A few weeks ago, McLaren announced an ambitious competition to try to find the “World’s Fastest Gamer”. While we do not hear much about the competition, we knew that McLaren would be drawing from a pool of “PC, Console, and Mobile” gamers. With that, many racers were concerned this would not be as serious of a competition for those looking for an authentic experience. Now, we have the first title announced to be showcased, which may alleviate some fears!

The first title to be showcased in McLaren’s World Fastest Gamer is rFactor 2! Studio 397’s racing sim will be featured in the first of four qualifying events for the competition, which will pit ten racers against each other for the prize of becoming McLaren’s Simulator Driver for a year.

The top 6 spots in the championship will be chosen by a panel of Experts. The four remaining spots will be determined by four Qualifier Championships, which will put drivers against each other in hunt of that esteemed spot in the final championship.

The opening round of qualifying will take place after the British Grand Prix (July 16, 2017), and will utilize the rFactor 2 platform. After an online qualifying event, the championship will consist of the top twenty drivers. A four race championship series will pit the top twenty drivers against each other, with the champion taking a spot in the World’s Fastest Gamer competition.

After the rFactor 2 round, there will be three more championships, using yet-to-be-revealed software. From there, the final championship will take place with the top ten drivers. The format of the final is still unknown, whether it will be a one-off race or a multi-event championship, but I’m definitely hoping for the second.

Here’s something interesting to note regarding this announcement: as of right now, rFactor 2 does NOT have a first-part McLaren car in the software. However, it has been rumored that Studio 397 has a “Modern Formula One Car” in development. Could this be a modern F1 car from McLaren, that we could see in July?

Regardless, this is exciting news for rFactor 2, and I believe this should mean that McLaren is taking this competition seriously. What are your thoughts?