until Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League
World’s Fastest Gamer finalist Erhan Jajovski won the fifth round of The Race All-Star Cup – Fully Charged by ROKiT Phones.
He becomes the fifth different winner of an All-Star final and the first winner since the series became a championship.
The simracer with the most points after the three All-Star Cup rounds wins a full day’s test in a Formula 1 team’s simulator.
Gabby Chaves finished the grand final fifth overall to be the highest-placed real-world racing driver.
Chaves achieved that despite qualifying for the final in 11th and having made his way through the Jones Soda Co. last chance qualifier.
Jajovski had taken pole position for the grand final with a laptime just over a quarter of a second quicker than Rudy van Buren, who started alongside him for the race in LMP3 machines around Sebring.
Lamborghini factory driver Dennis Lind was the highest-starting real-world driver as he qualified in third, joined on the second row by Bono Huis.
However, side-by-side contact between Lind and van Buren at the third corner forced Lind out onto the grass, and when he rejoined the track he hit the back of van Buren’s car, sending both drivers spinning.
That gave Jajovski a comfortable lead very early into the eight-lap race and allowed Huis to move up to second, with Williams esports driver Nikodem Wisniewski taking third.
Former IndyCar regular Chaves gained hugely from the incident-filled opening lap as at the end of it he made up six places to be running in fifth, and ahead of simracer Yuri Kasdorp.
Kasdorp then moved into the top five with a move down the inside of Chaves around the final corner of the track.
The simracer subsequently tried to pass the only remaining real world driver in front of him, Philipp Eng, for fourth place with a sliding move around the outside of the hairpin corner.
Eng’s block compromised his run down the following flat-out section and opened up the opportunity for Stoffel Vandoorne to pass both drivers.
However, both works BMW man Eng and Mercedes FE driver Vandoorne tried to make the apex of the turn, which resulted in contact and the pair sliding wide on the exit of that corner, giving Kasdorp fourth place.
Big action in the pack. @Philipp_Eng, @svandoorne, @GabbyChaves and @sng_yurik fighting hard in The Race All-Star Series – Fully Charged by @ROKiTPhonesUK.
💻 Watch at: https://t.co/WdVqh7S2NG#TheRaceMustGoOn || #LegendsTrophy pic.twitter.com/e4No39bXqQ— The Race (@wearetherace) April 11, 2020
Chaves watched that battle unfold in front of him and by holding back and keeping it clean he passed Vandoorne for fifth as he was rejoining the circuit. Eng dropped further down the order and into 11th.
Up at the front Jajovski had no such dramas and beat Huis to the chequered flag by just over four seconds.
“It wasn’t a straightforward race to be honest, the most difficult part was the start.” Jajovski said after the race. “Rudy got a better start than me but I had the inside so I got the position and then it was just driving to bring it home.
“It’s always nice to get the win, better late than never, I guess!”
Chaves’ fifth-place finish means he is currently the real-world driver with the most championship points.
The pro racer who ends the three round long championship with the most points will win $30,000 for a charity of their choice.
Drivers contesting in the Legends Trophy are also competing for money for a chosen charity.
Formula 1’s 2009 world champion Jenson Button won the first Legends race and in doing so claimed $10,000 for the charity House of Ruth, which helps victims of domestic violence.
