Three Esport Cups to continue seasons

The busy Motorsport Esports National Cups calendar continues next week with three categories to hold rounds over the next fortnight, including the opening round of the Motorsport Australia Formula 4 Esport Cup’s 2023 season.

Also taking place will be the Motorsport Australia S5000 Esports Cup, which will hold its second round after a successful season opener, while the Motorsport Australia Formula Vee Esports Cup holds its third round of the season.

Attracting more than 80 drivers for the opening round, the Motorsport Australia S5000 Esports Cup held its first round of the season with a bang.

A top 40 eventually qualified for the round, which was held at the famous Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya where drivers had qualifying and then a sprint and feature race.

Taking out the feature race was Logitech Altus Esports driver Julian Dunne, who overcame a difficult qualifying session to charge through the top five and win the main outing, which saw him pick up the round win.

Unfortunately, a P5 in qualifying was followed by a P9 in the sprint race which saw him end the round second on the standings and behind new leader, Formula Ford driver Damon Woods.

Woods ended the weekend with a pole position and two runner-up finishes to take the lead by nine points overall, while Dunne sits eight points clear of the third placed Tom Delisle, who ended every session in the top five.

The series now turns its attention to the second round of the season, which will run at the famous Hockenheimring in Germany on 20 June.

Both Dunne and Woods will also be in action during the Motorsport Australia Formula 4 Esports Cup later this month, as the duo have already pre-qualified for the opening round, beating a further 98 other applicants.

Like the S5000 Esports Cup, just 40 drivers will get the chance to secure a spot for the opening round at Laguna Seca Raceway.

Joining the two top qualifiers as the two key players in the round is Benjamin Roberts, who ran in the Asia Pacific qualifier last August and qualified for this Formula 4 round in fourth place overall.

With Iracing and the FIA having just announced a partnership, competitors will be able to run the current spec cars used in official FIA Formula 4 Championships around the world.

The Motorsport Australia Formula 4 Esports Cup runs at Laguna Seca Raceway in California on Tuesday 13 June.

Another event taking place in the next fortnight is the Motorsport Australia Formula Vee Esports Cup, which is coming off an exciting round at the Okayama International Circuit in Japan.

With three races making up the round, it was Kaleb Belak got off to the strongest start, beating Lee Partridge and Josh Burdon by less than a second.

Neither of the podium trio replicated their success in the second race, however the result was even closer as Glenn Riddell beat Ray Oliver by half a second, while James Russo rounded out the podium after crossing the line five hundredths of a second behind the runner-up.

Riddell made it consecutive wins when he took out the third and final outing for the weekend, beating Belak by almost two seconds.

The battle for the final place on the podium was highly entertaining, but it was Burdon who got the edge over Partridge in the end – less than one tenth separating the two.

The series now heads to Birmingham’s Barber Motorsports Park in the United States for the third round of the 2023 season.

Upcoming Rounds

13 June: Round 1 - Motorsport Australia Formula 4 Esports Cup
20 June: Round 2 - Motorsport Australia S5000 Esports Cup
21 June: Round 3 - Motorsport Australia Formula Vee Esports Cup