Racing Prodigy gives sim racing drivers a shot at real motorsports contracts

Turn your e-driving skills into a career opportunity

By Bruce Brown Published November 12, 2024

Radical SR1 race car on a race track. — Walter Sippel / Racing Prodity

F1 drivers typically start kart racing at the same time they begin elementary school and spend their childhood, teenage, and young adult years competing at gradually higher levels, hoping someday to get a contract from a Formula 1 team. Racing Prodigy, a U.S.-based sports, entertainment, and media company, has formed the Prodigy Racing League to give talented gamers a way to earn a contract to race real cars.

Why the Prodigy Racing League matters

Racing Prodigy describes the Prodigy Racing Leagues as an e2Real pathway that can make motorsports more accessible. It claims the league

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reduces financial barriers to pursuing a career in motorsports.

To compete in the e2Real Racing League, gamers sign up for Prodigy Racing Leagues’ online sim racing competitions. The competitions include a selection of popular racing titles and various gaming platforms. Winners progress to higher-level competitions. Successive winners and those selected by Racing Prodigy’s expert committee will get the chance to try out for a real-world racing contract.

The first draft of drivers took place at the Formula One British Grand Prix in July inside the Williams Racing Fan Zone. From a qualifying pool of 32 drivers, 24 selected drivers received contracts to compete in the Prodigy Racing League P3 season, which includes five race events in the U.S. Fans who voted online selected six additional racers to be practice squad drivers.

Some of the first Prodigy Draft drivers selected in a Williams Racing Fan Zone at the Formula One British Grand Prix. — Racing Prodigy

Six teams of four drivers will compete in the P3 season, driving specially prepared Radical SR1 race cars. The drafted racers, including two female drivers, are aged 15 to 29 and from 13 countries.

Radical SR1 race car on a race track. — Walter Sippel / Racing Prodity

The P3 Championship schedule is:

Event	Dates	Venue	Location
P3 Race Event #1	November 16-17, 2024	NOLA Motorsports Park	Avondale, LA
P3 Race Event #2	January 6-7, 2025	Sebring International Raceway	Sebring, FL
P3 Race Event #3	February 4-5, 2025	Homestead-Miami Speedway	Homestead, FL
P3 Race Event #4	February 25-26, 2025	Atlanta Motorsports Park	Dawsonville, GA
P3 Race Event #5	March 29-30. 2025	NOLA Motorsports Park	Avondale, LA

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A Digital Trends Contributing Editor and Contributor for TheManual.com, Bruce Brown writes e-mobility reviews and covers…

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F1 United States Grand Prix Sprint Race 2024: Verstappen wins decisively

All teams tested tires while Verstappen and Norris led the race for 18 of 19 laps

Circuit of the Americas race track in Austin, Texas.

It was like the beginning of the F1 2024 season at the United States Grand Prix Sprint race on Saturday afternoon, October 19. Red Bull F1 driver and three-time World Champion Max Verstappen started the race in the pole position and was never threatened while keeping the lead and winning the 19-lap competition easily. Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz and McLaren driver Lando Norris were second and third in the Sprint.

Verstappen's Grand Prix dominance during the first five weeks of the season was so great that many expected he'd be uncontested as he drove for his fourth Championship. After the fifth race, however, issues with the Red Bull race car and winning performances by other drivers, particularly Lando Norris, opened the opportunities for both the Drivers' and Constructors' Championships. McLaren is ahead of Red Bull, and Norris has been closing the points gap for the Drivers' Championship. Before the USGP, with six Grand Prix remaining in the season, including three with Sprints, the gamble was whether Norris could catch up to Verstappen's points lead before the season ended. Today, with the Sprint finished, the direction turned, and Verstappen strengthened his lead.
Why the Sprint race matters
The FIA Formula 1 organization added Sprint races to a limited number of Grand Prix in a season (currently no more than six) to give race fans who attend in person or stream the race events an additional exciting event during the weekend. Sprints are held the day before the Grand Prix, so people who didn't care much about watching practice sessions and qualifying events would have an excellent reason to attend or watch during an additional day. The top eight drivers win Championship points, too, with eight points for the winner, seven points for 2nd place, and so on, so the eighth place driver wins 1 point. The extra 8 points for the winner can be a good boost, even though it's less than one-third of the points for winning the Grand Prix, which awards 25 points to the winner and decreases more rapidly, so the tenth place driver gets the final point.
What the Sprint race results suggest for the Grand Prix
Because Verstappen won so handily in the Sprint race, Sunday's Grand Prix could be a bellwether for the rest of the season. If Verstappen wins, it may dishearten McLaren because, besides making the math of the Championship points harder to beat with so few remaining races, the feeling around the track may be that Red Bull's upgrades for this race have finally fixed the midseason issues.

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Formula E Season 11 race schedule finalized, will debut new race cars

Faster than F1 cars, the new Gen3 Evo cars will also have AWD

The ABB FIA Formula E 2024-25 calendar starts with a race at the Sambadrome in Sao Paulo, Brazil

The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship calendar for Season 11 has just been finalized following the FIA's World Motor Sport Council's October meeting. The 2024/25 schedule will see 11 teams of two drivers each compete in 16 races in ten cities, starting December 7 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and ending in London, England, on July 27. Season 11 is also the new Gen3 Evo car, the fastest accelerating FIA single-seat race car ever and 30% faster than current Formula 1 cars.
Why Formula E is such a big deal

Formula E is the only FIA motorsports championship that has created zero emissions with its race cars starting with its first season. All-electric race cars are the signature environmentally conscious elements of Formula E racing, but the Championship also focuses on carbon neutral or better in all of its operations, including transporting fans to and from stadiums.
Formula E Season 11

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BWT Alpine F1 team Xbox Indiana Jone race car livery for the United States Grand Prix.

As all ten F1 teams prepare for the 2024 United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, on October 18-20, the Moneygram Haas and BWT Alpine teams will each sport special race car liveries for the event. BWT Alpine is collaborating with Xbox and Indiana Jones-theme livery. Moneygram Hass, the only American-based team, is adding US flag elements to its race car livery.
BWT Alpine's Indiana Jones race car livery

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In a news release on the Alpine F1 site, Oliver Oakes, BWT Alpine F1, Team Principal said, "Working with the Xbox team to bring alive the incredible Indiana Jones and the Great Circle livery for the United States Grand Prix has been fantastic. The new look will be right at home in the Austin setting this weekend. In the past year, our partnership with Xbox has reached new heights and this is our biggest activation yet. There’s even more to come and I’m looking forward to getting my hands on a copy of the game when it comes out."