Autosport Plus

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

The lack of real track action so far this year hasn't stopped drivers from keeping their racing brains "fresh", as former Formula 1 racer Stoffel Vandoorne suggested last weekend.

Their exciting stampede to compete in Esports competitions has been great fun for them, and important for society with its #stayhome undercurrents, but it has also offered onlookers a fascinating opportunity to see first-hand the intricacies of how the top drivers achieve their speed.

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Author Jonathan Noble

Jonathan Noble is Motorsport.com’s Formula 1 editor. Having graduated from University of Sussex Jonathan worked for sports news agency Collings Sports reporting on F1, F3, touring cars and other sports, with articles appearing in The Daily Telegraph, The Independent, Reuters, Autosport and other publications. In 1999 he moved to Haymarket Publishing to become a senior editor at Autosport Special Projects, and one year later he became Autosport’s grand prix editor. In 2015 he moved to Motorsport Network, becoming the F1 editor for Motorsport.com. He is also a member of the Guild of Motoring Writers, and sits on the FIA Media Council.