There is no arguing that the eSports industry continues to grow every year. Some experts estimate that the market will reach $5.74B by 2030, making it one of the biggest entertainment industries in the world.
Speaking of eSports, most people know that the term includes a couple of top-rated games, such as Dota 2 and CSGO. However, according to www.simon-shaheen.com, F1 is also a part of the list because there is a separate championship called F1 Esports Series. “These series have the same F1 Racing Teams as the real thing”, said Kris, Nostrabet’s racing expert. He adds, “this eSport may not seem that big yet, but it has everything it needs to surpass the leading computer games right now”.
This game has a lot of potentials, so let’s look at the F1 Esports Standings for 2022 and go over the teams.
What is the Formula One Esports Series?
The Formula One Esports series is a special competition that F1 promotes. Created in 2017, the organizers used the official F1 game so that they could promote the sport to more people. The official F1 teams got the chance to join in 2018, which significantly impacted this event’s popularity.
The first F1 Esports Series took place in August 2017, and it was a huge success because it got millions of social media impressions. Following the fierce competition, Brendon Leigh, Ferrari’s current Esports pilot, won the first championship.
Format
The F1 Esports Series starts with online qualifiers that allow all people who have the F1 video game to participate. Those with the best lap times advance to the Pro Draft, where teams have to select their players.
After that, it is time for the pro series, where players participate in competitions that allow them to win points for themselves and their team.
Interestingly, Jarno Opmeer won the championship in 2020 when he was a part of Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen Esports. He did the same in 2021, but this time, he was from Mercedes-AMG Petronas Esports.
The first version of the championship took place in the United Arab Emirates, whereas the next two were held in the UK. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The F1 Esports Championship was online in 2020 and 2021.
Teams
As mentioned, the current teams in F1 also take part in the Esports Championship. So, let’s take a look at them.
Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen F1 Esports
The first team that takes part in the F1 Esports Series is Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen F1 Team. People who follow the real F1 know that Zhou Guanyu and Valtteri Bottas are the team’s pilots. However, the Esports section includes Daniel Bereznay, Nicolas Longuet, and Tomasz Poradzisz.
What’s interesting about the Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen F1 Esports team is that it has been a part of the competition since 2018. Unlike other teams, this one focuses mainly on young and talented players. No wonder the F1 Esports Standings 2022 show that the team already won one of the races.
Alpine Esports Team
The French team of Alpine Esports has three players at the time of writing. Filip Presnajder is one of them, and he is 19 years old, whereas the second one is Luke Smith, a 16-year-old driver from the UK. The third player is the Hungarian 19-year-old, Patrik Sipos.
According to the official information, Alpine Esport’s goal is to find the best virtual races in the world and allow them to compete in the most prestigious competition. The organization offers one of the most advanced training facilities and has promising players.
Interestingly, Alpine Esports was established in 2021, making it one of the newest additions to the F1 Esports Series. Of course, Alpine is a part of F1 and includes the likes of Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon.
Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Esports
When discussing the F1 Esports Standings 2022, we must mention Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Esports. John Evans, Manuel Biancolilla, and Simon Weigang will represent the team in 2022. All of them are young and very talented drivers.
Considering that the real F1 team features Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll, Aston Martin will try to make the most out of its team and win this year’s championship. It won’t be easy, but the team has everything it needs.
HAAS F1 Esports
What differentiates this eSports team from its competitors is that it partnered with R8G Esports ahead of the 2021 F1 Esports Pro Series. This happened after R8G was among the most dominant names in 2020 when it secured 45 wins and 103 podiums.
Nowadays, HAAS F1 Esports competes in the F1 Esports Series with 17-year-old Thomas Ronhaar, Piotr Stachulec, and Matthijs van Erven. As for the real F1 team, Mich Schumacher and Kevin Magnussen have the honour of representing the American organization.
McLaren Shadow
McLaren is another current F1 team that also competes in the F1 Esports Series. In fact, the British brand made its debut in 2018 when it decided to participate in the competition. According to the team, McLaren wanted to use its experience in F1 and dominate the eSports industry.
Following the qualifiers, McLaren Shadow added three promising players – Bardia Boroumand, Lucas Blakeley, and Wilson Hughes. As for the real F1, the team works alongside Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo.
Mercedes-AMG Petronas Esports
You don’t need to be an F1 expert to know that Mercedes is one of the biggest competitors in this sport. The F1 Esports Standings 2022 show that this is one of the few teams that actually have a unique training centre built especially for Esports. Hence, the three pilots have the chance to use the latest equipment in the business.
Speaking of pilots, Mercedes-AMG Petronas Esports works alongside Dani Moreno, Jake Benham, and Jarno Opmeer. The latter won the competition in 2020 and 2021. As for the real team, most of you know that Lewis Hamilton and George Russel have been a part of it for some time now.
Red Bull Racing Esports
With two constructor championship titles, Red Bull Racing is one of the big names in the F1 Esports Series. Since its creation in 2018, the team has won 7 World Championship titles across several disciplines. Like Mercedes, Red Bull Racing Esports also offers an exclusive facility where players can put their skills to the test.
After checking the F1 Esports Standings 2022, we found that the team will play with Liam Parnell, Marcel Kiefer, and Frederik Rasmussen. In terms of Red Bull’s F1 team, you can watch Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez.
Scuderia AlphaTauri Esports
The Italian team has three of the most promising players in the F1 Esports industry. Scuderia AlphaTauri Esports takes this competition seriously, which explains why it already has one win. Joni Tormala, Josh Idowu, and Sebastian Job are the team’s representatives, who are big names in F1 Esports.
In terms of the real F1, AlphaTauri’s pilots, Yuki Tsunoda and Pierre Gasly, are the team’s representatives.
Scuderia Ferrari Velas Esports
Ferrari, one of the most legendary names in F1, is also a part of the F1 Esports Series. According to the information, everyone who plays for the team lives in Maranello, Italy. In other words, Ferrari takes this competition seriously.
There have been some changes since the team joined the competition in 2019. That said, Scuderia Ferrari Velas Esports currently works with Brendon Leigh, David Tonizza, and Fabrizio Donoso. Interestingly, two of them already won this competition.
As for Ferrari’s F1 pilots, the team consists of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc.
Williams Esports
The last team that the F1 Esports Championship will give you access to is Williams Esports. This is one of the first big names to join the competition in 2018 after it decided to participate in 9 different games across multiple platforms. That’s why it is on the list where we discuss the F1 Esports Standings for 2022.
Nowadays, Williams Esports has three active pilots – Alvaro Carreton, Daniele Haddad, and Shanaka Clay. Even though Williams hasn’t had a lot of success in F1 recently, Alexander Albon and Nicholas Latifi do everything they can to win.
Disclaimer: The teams might make changes to their drivers in the future.