Lots of upcoming events worth getting involved with. Skim through and find your favourite then hit the links to sign up.

NZ Sim Racing

• Zachary Hanlin wins Matchfit Road America 450. In a race that came down to the final laps Zachary Hanlin crossed the line first taking home the trophy and the $600 top prize. Jenson Bade and Reece Wakefield completed the podium with last events champion Stefan McCartain coming home 4th. 2nd walked away with $400, third $300 and the rest of the top ten collection $100 each.
  It was a controversial finish after incident point penalties were not enabled in the lobby as had been specified in the pre-event details. 8 of the top 10 (including the top 3) all crossed the would be 25x penalty limit but avoided penalties.
  Watch the broadcast recording.

• Simdy 500 set for May 24th. Kiwi Sim Racings annual Indy 500 iRacing event is back for 2026 bigger and better than ever. Now a Nationally Recognized event run by the NZ Sim Racing Collective the 500 will be taking place May 24th. It’s not just about race day though with the full Indy 500 experience captured, from qualifying to fast 12 and last chance. Trophy’s will be awarded to the winners along with a range of prizes that include a $250 MRP voucher for 1st.
  Sign up. Race to be broadcast on NZ Sim Racing TV.

• NZERS back in 2026 with a rebrand. NZ’s premier Gran Turismo competition, previously NZ Esports Racing Series (NZERS), has teased a return in 2026 after missing 2025. Details are light currently but with backing from NZ Esports and the NZ Sim Racing Collective it’s sure to be a big one. We expect more details in May.
  Join the NZERS discord for the latest updates.

• Sim racing at the Supercars NZ rounds.

  • Racing Sims brought the sims both to the track and to town in Christchurch. With your choice of the three Supercars driven around Ruapuna in Assetto Corsa the fastest lap competition was non stop all week. Noah Kitcher set the overall fastest time of 1:20.037 with Fletcher quickest on the kart sim doing a 0:39.491. Both drivers won $100 and racing sims hoodie+cap with spot prize winners also getting the same.
    See the sims in action. Winner announcement.

  • Rodin Cars were also supported by Racing Sims, hosting their own hot lap competition in front of the Rodin FZERO and FZED. Racing around the Rodin test circuit in Assetto Corsa it was Cooper Prout with the fastest lap of 52.470. The win earns Cooper a tour of the Rodin Cars facility. Young Formula Ford driver Sebastian Eskandari was just 0.052 behind with James McIver managing 52.615 for third.

  • Ping Zero at commercial bay. Ahead of the Supercars coming to NZ Ping Zero teamed up with Shaw and Partners to run Supercars in their sims at a popup in Commercial Bay.

News

• FIA Announces Esports Global Rally Tour on Assetto Corsa Rally. The global competition will find the top two drivers to go head to head at the FIA Awards Ceremony. Online qualifiers start May 12-25th where the top 8 from APAC will be selected to head to the regional qualifier at the FIA Conference in Macau on June 23rd. The top 2 from the regional will qualify for the worldwide live finals in Shanghai December 12th.
  More details. FIA Announcement.

• Porsche Esports Supercup (PESC) opens pathway to real-world Porsche series. The revamped global iRacing series will this year not only offer a $30,000 prize pool but also the chance to earn a season in real-world motorsport officially backed by Porsche. Qualification for the regionals (32 APAC drivers will qualify for this stage, 8 progress to world finals) starts May 13th.
  Announcement. Official Website. Entry form.

• DTM Esports back with changes in 2026. The global RaceRoom series is back with a $75,000 prize pool and chance to test drive in a GT4 but this time rather than a hot lap qualifier they will be using the in game multiplayer ranked system to select drivers. This opens the competition to anyone to compete in each of the 5 rounds (with the highest rank drivers getting into top split). The pre-event shakedown will be on May 2nd with the season official starting May 30.
  Read more. Official announcement.

• Forza Horizon 6 releasing May 19. Coming to both Xbox and PC it’s set to be the biggest “racing game” release of the year. Also expected to come to PS5 later in the year.
  View on Xbox store. View on steam.

• Le Mans Ultimate continues to gain momentum. New peak concurrent players of 8,809 on steam. The Creator Series has picked up the game. Rain Light Racing are running an NZ league. And now the Logitech G Challenge (previously using Forza) has been announced to be using Le Mans Ultimate.
  Read the announcement.
  For comparison would be competitors Project Motor Racing and Rennsport have past steam peaks of 2,000 and 300 players respectively (although both are also available on other platforms). Meanwhile iRacing continues to be the PC drivers favourite with 20,930 drivers online right now at time of writing.