Formula Sim Racing (or FSR) is more than a mod, more than a league, and more than just sim-racing. FSR is not for the casual racing driver, or even the slightly hardcore, but rather FSR is a proving ground for the world’s fastest and most talented sim-racers. In the current format, FSR is run as a mod for rFactor 2 but has existed since 2001, when it used the Grand Prix 3 simulation as a platform.

Participants in the FSR series have included people like Stoffel Vandoorne, AJ Allmendinger, Parker Kligerman, Marco Zipoli, and David Martinez who went on to compete in real life racing series like Formula Renault 2.0 and 3.5, GP2, NASCAR, Indy Lights, ChampCar, A1GP, and more. The series races at tracks like

This season’s car has a V8 producing about 750 horsepower and revving to 18,000 rpm. The drivers will have DRS again this year, reaching top speeds of over 200mph and accelerating to 60mph in less than two seconds. The aerodynamic aspect of the car is just as extreme as the engine, producing almost two tons of downforce for a car that weighs in at just over 1400 pounds.

Signing up for the World Championship (the highest of the three leagues available) costs 58 euros (currently $63 with today’s conversion rate) per driver and another 120 euros ($130) for a team license for one year. With the cost of signing up, however, comes the potential for great reward. With drivers getting sponsorship and teams earning money from a prize pool there is plenty of incentive beyond proving how fast you are. Last season’s prize pot of over 2000 euros (nearly $2200) saw a payout of over $900 to the winning team, Precision Motorsports, and this season there will be more prizes (including some for safe driving).

This season marks the first year in recent history where five-time consecutive world champion Bono Huis will not be participating in the championship. Huis has won the FSR championship every year since 2010 and won again last season. His absence guarantees that the 2015 driver champion will be someone new, with no other returning champions on the grid. Huis only won three of the twelve races last season, but has the current record for most wins in FSR history with a staggering 46 to his name.

For more information about FSR visit www.formula-simracing.net