F1 Sim Racing: Broumand tames wet Zandvoort to win

Bari Broumand has become the first repeat winner of the 2025 F1 Sim Racing (né, F1 Esports) season at a virtual Zandvoort.

The 26-lap race began in dry conditions, but rain soon started to fall before the second lap was complete and remained until the chequered flag.

Fahssi tried to go down the inside of Broumand at Tarzanbocht on the first lap, but the Ferrari covered the inside and allowed fellow Scuderia member Nicolas Longuet up to second from third on the grid. Fahssi’s team-mate Ruben Pedreno made it a Williams three-four.

One lap later, the leading Williams driver tried the same move, and again at the banked Hugenholzbocht, but Longuet prevailed.

But, when the rain arrived, as the two Ferraris and Williams were line astern up front, two drivers had to stay out on slicks for a lap longer than their colleagues. So, at the end of the third lap, Broumand and Fahssi pitted, with the latter jumped by Thomas Ronhaar who had pitted a lap earlier.

Longuet and Pedreno were forced to stay out until the end of the fourth lap, rejoining in a lowly 16th and 17th respectively.

Broumand pulled away from Ronhaar up front, and on the 10th lap, Fahssi dived for second place at the first corner, taking away the position from the Dutch driver. By Lap 18, the Williams driver had closed to within 0.5s of the leader.

The two drivers sat there, both race winners in this season, the gap remaining constant.

With 13 laps remaining, it was deemed that fresh tyres were needed for all, with the first and second-placed drivers pitting at the same time – it was now a clear fight to the end on equal rubber.

On Lap 28, Fahssi nosed ahead around the outside of Broumand at Tarzanbocht, only to be eased wide at the corner’s exit by the scarlet machine. He would lunge to the inside seven laps later in a wild move but ran wide, the Ferrari holding on to win by just 0.4s.

Elsewhere, Spa race winner Alfie Butcher had a damaged front wing while running in fourth. This held up the rest of the pack – 16 cars in a Trulli-style train. The British driver eventually pitted on lap 18, selecting a new nose and tyres, but dropping to 20th and last place.

Later on, fellow McLaren driver Lucas Blakeley was in a similar situation. Running on much older tyres than those around him in fourth, he held up the field, dropping 14 seconds behind Ronhaar in third. Much to the chagrin of those behind, it also meant that drivers such as Butcher and Longuet made progress up the field and found points-paying positions again.

On Lap 31, Jake Benham finally found a way by Blakeley at the first corner. Soon after, a derivation of Papaya rules was enforced, the 2022 champion letting by his team-mate Butcher at Hunzerug, but also allowing an opportunistic Longuet into sixth.

Blakeley would ultimately drop down to last place, while Butcher would cede to the resurgent Ferrari a lap later and then receive contact from the Alpine of Joni Tormala.

Championship leader heading into this race Jarno Opmeer qualified in a lowly 17th, then received a five-second time penalty on the first lap. But an early stop for intermediate tyres saw the two-time champion inside the top 10 again, finishing eighth at the line. The penalty would drop him outside of the points but could be under appeal.

It all means that Fahssi tops the standings after seven races ahead of Ronhaar, Opmeer and Butcher.

F1 Sim Racing 2025 Round 7, Zandvoort, Results*

1. Nicolas Longuet – #40 – Scuderia Ferrari HP Esports Team
2. Ismael Fahssi – #54 – Williams Esports
3. Thomas Ronhaar – #39 – KICK F1 Sim Racing Team
4. Jake Benham – #25 – Mercedes-AMG Petronas Esports Team
5. Nicolas Longuet – #40 – Scuderia Ferrari HP Esports Team
6. Joni Tormala – #51 – Alpine Sim Racing Team
7. Frederik ‘Frede’ Rasmussen – #19 – Oracle Red Bull Sim Racing
8. Tom Manley – #6 – Origin RB
9. Alfie Butcher – #41 – McLaren Shadow
10. Tamas Gal – #34 – MoneyGram Haas F1 Sim Racing Team

*Provisional