

#Dubai f1 racing 2017 series
I kind of need to catch up in a very short time, which is why I’ve spent close to 500 hours in the gym in the last year to catch up!†CEM’S STORYīolukbasi cut his teeth the inaugural F1 Esports Series in 2017, winning the second race around Spa-Francorchamps, at the live final held at Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. €œThe only thing sim racers are missing compared to real racers is the physical preparation Everyone around us has been racing for so many years, so they’re very used to which muscles they need to use, and they’ve been working on these muscles for years. €œThe cars are really, really fast, and despite being close to the real thing, the simulators can’t come close to replicating the G-forces and neck strain when you’re going that fast, both accelerating and decelerating.†€œOn the mental side you can really understand what it’s like to concentrate for a long time, but on the physical side, it’s more difficult,†he explained.
#Dubai f1 racing 2017 driver
While simulators, Esports and the like are fantastic acclimatisation tools for racers looking to convert their digital success into physical, nothing can prepare a driver for the sheer brutality of a racing car like the real thing. G-FORCES AND GGsĪ fast sim racer does not a champion make. However, Bolukbasi’s presence in F2 will represent the highest level of racing for an Esports racer so far. Fellow F1 Esports forerunner Igor Fraga previously appeared on the Road to F1, contesting the 2020 FIA Formula 3 Championship, also with Charouz. If people see that one person can do it, they will believe they can do it as well.â€īolukbasi is in good company.

€œI think it’s also very important to be the first gamer to do this, because it can give people hope.

I joined in, qualified, and if I can go from F1 Esports to FIA Formula 2, I think anyone can. F1 Esports opened up that accessibility, because the only thing I had was a wheel and pedals set. €œThe only problem was the accessibility, because you can’t just choose to be a Formula 1 driver just because you want to. The whole starting procedure was down to F1 Esports back in 2017, it really changed my life! It was nothing serious for us back then, but I really wanted to be an F1 driver, because… who doesn’t want to be an F1 driver? €œIf I was never in F1 Esports, I would never have had the chance to get into a real car – I would not be where I am now. The series, which experimented with a three-race weekend format in 2021, reverts to the duality of Sprint and Feature once more this season.Īs the first racer from the F1 Esports Series to make it to Formula 2, Bolukbasi’s signing represents a singularity moment for the blending of virtual and physical racing. With a 14-round calendar, all of which fall on F1 race weekends, the 2022 FIA Formula 2 Championship will be the biggest to date. I was like a kid living a dream over those five or six days.†A N ew Challenge I watched the F1 finale, testing, and then a day later I was driving the F2 car. €œTo return after four years testing an F2 car was pretty insane for me, realising everything. €œI was in Abu Dhabi in 2017 for F1 Esports as an Esports driver,†he reminisced. However, his 2022 campaign will see him in the Charouz camp, with his team mate for the season yet to be announced. It was a big dream that has actually happened, so it’s quite difficult to put into words, but it’s very exciting and I’m very happy.â€īolukbasi first got to grips with the Dallara F2 2018 in the post-season test at Abu Dhabi, turning wheels in anger for Van Amersfoort Racing. €œI think the realisation is kicking in more and more every hour. €œI haven’t really had time to let it sink in!†said the Turkish 23-year-old.

In doing so, he becomes the first racer from his nation, and indeed from the world of sim racing, to make the step. Cem Bolukbasi to Race in Formula 2 in 2022! January 12, 2022į1 Esports Series alumnus Cem Bolukbasi will race in the 2022 FIA Formula 2 Championship with Charouz Racing System, it has been announced.Īfter starting his career in the F1 Esports Series, and spending the last few years in sportscar and single-seater championships, the Turkish racer will now step up to the premier single-make series in the world.
