Esports Racing on the big stage: Porsche Coanda at the ESL R1.

After the race is before the next race. As the Porsche Coanda Esports Racing Team finished their celebrations for the championship at the Le Mans Virtual Series 22/23 just now, the next big challenge is on: the Esports works team will be part of the ESL R1 racing series. For the first time, the biggest sim racing teams and Esports works teams share a grid with the biggest players from other Esports genres. In the newly introduced series, they will meet the Porsche Esports works drivers Joshua Rogers, Mitchell deJong, Mack Bakkum and Dayne Warren. But first, what is ESL R1? 

Those who've been actively following the sim racing and Esports scene a last year are aware of the latest platform called Rennsport. This new racing simulation based on the Unreal Engine wants to provide ultra-realistic sim racing action. The partnership with the ESL, the world's most prominent Esports organization, aims to lift sim racing to new heights. 

Getting there slowly is different from the pace the organizers are working with. The ESL R1 racing series makes a big entrance at the Intel® Extreme Masters Katowice, mainly known for the Counter-Strike major tournament. This event will host ESL R1's first two rounds. The next 6 rounds will follow this big bang as online events. The first season will conclude in Munich with the ESL R1 Spring Majors in May later this year to crown the first champion. The second half of 2023 will see another season of ESL R1. The prize pool is worth €500,000 for the first two seasons.

The Porsche Coanda Esports Racing Team will not only face the usual suspects from within the sim racing world but will have to stand up against Esports' biggest names. FaZe Clan from Los Angeles, FURIA from South America, MOUZ and G2 from Germany, and Heroic from Norway will share the grid with works teams and works-supported teams from all over the world. These are Apex Racing Team, BMW M Team BS+COMPETITION, Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Esports Team, R8G eSports, Team Redline, and Williams Esports.

11. and 12. February, Intel Extreme Masters, Katowice (Poland), Round 1 and 2
10. and 13. March, Round 3
24 and 27. March, Round 4
7. and 10. April, Round 5
14. and 17. April Round 6
21. and 24. April, Round 7
12. and 15. May, Round 8
3. and 4. June, Major Finale, Rennsport Summit Munich, Round 9 and 10

For all information and news about the Porsche Coanda Esports Racing Team and the new ESL R1 racing series, follow Coanda's social media platforms and the Porsche Motorsport Hub: Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.