BMW SIM 120 Cup provides top-class virtual racing in 2020 – Thrilling finale, featuring twelve of the best sim racers from around the world at BMW SIM LIVE.

Munich. The sixth winning team in the sixth race. The second season of the BMW SIM 120 Cup drew to a close on Sunday with a thrilling two-hour race in São Paulo. Sebastian Job and Graham Carroll (both GBR), in the #2 BMW M8 GTE, delivered a commanding performance to defeat a strong field at the virtual ‘Autodromo José Carlos Pace’ on the iRacing simulation. In doing so, the two Red Bull Racing Esports drivers secured their ticket to the grand finale which will take place at BMW SIM LIVE on 5^th December 2020.

Over 2,000 drivers from all over the world competed in the six races – at Daytona, Sebring, the Nürburgring, Spa-Francorchamps, Road Atlanta and Interlagos. The winner of each race picked up a cheque for 2,400 US dollars, while the second-placed team received 1,200 US dollars. The third-placed drivers shared 600 US dollars.

The first name to go into the list of winners was that of Team Redline at the start of the year. Back in January, Maximilian Benecke and Maximilian Wenig were the dominant force in the BMW SIM 120 Cup at Daytona. Benecke is the first driver ever to pass the magical ‘iRating’ of 11,000. The ‘iRating’ is the evaluation system on the iRacing platform, based on performance and reliability.

At the start of March, it was the turn of Coanda Simsport at Sebring. Victory for Mitchell deJong (USA), last year’s overall winner at the BMW SIM LIVE event, and Josh Rogers (AUS) saw them secure their tickets to the grand finale. Two months later, Laurin Heinrich and Alexander Voß (both GER) from the BS+COMPETITION team called on their wealth of experience at the virtual Nürburgring to win round three of the season. Shortly before that success, the same duo had also triumphed in the iRacing 24-hour race at the Nürburgring alongside BMW works driver Philipp Eng (AUT).

Williams Esports is another of the top teams on iRacing – as demonstrated in the BMW SIM 120 Cup at Spa-Francorchamps. Agustín Canapino (ARG) and Sami-Matti Trogen (FIN) took the chequered flag in their BMW M8 GTE. That was followed by a two-month summer break, during which a new sim racing team from Finland appeared on the scene: KOVA. When the BMW SIM 120 Cup resumed at Road Atlanta, Tuomas Tähtelä and Valtteri Alander (both FIN) presented the newcomers with their maiden win.

Red Bull Racing Esports emphatically left its mark on the season at round six, which took place at the São Paulo circuit. Sebastian Job first secured pole position. He then handed the BMW M8 GTE over to Graham Carroll with a significant lead. Carroll then guided the car home for a dominant win. “That was my first go in the BMW SIM 120 Cup – and we won at the first attempt,” said Carroll after the race. “It all worked superbly and the practice paid off. We now want to take this momentum into the BMW event in December and on into next year.” 

Twelve of the top iRacing stars will now go head to head at BMW SIM LIVE on 5^th December. In the final, the drivers compete individually. The grand finale features a prize purse of 27,600 US dollars, with the winner taking home the princely sum of 12,000 US dollars.

The BMW SIM 120 Cup race winners at a glance.

Maximilian Benecke / Maximilian Wenig – Team Redline

Josh Rogers / Mitchell deJong – Coanda Simsport

Laurin Heinrich / Alexander Voß – BS+COMPETITION

Agustín Canapino / Sami-Matti Trogen – Williams Esports

Tuomas Tähtelä / Valtteri Alander - KOVA

Sebastian Job / Graham Carroll – Red Bull Racing Esports