Some big money NZ sim racing events this month plus the FIA continues its push into esports.

NZ Sim Racing

• Familiar names top GT NZC qualifying. New Zealands top Gran Turismo talent have all shown up for the National Championship including three world tour drivers. The top 14 have now qualified for the season which gets underway Monday July 13th.
  Full article. Watch on NZ Sim Racing TV.

• Matchfit ups Mugello 450 prize pool to $3,000. Previously announced with a $2,000 prize pool Gamma Flare has dug out the cheque book to up the ante (where do they get all this money?). The one off iRacing event takes place July 5th with entries still open.
  Original announcement on facebook.

• Supercars NZ new seasons come with $5,000 total prize pool. $1,000 prize pool split between the top 3 in the championship for all 3 classes in the winter series plus a further $1,900 split between the top 3 teams in the V8s championship. There are also random prize packages across the board. All supported by Gamma Flare.
  Facebook announcement.

News

• FIA launch Esports European Hill Climb Cup. The competition run on free title RaceRoom will feature qualifying from August 20th to September 7th with the top 8 drivers racing at the live finals in Luxembourg. Interestingly the track for the finals is being kept a secret, presumable it will be a new release that no one will be able to practice before hand. Full details have not been announced but the name suggests it may be limited to Europeans only.
  Full announcement.

• FIA F4 Esports Global Championship back in 2026. The iRacing championship will kick off in October with the top 10 drivers from each regions FIA F4 Esports Regional Tours (NZ being part of the APAC region) during 2026 Season 3 invited. With a $35,000 total prize pool it’s sure to be hotly contested once again.
  Official series site.

Extras

• FIA continues their push into esports. The FIA have launched a call for proposals for FIA backed Eports Championships. The FIA have previously included esports in the Motorsport Games, FIA F4 Esports Championship, and recently FIA Global Esports Rally Tour. International tournament organisers can pitch their ideas and potentially become official esports promoters for the FIA.
  Full call for proposals.

• Aussie sim racer appointed Team Engineer for Ferrari Esports. Aussie talent Oscar King has resigned with Scuderia Ferrari HP Esports ahead of the 2027 F1 Sim Racing season. Inspiring to see a career in esports being built by local talent like this.
  Full Motorsport Australia article.

• The rise of AI slop in sim racing. I’m seeing a trend lately of more AI being used in promotion of sim racing leagues. It does a useful job but also feels icky with sometimes strange output and LLM use coming at a cost. How do you feel when you see clearly AI generated sim racing content? Hit reply and let me know.