Ferrari’s Tonizza dominates on F1 Esports debut, Mercedes struggles
David Tonizza won twice for Ferrari as it made its F1 Esports debut while defending champions Mercedes failed to register a podium
Seventeen-year-old Italian Tonizza won the first race at Bahrain, following a clash while battling for the lead with Alfa Romeo's Daniel Bereznay.
Bereznay locked his brakes into Turn 4 right-hander and hit the Ferrari, spinning and collecting the innocent Red Bull of Frederik Rasmussen.
Rasmussen received endplate damage and neither he or Bereznay scored points.
Tonizza lost a minimal amount of time and handed Ferrari a maiden F1 Esports victory, with ex-Formula Renault Eurocup racer Jarno Opmeer taking second place for Renault.
The second Alfa Romeo of Salih Saltunc completed the podium ahead of Racing Point's Marcel Kiefer and defending double champion Brendon Leigh, who rose to fifth from 10th on the grid.
Tonizza made it two wins from two in China, beating Rasmussen by just 0.516s over the line and Kiefer continued his strong start with third place.
Bereznay's nightmare day continued. He started from pole position and led a one-two with team-mate Saltunc early on until Bereznay's brake pedal failed.
"I can't be this unlucky," an exasperated Bereznay said.
The final race was at Baku and was dominated by Rasmussen - despite the 19-year-old Dane admitting to Autosport pre-race that his Baku pace was "not amazing."
After Williams failed to score in either of the first two races, Tino Naukkarinen replaced Isaac Price and immediately rewarded the team with second place.
Tonizza completed the podium and leaves the first round with a 22-point advantage in the drivers' championship over Rasmussen.
Leigh was demoted to 11th in China after a post-race penalty for contact with sim racing veteran Bono Huis (McLaren), but he drove to fourth from ninth in Baku.
His team-mate Patryk Krutyj struggled on his F1 Esports return, with an eighth-place finish in China providing his only points.
It leaves Ferrari as the teams' championship leaders after its maiden esports event.
Red Bull is second and Racing Point rounds out the top three, with defending champions Mercedes down in eighth place.
Previous article
Mercedes use F1 engineers to analyse Esports champ Leigh’s data
Next article
World's Fastest Gamer a "nightmare" test for competitors - Montoya
Analysis: How an unlikely tie-up won sim racing's biggest race
An unlikely partnership between LMP1 privateer Rebellion Racing and Williams Formula 1's successful sim racing team yielded victory in the inaugural 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual. Here's how it triumphed in the biggest sim race ever staged
How poor driving standards ruined IndyCar's golden opportunity
The chaotic end to the virtual Indy 175 might be dismissed as "just a game," but the insulting actions of two IndyCar stars may have serious real-life consequences
Why Leclerc's Virtual GP annihilation deserves great credit
The introduction of Charles Leclerc, Alex Albon, George Russell and Antonio Giovinazzi to Formula 1's Virtual GP last weekend meant it was a step above the franchise's debut two weeks ago. But a dominant performance from Esports newcomer Leclerc stole the show
How the hidden side of being fast has been exposed
'Natural talent' is one of the biggest misnomers going in motorsport, and that is being proven by the way real life racers aren't immediately getting on the pace with the sim racing experts in virtual contests. To change that, they are having to apply the same tools required to be quick in real life
Why F1’s pantomime Virtual GP is fun but unsustainable
F1 Esports' inaugural Virtual Grand Prix last weekend provided brilliant entertainment to those tuning in to watch a mix of F1 drivers and celebrities battle on track, but was a missed opportunity for marketing its own Esports stars. A change of approach is needed if it is to successfully fill the void until the resumption of proper racing
The latest Red Bull exile to return in Esports
Since he was ejected from the programme at the end of 2006, the latest Red Bull junior driver brought back into the fold to race in Formula 1 - in a virtual sense for the inaugural Virtual GP - has had quite the career journey. From ADAC GT Masters and Porsche Supercup to Le Mans and the DTM, here's how a works pro got to relive a long-forgotten dream
Mercedes can be toppled in F1's other title race
Mercedes has not only set new standards in Formula 1, but it's also created a benchmark in Esports. Now its rivals have scrambled to catch up, there's a chance the Brendon Leigh-fronted Mercedes can be stopped
Why World's Fastest Gamer is returning to real-world racing
World's Fastest Gamer is a spiritual successor to the famous GT Academy. After a successful first year, it's returning to the Nissan programme's roots by targeting the real world of racing
