Porsche wins GTE class at the virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans

The newly founded Porsche Esports Team has won the first edition of the virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the real Le Mans 24 Hours has been postponed to 19/20 September 2020. 

In the hands of Works Driver Nick Tandy and Porsche Junior Ayhancan Guven, as well as the professional Sim Racers Josh Rogers and Tommy Ostgaard, the digital version of the 2017-spec 911 RSR took the chequered flag in first place on the 13.63km Circuit des 24 Heures after a total of 339 laps. In the GTE class, they crossed the finish line after a flawless marathon sprint twice around the clock, with a one-lap lead over the second-placed crew. 

Porsche tackled the digital event with four virtual 911 RSRs. Each car was crewed by two real racing drivers and two esports professionals from the Coanda Simracing team.

From the very beginning, the driver crew of the #93 car proved particularly competitive. After a strong start for Dempsey-Proton's #88 Porsche 911 RSR, Tandy - the 2015 Le Mans overall winner - handed the car off to Ostgaard and after a good four hours, allowing them to sweep into the lead.

Putting in a remarkably steady drive, both Guven and Rogers extended their lead, and not even two pit stops due to technical problems could halt their charge. At around 6:15am with the rising sun, 20-year old Rogers also turned in the fastest race lap in the GTE class in 3:48.203 minutes. The #92 Porsche 911 RSR was also on a steady course for a podium spot, only to have works driver Matt Campbell, Porsche-Junior Jaxon Evans, Mack Bakkum and Jeremy Bouteloup fall victim to a server error almost an hour before the end of the race. They reached the finish line ranking 11^th in the GTE class.