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The event will offer all the challenges of the world’s most famousendurance race with dynamic lighting and weather conditions as well asauthentic strategies between pit stops, tyre changes and driving times to berespected.
To give themselves the best chances to succeed, the Signatech Alpine Elfteam’s driver line-up of Thomas Laurent, André Negrão and Pierre Ragues will bejoined by simracer Nicolas Longuet behind the wheel of the mandatory prototypefor the 30 crews entered in the LMP2 category.
The French, who will turn 18 just five days before the start, hasquickly made a name for himself on the Esport scene in contributing to thetitle won by Red Bull Racing Esports in 2019 before he joined Renault Vitality forthe 2020 F1 Esport Series season.
His team mates are looking to perform just as well. A specialistof the ellip6 simulators with which he trains regularly, Pierre Ragues hasalready distinguished himself on the previous generation of rFactor. At thesame time, André Negrão and Thomas Laurent - who recently competed in theAlpine Racing Challenge on Gran Turismo - will be banking on their adaptabilityto exhibit all their talent.
The team led by Philippe Sinault is also a genuine Esport pioneer,having paved the way for Lucas Ordóñez to become the first gamer to take partin the Le Mans 24 Hours with the Nissan GT Academy in 2011. It will also beable to use its technical expertise when it comes to set-ups and strategy.Throughout the 24 hours of the race, the crew will have both an operationsengineer and a data engineer from the three-time Le Mans winning team by theirside.
This first race will also allow the squad to shake off the racing rustbefore resuming the defence of their world title at Spa (August 15), at Le Mans(September 19-20) and in Bahrain (November 21) and to aim for a fourth victoryin five years at the twice around the clock classic.
The Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans will be broadcast live on televisionchannels as well as on the FIA WEC application and social media networks(YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Twitch). A concert will be held during the nightwith the Princess Charlène of Monaco Foundation to collect donations for theresearch of a Covid-19 vaccine.
Philippe Sinault, Team principalSignatech Alpine Elf
“We have explored different bridgesbetween motorsport and Esport for more than 10 years and this Virtual 24 Hoursof Le Mans is shaping up to be a truly exceptional event. As with any newproject, we began pre-season preparations by reviewing our skills and analysingin detail the equipment required and the new challenges brought by this type ofcompetition. Our quartet will benefit as well from the support of a teamprincipal, an official operations engineer and a data engineer. They will takeit turns to meet all the challenges of an event that will be just as physicallyand psychologically difficult as the real thing. From a competition perspective,we are approaching this race like all others with the ambition to do well sinceit has the potential to shape a part of the motorsport future while offering adress rehearsal for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in September ...Thedifference is that we'll all be on an equal footing with the same equipment andthe same ambitions at the start. May the best team win!”
Régis Fricotté, AlpineCommercial and Competition Director
“Following the success of the AlpineRacing Challenge on Gran Turismo earlier this month, the Virtual 24 Hours of LeMans offers us a new opportunity to address a wide audience while positioningthe Alpine brand as a true competitor in the Esport world. With itsexceptionally realistic format, this event promises to be the ideal showcase todemonstrate the know-how of the Signatech Alpine Elf team and the talent of ourdrivers while honouring the partners supporting us in the FIA World Endurance Championship.We would also like to thank Renault Vitality for its collaboration, which hasenabled us to draw on the synergies of Groupe Renault around motorsport andEsport, two universes that are inextricable from its DNA. While we are waitingfor the resumption on the on-track action this summer, we will pay closeattention to this event with the hope of adding another trophy to Alpine’s 24Hours of Le Mans cabinet!”
Provisionaltimetable (CET)
WEDNESDAY 10 JUNE
10h00-22h00: free practice
THURSDAY 11 JUNE
10h00-22h00: free practice
FRIDAY 12 JUNE
10h00-17h00: free practice
18h15-18h30:qualifying GTE
18h40-18h55: qualifyingLMP2
SATURDAY 13 JUNE
15h00: start ofthe Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans
