Incumbent ARG eSport Cup champion Jaden Ransley will partner real-life reigning TCR Australia champion Will Brown at HMO Customer Racing for the inaugural TCR Australia virtual series commencing next week.
An ardent sim-racer, Ransley has quickly become a household name in the Trans-Tasman virtual racing world with commanding wins in the KartSport virtual club days as well as strong stints in the Racing Local Eseries.
The Toyota 86 regular will be a part of an exclusive 18-strong grid comprised of the best TCR competitors in Australia and New Zealand.
“I’m extremely excited to be joining HMO Customer Racing for the new TCR E-Series,” said Ransley. “After our success in the previous TCR E-Series it’s awesome to be able to partner with one of the top teams in the TCR Australia Championship.
“I look forward to working with Will and the team and hopefully bringing the team some good results.”
The seven-round series will look entirely different to the eSport Cup, with a switch from iRacing to the Assetto Corsa software the predominant change.
Also on the line is a substantial prize pool which sees the series victor receive free-entry into any real-life TCR competiton.
Ransley’s simulator expertises could thus come in handy as the Christchurch-based racer eyes a real seat on the Australian TCR grid come the start of the season in August.
“We are still trying to stitch things together for 2020 but definitely our ideal next step is TCR Australia,” he told the Parked Up podcast earlier in the week.
“We are in talks with a few teams so hopefully we will be able to be on the grid for the first round of the series at Sydney Motorsport Park.”
The online series gets underway on June 18 with the opening round staged around a simulated Albert Park Street Circuit.
Five more rounds in Australia will follow before a unique season-finale held at the Macau Grand Prix venue.
The real-life TCR Australia series is slated to begin on August 15 from Sydney Motorsport Park.