F1 New Balance Esports Pro Series to Kick Off
As the 2019 F1 New Balance Esports Pro Series draws closer, all ten of the official Formula 1 Esports teams have announced their rosters for the competition.
Set to begin on 11 September, the run up to the Pro Series will consist of four live shows, the first at the GFinity Arena in London. The champions will take part in each show and the winning team will get a chunk of that $500,000 prize pool on offer.
Some notable changes for this series will see a new team enter the fray in Scuderia Ferrari, also the first esports event for them, who are entered as Ferrari Driver Academy. We reported earlier in the year about the Pro Draft which took place, and saw each team add a new player to the roster, to make teams of 3. All 30 gamers will now get a chance to become the F1 Esports Series Champion, but not if Brendon Leigh, the UK-based Merecedes-AMG Petronas Esports driver has anything to say about it.
Leigh is a two-time F1 Esports Series champion, and yet-to-be-defeated contender. He will have his work cut out for him though, as last year’s 2nd place finisher, Daniel Bereznay has moved on to another team in Alfa Romeo Racing, with race-winner Salih Saltunc. Enzo Bonito will also be competing for the title, the new upcomer who made his name as a racing-sim star, who outpaced some professional drivers earlier in the year, at the 2019 Race of Champions.
The full list of racers and teams can be found below:
Alfa Romeo Racing F1 Esports
Dani Bereznay, Hungary
Kimmy Larsson, Sweden
Salih Saltunç, United Kingdom
Ferrari Driver Academy
David Tonizza, Italy
Amos Laurito, Italy
Gianfranco Giglioli, Italy
Haas F1 Team Esports
Floris Wijers, Netherlands
Jan Fehler, Germany
Martin Štefanko, Czech Republic
McLaren Shadow
Enzo Bonito, Italy
Bono Huism Netherlands
Allert van der Wal, Netherlands
Mercedes-AMG Petronas Esports
Brendon Leigh, United Kingdom
Patryk Krutyj, Poland
Daniel Shields, Australia
SportPesa Racing Point F1 Esports Team
Daniele Haddad, Italy
Marcel Kiefer, Germany
Lucas Blakely, United Kingdom
Red Bull Racing Esports
Frederik Rasmussen, Denmark
Joni Törmälä, Finland
Nicolas Longuet, France
Renault Sport Team Vitality
Jarno Opmeer, Netherlands
Cedric Thomé, Germany
Simon Weigang, Germany
Scuderia Toro Rosso Esports
Patrik Holzmann, Germany
Cem Bölükbaşı, Turkey
Manuel Biancolilla, Italy
Williams Esports
Álvaro Carretón, Spain
Tino Naukkarinen Finland
Isaac Price, United Kingdom
The three pro series events will take place over the next few months, with the Grand Final scheduled for the 4th of December.
While we gear up for the 2019 F1 New Balance Esports Pro Series, the qualifying rounds for the 2020 Series have also begun, far earlier than the years before. Any player with a copy of F1 2019, the official video game, will be able to take part. Global qualifications are now open, and players can take part in the third qualifying races now, with the second to start at the end of the September. The final qualification phase will run from beginning November until the 17th, and from there, could qualify for the 2020 Pro Draft.
