The ultimate guide to the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual | Who is racing, when and how can I watch it | FOS Future Lab

That’s right, on the weekend that would have seen the 2020 Le Mans 24 Hours (postponed until September because of the coronavirus), the ACO, the event’s organisers, have created a virtual event to keep endurance fans entertained.

As the name suggests the race is 24 hours long, with cars spanning both the GT and LMP2 classes, and drivers from Formula 1, the World Endurance Championship and other rear-world and virtual series will be donning their virtual (and in some cases real) race suits to compete.

So, here’s everything you need to know about the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual…

24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual entry list

The 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual entry list is long – very long – and filled to the brim with motorsport talent from the real and the virtual world. F1 drivers like Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen are making their Le Mans debuts, while former winners André Lotterer and Nick Tandy are out seeking an extra dose of La Sarthe glory.

Which F1 drivers are racing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual?

Current F1 drivers competing this weekend include Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Antonio Giovinazzi and Pierre Gasly. Former F1 drivers include Juan Pablo Montoya, Jean-Eric Vergne, Rubens Barrichello, Jenson Button, Fernando Alonso, Felipe Massa, Bruno Senna, Kamui Kobayashi, Will Stevens, Sebastien Buemi, Giancarlo Fisichella, Brendon Hartley and Stoffel Vandoorne. Leclerc, Verstappen and Norris are all seasoned virtual racers, while Montoya, Barrichello, Button and Alonso have all joined the virtual world with great success over the last two months.

Which Le Mans drivers are racing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual?

As you would imagine there are many WEC drivers on the entry list for this virtual extravaganza, so we won’t list them all here, but it does include six Le Mans 24 Hours winners. Sébastien Buemi (winner with Toyota in 2018 and 2019) and Brendon Hartley (winner with Porsche in 2017) will be racing for Toyota in LMP1. Fernando Alonso (winner in 2018 and 2019 with Toyota) will be racing for the FR/RB Allinsports team in LMP2. André Lotterer (winner with Audi in 2011, 2012 and 2014) will be racing with Porsche in the GT category, as will Neel Jani (winner in 2016 with Porsche) and Nick Tandy (winner in 2015 with Porsche).

Le Mans class winners Gustavo Menezes, Dries Vanthoor, Will Stevens, Thomas Laurent, André Negrao, Nicolas Lapierre, Jordan Taylor, Tommy Milner, Jan Magnussen, Darren Turner, Nicki Thiim, Harry Tincknell, Jonathan Adam and Giancarlo Fisichella are also on the grid, spread across the LMP and GT classes.

Which IndyCar drivers are racing in the 24 Hours of le Mans Virtual?

Several IndyCar drivers are due to compete, including Tony Kanaan (2013 Indy 500 winner, 2004 IndyCar champion), Felix Rosenqvist (2015 F3 champion and an IndyCar newcomer in 2019) and Simon Pagenaud (2019 Indy 500 winner, 2016 IndyCar champion, four-times Le Mans racer and esports bad guy). Juan Pablo Montoya, Rubens Barrichello and Fernando Alonso have also competed in IndyCar.

Former IndyCar driver Robert Wickens is also joining the party. Wickens hasn’t raced in real life since an IndyCar accident at Pocono left him severely injured with multiple spinal fractures. He is determined to get back to racing, however, and will be competing in only his second virtual race in one of the three works-entered Aston Martins.

24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual spotter’s guide

Like the real Le Mans 24 Hours, the virtual event has a spotter’s guide, so you should be able to identify every car with relative ease. As this is a virtual event some of the liveries are a little wilder than normal. Porsche, for example, have designed a livery to celebrate its first Le Mans win, 50 years ago this weekend, and the LMP car of Jenson Button is decked out with Brawn GP colours.

Where can I watch the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual?

First of all. The event will be streamed on YouTube, and you can catch the stream here. In Europe you can also watch the race by visiting the Eurosport Player or Motorsport.tv. If you want to see the race on your TV you’ll need to tune in to Eurosport, with the first two and a half hours broadcast live, another two and a half hours broadcast in the evening and a further five hours broadcast over the 24-hour period.

In the USA you can see the race online via the ESPN app or at ESPN.com, or tune in to ESPN2 to see a total of 12 hours racing.

For more broadcast details, the Le Mans website offers more information.

When does the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual start?

The race starts at 2pm BST on Saturday 13^th June 2020, or 3pm CET, the same start time as the real Le Mans 24 Hours. As the name suggest, the race ends 24 hours later at 2pm BST on Sunday 14^th June.

How many cars and drivers are there in the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual?

There are 50 cars in total across LMP and GT classes, the entries decided upon by “a committee representing both motorsport and esports”, bringing together “the best of racing teams and esports squads”. The reason there are fewer cars in the virtual event than the real one (there are normally around 62 cars in the real race) is to maintain server stability – the last thing the event’s organisers would want is a server that starts to melt under the strain…

As there are 50 cars there are 200 drivers, four per car (one more than the real race), with each team encompassing two sim racers or professional drivers and two professional drivers with International FIA licences. Each driver must race for a minimum of four hours in total up to a maximum of seven hours.

Car numbers for LMP will be between 1-50, while GT cars will be numbered 51-99, and a qualifying session on Friday 12^th June will decide the grid.

What platform does the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual run on?

The virtual event uses the rFactor 2 platform, which allows night and day transitions (very important), multiclass racing and driver changes. The drivers can also make mechanical changes as they would in real life, tuning the suspension, gear ratios and aero packages, for example.

Is there damage, fuel and tyre wear in the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual?

Yes, cars can get damaged, run out of fuel and shred their tyres. A damaged car won’t run as well as one without, and worn tyres will increase lap times, so drivers will need to pit to refuel, repair and grab a fresh set of Michelins. The same race director, Eduardo Freitas, will be monitoring the race just as he does for every WEC event, and teams will have to observe the same flags, the same safety car rules and the same penalties as they would in the real-world event. For more information on the race, you can visit the dedicated 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual website.

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Driver images courtesy of Motorsport Images.