Defending champion Joshua Rogers has won the ESL R1 drivers’ championship in the digital 911 GT3 R. The Australian sim racer from the Porsche Coanda Esports Racing works team once again clinched victory in the third final race at the virtual Circuit de Spa. As leader of the standings and clear favourite, he is one of nine drivers to qualify for the final round of the Esports World Cup in Riyadh. His teammates Charlie Collins from Great Britain, Dayne Warren (Australia) and Mitchell deJong (USA) will join him in Saudi Arabia. They are among the twelve participants competing in the “2nd Chance” round for the last three places in the offline finale on the sim racing platform Rennsport.

At the Esports World Cup held from 22 to 25 August, the drivers compete in front of an audience for a total prize purse of 100,000 US dollars. The winner receives 25,000 US dollars. Porsche Coanda Esports Racing can also win up to 170,000 US dollars in the team competition.

In round three of the ESL R1 drivers’ championship, deJong and Warren were among the four Porsche works drivers who made it through to the semi-finals alongside championship leader Rogers, who progressed thanks to his win on the Belgian Grand Prix circuit. He repeated this feat in the next round and advanced to the final. There, the Australian pocketed his third straight victory of the day with a spirited last-gasp attack. DeJong also made it into the race for the top twelve. Starting from the very back of the grid, the American battled his way up the order to finish seventh.

Comments after the race
Nina Braack (D, Esports Manager Porsche Motorsport): “Three wins in three races – Joshua Rogers has clearly demonstrated why he’s leading the drivers’ championship. That’s a mega result and we can only congratulate him. The same goes for the whole team. All four drivers scored enough points to make it into the top 21 and fight for a spot in the Esports World Cup in Riyadh. We’ll spend the next few weeks preparing for Saudi Arabia, where we’ll go pedal-to-the-metal again.”

Jörn Jens (D, Performance Coach Porsche Coanda Esports Racing): “Josh Rogers certainly didn’t have the strongest car, but he tackled the final race strategically and put himself in a position to attack in the final stages – a brilliant job. He’s now well-placed for Riyadh. Nevertheless, he still has to perform well there. It would’ve been great if Charlie Collins had also made it into the top nine for direct entry into the final of the Esports World Cup. Unfortunately, that was off the cards for him after the first race. Now, we have three drivers in a “2nd chance” stage with twelve participants. From there, only the top three will advance. That’ll be a challenge.”

Joshua Rogers (AUS, Porsche Coanda Esports Racing): “In the final, I wasn’t sure whether we could win again. Both the qualifying and the race went well for me. There was a lot of overtaking – everybody was jostling to get themselves in the best possible position for the last lap. I planned to attack at the end of the ‘Kemmel’ straight, but my line was blocked. So, I put all my eggs in one basket in the final chicane and attacked on the outside. It was a nail-biter, but it worked. It feels good to take the win like that. This gives me some great momentum that I aim to bring to the event at Riyadh.”

Spa-Francorchamps (B), result of the final
1. Joshua Rogers, Porsche 911 GT3 R (AUS, Porsche Coanda Esports Racing)
2. Daire McCormack, Mercedes AMG (IRL, Williams)
3. Maximilian Benecke, BMW (D, Mouz)
8. Mitchell deJong, Porsche 911 GT3 R (AUS, Porsche Coanda Esports Racing)

Drivers’ standings after three of three races
1. Joshua Rogers (AUS, Porsche Coanda Esports Racing), 183 points
2. Kevin Siggy (SLO, Team Redline), 160 points
3. Jiří Toman (CZ, Vitality), 143 points
13. Charlie Collins (UK, Porsche Coanda Esports Racing), 84 points
14. Dayne Warren (AUS, Porsche Coanda Esports Racing), 69 points
17. Mitchell deJong (USA, Porsche Coanda Esports Racing), 56 points

ESL R1 – brief overview
• The unofficial sim racing premier class is contended on the “Rennsport” platform.
• The cars fielded are based on GT3 regulations, including the 911 GT3 R.
• Like in real racing, the Balance of Performance (BoP) ensures a level playing field.
• 12 teams consisting of 4 drivers each compete in a team and driver championship.
• The drivers qualify for the final live event through the online events.
• 500,000 US dollars in prize money up for grabs in ESL R1 and Esports World Cup.
• The Porsche Motorsport Hub offers more information about the series.