Sebastian Job is the big winner of round six of the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup. Although Jeremy Bouteloup from VRS Coanda Simsport and Alejandro Sánchez (MSI eSports) were the winners of the double-header event at Silverstone, the British sim racer from the Red Bull Racing Esport squad moved to the top of the leaderboard after clinching fifth and third place on home turf. The previous leader of the standings, Joshua Rogers (VRS Coanda Simsport), has slipped down the rankings to fourth place.

In the 15-minute sprint race, polesitter Jeremy Bouteloup (VRS Coanda Simsport) won the dash to the first corner in the digital version of the 485 hp Porsche 911 GT3 Cup ahead of Patrik Holzmann (Red Bull Racing Esport) and Alejandro Sánchez. The German driver for the Redline squad, Maximilian Benecke, slotted into fourth place. Several positions behind the leading pack, a duel between Sebastian Job and Joshua Rogers promised to be gripping: Before the Silverstone weekend, Rogers held a six-point lead over Job. During the race, Bouteloup easily managed to pull clear of his pursuers. Behind him, the action heated up: towards the end of lap three, both Sánchez and Benecke whipped past second-placed Holzmann in the same corner. While the leading trio pulled away from the field, a battle for fourth place unfolded between Graham Carroll (Red Bull Racing Esport), Job and Rogers. In the final lap, Job threw caution to the wind and went head-to-head with Carroll through many corners to ultimately take the flag in fifth. At the front, Bouteloup celebrated his first win of the season ahead of Sánchez and Benecke.

The 30-minute main race quickly turned disastrous for the series leader Rogers. Early in the race, the Australian veered from the ideal line in a left-hand curve and lost control of his virtual Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. When he rejoined the race, his car was hit hard, sending him spinning from the racetrack. Carroll also became entangled in the incident and was shunted into a spin. Both were relegated far down the field. Sánchez, in the meantime, had taken the lead from Bouteloup, who dropped from first to fourth place. With Benecke and Job, the Spaniard pulled clear of the field. Shortly before the flag, the leading trio were separated by just 0.2 seconds. Sánchez managed to defend his lead spot and celebrated his first win of the season ahead of Benecke and Job, who now ranks first in the championship.

In addition to second place, Maximilian Benecke celebrated a special record: as the first driver ever to break the 11,000 iRatings barrier. This individual rating is an indication of the overall skill and success of each driver.

After the sixth race weekend of the season, Sebastian Job leads the overall classification with 219 points, followed by Maximilian Benecke (201 points) and Alejandro Sánchez (198 points). On 1 August, the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup will be contested on the digital version of the American racetrack of Road Atlanta. With its combination of long straights, ultra-fast curves and significant elevation changes, the rollercoaster circuit presents special challenges.

Comments on the race
Alejandro Sánchez (MSI eSports): “It feels incredible to finally win in this fiercely contested championship against such strong competition. We found a good setup for our car, it was very competitive. My focus was on conserving the tyres, making zero errors and being fast where it counted. But things got very tight at the end. My goal for this season was to win and stay in the top five of the series.”

Maximilian Benecke (Redline): “It feels great to be the first iRacing driver to break the 11,000 iRatings mark! The race went well. I fought extremely hard to defend my second place, so I’m delighted with the result. Silverstone is a tricky circuit. To overtake, you have to wait for the driver in front of you to botch it up. I waited for 25 minutes, but Alejandro didn’t make a mistake. That’s why he deserves to win. I’m happy with my second overall in the championship.”

Sebastian Job (Red Bull Racing Esports): “I’m satisfied with third place in the race, which has elevated me to the top of the leaderboard. We tackled this race a little differently because we’d learned a lot about tyre wear at the previous races. I was hoping that the guys in front would make a mistake, but it didn’t happen. So I never got into the right position to take on Maximilian. Still, it was great fun.”

Result (preliminary)
Silverstone, Sprint race
1. Jeremy Bouteloup (F/VRS Coanda Simsport)
2. Alejandro Sánchez (E/MSI eSports)
3. Maximilian Benecke (D/Redline)
4. Patrik Holzmann (D/Red Bull Racing Esport)
5. Sebastian Job (GB/Red Bull Racing Esport)

Silverstone, main race
1. Alejandro Sánchez (E/MSI eSports)
2. Maximilian Benecke (D/Redline)
3. Sebastian Job (GB/Red Bull Racing Esport)
4. Jeremy Bouteloup (F/DirectForce Pro)
5. Patrik Holzmann (D/Red Bull Racing Esport)

Points standings after 6 of 10 events
1. Sebastian Job (GB/Red Bull Racing Esport), 219 points
2. Maximilian Benecke (D/Redline), 201 points
3. Alejandro Sánchez (E/MSI eSports), 198 points