Init Esports, Pennzoil Create Sim Racing Digital Tournament
Init Esports—a female-led esports company—and Pennzoil worked together to create Screen to Speed powered by Pennzoil—a sim racing digital tournament designed to give female racers around the world the opportunity to participate in this event. The sim racing show will take viewers, supporters and women in the esports industry on a real-life journey to discover hidden talent in motorsports.
Stefy Bau, founder of Init Esports, and Victoria Thomas, co-owner of KellyMoss Road and Race, teamed up to create this initiative with a mission of raising awareness and opportunities for females in the motorsports industry. Since sim racing is a direct link to the type of competition in the motorsports industry, this digital tournament is designed to educate women and incentivize them to share in their mission and journey to bring more women into motorsports.
Until February 12, women can sign up to race in the tournament, with the chance to participate in real life at the grand finale show in Las Vegas on March 4 during the weekend of the Pennzoil 400. The tournament is split into three separate phases, giving racers an opportunity to take part in some friendly competition.
Phase 1 began on December 15, 2022 with an asynchronous digital competition where sim racers competed in Time Attack via iRacing. Registered participants will be able to spin as many laps as they can within a given timeframe, racing virtually on the Las Vegas Motor Speedway circuit in the Ford Next Gen NASCAR vehicle. Phase 1 will conclude on February 12, and the top 20 finalists will be chosen. The 20 finalists will then meet in Las Vegas for Phase 2, which is an in-person battle taking place on March 4. In this round, drivers will compete in Next Level Racing cockpit simulators while receiving coaching tips from KellyMoss Road and Race racer Sabré Cook. Fans will be able to tune into the event live via stream on March 4 via Twitch, YouTube and ESTV.
The winner will be announced on March 6 during Phase 3. The grand prize for the winning driver is $15,000 cash, a racing simulator and a real-life track event with the KellyMoss Porsche race team. To learn more about Screen to Speed Powered by Pennzoil, visit their website.
2023 Drive For Diversity Driver Development Class Announced
NASCAR and Rev Racing have announced the next generation of drivers participating in the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Driver Development Program. Following a national and international search, eight talented drivers were selected for the newest class after participating in the Advance Auto Parts Drive for Diversity Combine.
Lavar Scott, Andrés Pérez de Lara, Jaiden Reyna and Justin Campbell are returning to Rev Racing for the 2023 season. Paige Rogers, Eloy Sebastián López Falcón, Caleb Johnson and Nathan Lyons will make their debut in 2023.
The NASCAR Drive for Diversity Driver Development Program was created in 2004 to develop and train ethnically diverse and female drivers both on and off the track. NASCAR Cup Series drivers Bubba Wallace, Daniel Suárez, and Kyle Larson are alumni of this program, which is operated by Rev Racing in Concord, North Carolina. For more information, visit the NASCAR announcement here or visit nascar.com.
For more racing news, visit Performance Racing Industry’s (PRI) website.