This article is actually a re post that was sent to me by David O'Reilly of FSR. The original post was at Race Department. I want to thank FSR for being a great long time running league that has seen some of the best sim racing drivers in history. Here is a copy of the orignial post, and then a recap from round 1.



It's incredible to think about it but Formula SimRacing has its fifteenth birthday this year.



It started in 2001 with Grand Prix 3 simulation by Geoff Crammond. It's first race was at Albert Park GP circuit in Melbourne. Later that year Artur Mlodzinski made history by being crowned the first FSR World Drivers Champion.



In 2002 the scene was set as the the International SimRacing Club by then itself in its third year took the decision to move platforms from Grand Prix 3 to 'F1 2001' from Electronic Arts. Later in the same year the championship migrated to 'F1 2002'. The club has ever since sought the most realistic and accurate simulation to run the championship.



2002 was also the year that saw the arrival of one of sim racings greatest legends Greger Huttu. However it took Gregor 6 months to become competitive and it was 2003 when he came out of the blocks sprinting with 5 straight wins in the opening races. However the standard in FSR is always extremely high and Gregor was out-qualified for race 6 at Monaco by Joshua Lyon. Huttu crashed out on lap 23 and retired from FSR. Lyon took the title in what was his second season.



2006 saw the move from the EA titles to ISI Rfactor using Jason Tedstone's 'F1Champions' Modification.



In the ensuing years the constant has been extremely high levels of driving and competition. If you are FSR World Champion you are one of the best if not the best sim-racer on the planet.



2014 the biggest news was that the International SimRacing Club decided that rFactor 2 was ready for the pinnacle of sim-racing so FSR moved to rFactor 2.

The change of platform mixed it up a bit and the great (then) four time Champion Bono Huis didn't get it all his own way in 2014 and it seemed with 2 races to go that the French racer Morgan Morand had the title sewn up. However in a dramatic final round Huis took his fifth title.



Now its 2015 and two winter series have been been held on the further updated platform. One unofficial in the brilliant ASR Open Wheeler Classic mod and the second the Official FSR Winter series in the ISI stock Formula Renault 3.5 2014. Wet weather testing is scheduled for later this month. Meanwhile the the Formula ISI has been tested and further tweaked after the experience of 2014 to further enhance its suitability.



Morgan Morand the French racer will return to see if he can wrest the Drivers Champion trophy that he so very nearly won in 2014. Reigning champion Bono Huis is taking a break after 5 straight titles. Several drivers will be stepping up to Championship from Ace and we expect to see several drivers racing for wins. Likewise some talented Pro drivers will step up as their results now require it under the rules or because their talent and ambition dictate it. There will be a lot of new faces in Pro fighting for results and recognition from top teams.

The scene is set for the most exciting and unpredictable FSR season yet.



The FSR League in essence consists of three levels.

Pro "The entry point”. 60% of GP distance. Auto Clutch,Traction control and ABS on low.

Ace "The step up”. 80% Race distance. Auto Clutch Only.

World Championship. 100% race distance. No assists.You can sign up for Pro if you want! All you need is the rFactor 2 simulation and the desire. So if you are curious how you might fare against the best in the world, or even think you might be the best, then the chance is here.



The season will open on April fourth at Albert Park Melbourne with thirteen other race weekends completing the full calendar.





And here is a recap from Round 1 at Melbourne: Also post at Race Department by David O'Reilly



The season is upon us. What to watch out for and what to expect.



The 15th season of Formula Sim Racing kicks off with round one of all three titles at Albert Park Melbourne this weekend.

Its shaping up to be an intensely exciting and the most unpredictable season for many years.

Why you might ask?



What's happening in Pro?​

Pro is always a melting pot. The new drivers arrive to discover what “FSR” is like or perhaps with something to prove, either to themselves or to someone else. In recent seasons there has often been “a find” on the Pro Grid. In 2014 the Champion was Rens Klop who in his third season in Pro made a step up and won the title with rounds to spare.

The “find” however was arguably Kuba Brzezinski. Arriving late in the season he was all but unbeatable on pace and has skipped the usual move to Ace and been promoted all the way to World Championship.

Jeroen Kweekel is rumoured after some great results in 2014,to be staying in Pro to try to win the title. However well placed team sources tell us that there is likely to be another “find” on the grid in 2015. Will Kweekel take it in 2015 or will a newcomer relegate him to bridesmaid? Other drivers evolve in Pro as seen by Klop in 2014.

So in Pro you never know what you might witness at the front. Expect the unexpected.



Tune in on Sunday at 14:00 GMT (earlier for qualifying and warm-up) to the live stream.





Ace​

Ace gets serious for 2014.

Instead of 60 and 30% races, Ace moves to 80% race distance which will test the drivers concentration even more and create an interesting strategy environment.

Some say that Ace is where “hot-lappers” learn to become grand prix drivers. You need to be fast but you also need to manage a race of 47 laps.



Daniel Kiss will stay on to fight for top honours in Ace.

Also the reigning Pro champion Rens Klop will now step up to Ace. He will be joined by Mikko Soukas and Alessio Campus. It's defined in the rules that the top three drivers in the two lower championships are required to move up. This wise rule prevents a WDC driver using for example Ace or Pro as a warm-up and destroying the opportunity for new drivers to compete. Michi Hoyer is rumoured to be on great form. If you have the pace to win in Ace you have the pace for World Championship. Who will it be in 2015?



Tune in on Saturday at 17:00 GMT (earlier for qualifying and warm-up) to the live stream.





World Championship​

A new “King of Sims” will be crowned.



Bono Huis the legendary 5 time winner of the Thrustmaster FSR World Driver Championship and considered by many the fastest sim racer of all is taking a season out.



But all is not as it seems at first glance. His great rival Morgan Morand started working with the new simulation Rfactor2 earlier than Huis and most commentators will agree that in 2015 his long time adversary, Frenchman Morand had the edge. He out-raced Huis on most occasions and even after a DNF in Melbourne and an incident in Japan denying him many points the title seemed in the bag at the final round at COTA. He could win with P4 even if Huis won the race. It was a double tap on the pit lane speed limiter and the resulting drive thru that left him in an unheard of P6 and denied Morand the title. We have seen him briefly on track at a wet weather test at Spa and his pace looked imperious.



Will he have it all his own way? We don't think so. For example Martin Gosbee showed he is a WDC race winner in 2014. Jim Parisis showed great form at the end of 2014. Not to mention Brzezinski who despite the jump from Pro to the “big league” those in the know are expecting multiple podiums. This is before we even think about the top two or three stepping up from Ace. In Muhammed Patel and Marco Conti you have two drivers who have race winning pace and are used to winning.



We will also see Jonny Simon the talented FSR live-stream pundit and P4 in Ace 2014 put the theory into action as he calls one race, then gets in the car for the Championship race himself.



After the usual debates and political wrangling behind the scenes its show time!



To study the form see the entire 2014 results HERE



To check out the offerings of our long term title sponsor look HERE



Tune in on Sunday at 17:00 GMT (earlier for qualifying and warm-up) to the live stream.