HP Tuners is running an iRacing competition this week. The prize is notable: the top 30 qualifying drivers will race 2024 Formula 1 World Champion Oscar Piastri live on May 4.
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🎮 r/iRacing: Race Oscar Piastri thread
The event is hosted by HP Tuners, the automotive performance tuning and data logging company. The connection to Piastri is direct: HP Tuners was co-founded by Chris Piastri, Oscar’s father. As a result, the company has used this competition as a way to connect the sim racing community with one of Formula 1’s most prominent current drivers.
Piastri is not a novelty sim racer. He carries an iRating of approximately 5,600, which puts him in the upper tier of competitive online racers. Because of that, the May 4 event will not be a casual celebrity appearance. Drivers qualifying for the top 30 can therefore expect a genuine race.
Qualification is still open. The top 30 finishers in the qualifying window earn a spot in the live race on May 4. However, the window closes before the event, so this is the week to put in your qualifying laps.
The post surfaced on r/iRacing on April 29 and picked up quickly. Community members noted the Piastri family connection and his legitimate sim racing credentials. Furthermore, several iRacers pointed out that this is one of the few events where a real-world F1 driver will actually be racing for position in the same session.
Events like this do not come around often in iRacing. If you have been looking for an excuse to sharpen your qualifying pace, this is a good one.
