- 46-car field make their way to Watkins glen for the fourth round of the American Esports season
- Important points on the line for 22-car Pro class field
- 24-car Silver class championship fight closer than ever
- ENTRY LIST: GTWC ESPORTS AMERICA SPRINT SERIES WATKINS GLEN
The Mobileye GT World Challenge America Esport Championship field returns to home soil for the fourth round of the 2023 season, with Watkins Glen International serving as the host of another highly anticipated event. As the championship approaches its penultimate event, 46 drivers across two classes will be giving it their all to score more valuable points as the season approaches its final stages. The drivers will face the challenging 11-turn, 3.450 mile virtual track on Saturday, August 5th.
The prior round in Silverstone saw some major shake ups in both the Pro Class and the Silver Class championships. As 46 cars return to the grid, with 22 in the Pro category and 24 in the Silver, it remains to be seen how much more the championship order may change. As the intensity and the pressure continue to rise, all eyes will be on Watkins Glen this weekend as the Mobileye GTWC Esports America Sprint Series field prepares for another opportunity to showcase their skill.
Pro Class
Championship leader Igor De Oliveira Rodrigues has been untouchable so far this season, performing a hat trick at Silverstone as he claimed his third consecutive win of the season. As he returns to Watkins Glen in his No. 124 Audi R8 LMS Evo II to contend for the win once more, he will be greeted by fierce competition as his fellow competitors look to snatch away a win of their own.
His Williams Esports teammate, Fidel Moreira, is currently in second place in the championship standings thanks to two podium finishes he secured in his No. 41 Porsche 992 GT3 R. He will be looking to extend his lead over STR Esports’ Chris Severt in the No. 39 BMW M4 GT3, who sits in third.
The competitors between fourth and seventh in the championship are only separated by a mere 10 points between them all, meaning there are still many more opportunities up for grabs that could change the outcome of the order. Renan Negrini (No. 2 Asetek SimSports Visceral Audi R8 LMS Evo II), Jyeed Hutchinson (No. 26 Automobili Lamborghini Esport Team Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo2), Nicolas Alvarado (No. 420 HPD JAS Pro America Honda NSX GT3 Evo), Angel Inostroza (No. 262 YAS Heat Esports Porsche 992 GT3 R), and Renato Dornelles (No. 3 Race Anywhere Simsport Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3) will certainly be ones to watch.
The Porsche lineup will be completed by Ed Kerstetter in the No. 28 SOP Esports Racing Porsche 992 GT3 R and Michael Kundakcioglu in the No. 56 FFS Racing car. Meanwhile, Aston Martin will once again by represented by Daniel De Oliveira and Williams Esports Academy, and Vinny Oliveira and Asetek SimSports in the No. 33 and No. 72 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3. Ferrari will be fielding two entries with Skyler Loverink in the No. Brix Racing 520 car and Philippe Simard in the No. 123 FFS Racing Ferrari 296 GT3.
Honda will once again be fielding five entries, with the aforementioned Alvarado accompanied by Josh Staffin, Cardin Lu, Josh McKean, Karl Wittmer in a HPD JAS Pro America Honda NSX GT3 Evo.
Cameron Martineau will be driving in the No. 38 STR Esports BMW M4 GT3, with Aloo Gobi occupying the lone McLaren in the field in the No. 20 Griphax Engineering McLaren 720S GT3. Gabriel Felipe will be driving the No. 63 Oak Racing Team Esports Bentley Continental GT3 2018. Finally, Phelipe Roberto will be behind the wheel of the No. 44 FFS Racing Audi R8 LMS Evo II.
Silver Class
The Silver class championship is closer than ever, Mérick Lévêque in the No. 88 Asetek SimSports Visceral team Ferrari 296 GT3 and Cody Sherratt in the No. 22 Genesis Esports Ferrari 296 GT3 tied for first place in the standings with 66 points apiece. With only two races left in the season, both drivers will be fighting tooth and nail for any advantage. Lévêque’s teammate, Estefano Barrera, sits third in the No. 369 Asetek SimSports Visceral team Ferrari 296 GT3, making Ferrari the manufacturer to beat in the Silver class. The additional Ferrari entry belongs to the No. 969 Nine 4 Nine Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 of Joseph Kostovich.
The Porsche entries will be battling it out for a shot at glory as well, and with 7 entries for the manufacturer, they will all be in good company on a busy grid. Their lineup is made up of Nicholas DeSantis in the No. 12 ND Motorsports Porsche 992 GT3 R, the No. 110 Team Schumiskins Porsche 992 GT3 R of Zach Doran, Timothy Flammger in the No. 19 Alpha Simsport car, Koapono Patrick in the No. 59 Sim Racing Alliance machine, Diego Paul Fimbres Casas in the No. 95 Pillars Racing / Sim Racing Alliance beast, Jordan Johnson in the No. 116 Puresims esports vehicle, and Hayden Harter completing the lineup No. 177 TSE Racing - Northstar entry.
Honda will also have their fair share of representation in the class, with 5 drivers on their roster. Hamza Gulzar will be in the No. 14 HPD JAS Pro America Honda NSX GT3 Evo, Antonio Azpiri in the No. 69 Azpiri Racing car, Kenneth Portis II in the No. 84 Roto Grip Racing entry, Ayrton Stuffano in the No. 98 AFRT machine, and Ricardo Rivera rounding it off in the No. 787 Puerto Rico eRacing Club car.
Brazilian teammates Lucas Werle and Leandro Werle will return to represent Aston Martin in the No. 4 and No. 40 Arnage Competition Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3.
Audi, Bentley, BMW, McLaren, Mercedes, and Lamborghini will all have one respective entry per manufacturer. Marc-Antoine Landry will be in the No. 711 EGT Canada Audi R8 LMS Evo II, with Adrien Bourdon driving the No. 8 SOP Esports Racing Bentley Continental GT3 2018. Argenis Riera will be in the No. 43 Geekz Energy Simracing BMW M4 GT3, with Pierre-Olivier Cloutier returning with the No. 36 EGT Motorsports McLaren 720S GT3. Bruno Yamamoto and Jonathan Clifford will be completing the grid in the No. 10 BraClean e-Sports Racing Team Mercedes-AMG GT3 and No. 999 Alpha Sim Sport Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo2.
Race day action on August 5th will start off with two practice sessions in the afternoon at 13:30 ET and 14:15 ET, followed by the qualifying session at 14:25 ET. The green flag will wave for the start of the 60-minute race at 15:00 ET. The event will be streamed live via the SRO Motorsports Twitch channel and GT World YouTube channel.
Reports and results will be published on the SRO Esports website.