for Sprint races, the driver line up is nominated by the manufacturer.
The Silver class sees some top drivers and teams who are yet to break out into the pro talent class or are recognise as some of the fastest in the community. Their aim is to compete with some of the very best drivers in sim racing. The Endurance line up must see at least one pro driver as part of the team and Silver teams must qualify for the IGTCE. Sprint race drivers must be Silver class.
The minimum requirement for Sprint, Endurance and Pro races is that there must be at least two cars per manufacturer across the series. This applies to all regional sprints and global endurance.
The Sim Pro on-site races will be held at the Fanatec Arena in Germany from April 22nd until September 30th, 2023. With 23 invite slots available, the 24th and final slot comes as one open slot at every round and racers must compete in a last chance qualifying to secure a spot. A full on-site championship with points, the Sim Pro entry list focuses on car and team instead of the driver. This means that drivers can be switched for different races. An overall cash prize pool of €75,000 is on offer whilst the entry fee stands at €3000.
The IGTCE Endurance and Sprint categories all have a prize pool and entry fee of their own.
Grid Finder’s very own racing team are competing in this year’s online European Sprint Series and the in-person Sim Pro Series.
Tristan Bollwinkel raced for Grid Finder at Monza, whilst Leon Hoppe took the wheel at Paul Ricard. Leon will return to race at Spa.
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