Trust RaceRoom Racing Experience to think differently. The free-to-enter PC racing simulation is home to venues such as Ring Knutstorp, Bilster Berg and Ningbo International Speedway will soon feature the cognoscenti’s dream – Circuit de Charade.
The French venue held four Formula 1 Grand Prix, the last in 1972 won by Sir Jackie Stewart. Helmut Marko lost an eye in an incident during that same race. Back then, the Clermont-Ferrand-located venue used a Mountain Circuit route that was over five miles in length.
In 1989, a new, shorter, layout was opened, and it’s this variant which will debut within RaceRoom. It’s still a trick venue, known for steep changes in gradient, and a flowing layout.
Alongside this new circuit, there will be four cars:
- Crosslé 9S
- Crosslé 90F
- Mazda MX-5
- Praga R1
The Mazda is a track variant of the popular open-top sports car, with the roof permanently open and a roll cage affixed.
The Praga R1 is the prototype-light purpose-built racecar by the Czech manufacturer, used by Gordie Mutch and Jimmy Broadbent to win the inaugural Praga Cup this season. It features an aggressive design, a low-slung cockpit and a 2.0-litre turbocharged engine feeding power through a Hewland six-speed sequential gearbox.
Crosslé, meanwhile, is a Northern Irish racing team that continues to this day producing modern recreations of its original designs for track use.
The 9S is a low, lithe, racer first seen in the 1960s, while the 90F is a single-seater designed specifically for Classic Racing School, which happens to be based at Charade.
The new track and cars will be bundled together in a new downloadable content pack, releasing in December 2022. The final date and pricing are yet to be revealed.
Images: Motorsport Images
Featured image: Jacky Ickx, Ferrari 312B2, French Grand Prix 1972.
Source: KW Studios