Racing Unleashed’s Racer and Contender Leagues for the 2024/25 season began in earnest with Alejandro Sánchez winning the race and taking home the first CHF 3,000 prize.
Competing from the company’s Madrid sim racing lounge – each driver in identical motion simulators with three rotational axes – Sánchez defeated four-time champion Michal Šmídl with just a handful of laps remaining.
Šmídl claimed pole position, just 0.029s ahead of the victorious Spaniard – the one-lap qualifying session seeing Siro Zambra and Vojtech Polesny completing the second row.
Šmídl held the lead from Sánchez at the start, however, the Apex Racing Team driver stalked the Czech star the whole race and capitalised after a small mistake at La Caixa closed the gap.
Compounding the issue, Šmídl used up his push-to-pass system allocation with four laps remaining, while Sánchez had two in reserve. Heading down the main straight, a defensive move was futile, with the attacker simply flying by and into the lead.
Elsewhere, the stoush for third was intense across the 24 laps, with Vojtech Polesny leading Siro Zambra and Enrique Maranon. However, Zambra used up the push-to-pass allocation before his two main rivals.
Defending from Maranon, he stepped over the limit at the opening turn, and while the slide was saved, the podium chance was gone.
Also encountering difficulties in the race were Marcos Valverde, who jumped the start, and Sinan Demirbas, who spun – dropping from seventh to 14th by the flag.
“It was quite an interesting race and I’m really happy that I managed to win,” said Sánchez.
“I thought [Smidl] had one more push-to-pass than he actually did, so in the end it was playing the long game and saving the push-to-pass until later in the race.”
Fellow Apex Racing Team and Madrid-based driver Salva Talens was also able to celebrate, winning the open-to-all Challengers League race in slower cars the same evening.
Racing Unleashed Esports Series 2024/25, Racer League, Race 1 results
- Alejandro Sánchez – 24 laps
- Michal Šmídl
- Vojtech Polesny
- Enrique Maranon
- Siro Zambra
- Janik Pletscher
- Sebastian Hirsch
- Christoph Holstein
- Coque López
- Angelo Michel
Racing Unleashed Esports Series 2024/25, Challenger League, Race 1 results
- Salva Talens – 24 laps
- Timothy Sperisen
- Mario Stanic
- Tim Potzmader
- Nikolaj Rogivue
- David Wuethrich
- Tyle Klausch
- Simon De Mori
- Jamie Egeo
- Andreas Koch
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