First-ever virtual Formula One Championship ends with rise of new champions and great future for eRacing

It had everything anyone could ever ask for – crashes, missed opportunities, skillful driving, beautiful cornering, masterful overtakes, the rise of stars and a sense of great comradeship amongst contenders. Sri Lanka’s first-ever virtual Formula One Championship had it all. Most interesting was the close fight at the top of the points table towards the end of the championship. A few more races in the tournament and the leaderboard could have easily changed once more. 

Fawzul, who won four out of the eight racers, was skillful, calm and extremely strategic in his approach. Most of all he believed in himself and no matter the setback he always clawed his way back. His dominance was such one would be fooled into believing the championship was a one-sided affair. In fact there were races where Fawzul dominated the track unchallenged like in his performance at the Red Bull ring that only served to increase the aura of his dominance. But the leaderboard does not really reflect how close some encounters were. It could have been anyone’s game, but Fawzul was good enough to finish it off on top.  

X3_Chalitha was always close behind nagging at the points table threatening to push for better things. But he never really won a leg until the final leg at Imola, Italy. With the exception of one race where Chalitha lost connectivity and it cost him dearly in the final tally, he consistently maintained a podium finish in every other leg demonstrating the consistency of the man. The final race was a testament to how competitive Chalitha is and how much he has grown during the tournament. 

Andrew Breaki8 impressed from the get go and was a favourite to many. It was unfortunate he missed participating at Silverstone, England. He did however come back strongly to redeem himself. At Monza, Italy he led early and looked like he would take the leg but for some masterful pressure put by Fawzul, Andrew was forced into making a mistake. Andrew however came back at Barcelona to prove his mantel in a manner that questioned if the race he missed at Silverstone England was the turning point of the tournament. 

In contrast Raptor and Mellow demonstrated aggressive fiery driving and always looked like having a chance of being a winner. Mistakes as they pushed themselves a bit further or fell victim to pressure tactics saw them cave in at key moments and therefore having mixed fortunes throughout the tournament. At Spa until the last two laps everyone thought it was Raptor’s race all the way. Fawzul though had other idea and made a comeback to snatch victory from the jaws of the Raptor. Mellow performed particularly well at Barcelona to come in second place at the podium. 

Then there was Curious Curio who suddenly appeared at the Monza round with a 3rd place podium finish. The final round saw Curio again hold second position for the longest time and finishing third sending out a message to the eracing community that he is coming of age and plans to be a major contender in the future. 

The Championship ends leaving much promise for next year as the dominant Fawzul who appeared invincible at the halfway mark saw himself beaten in the last two races of the tournament opening the championship to be a cracker next year. But take nothing away from Fawzul. He was the most consistent and is the worthiest to be awarded the title of Sri Lanka’s first ever e-Formula One Champion said Prashanth Supramaniam Managing Director of Mandarin Reid eSports.  

The championship was made possible with the patronization of Seylan Bank PLC, Allianz Insurance Lanka Ltd, Mobil 1, Kärcher Tudawe, GamesHome (RJK), General Auto Works (Pvt) Ltd, Stanvo Swim Shop, Ayuwanna by Barberyn, Asian Security Group, Awarjana, Chinese Dragon, RYESIGHT (Tech Blender Labs), Yes FM & Yes 101 and Wijeya Newspapers.