Netcode problems marred the first of two days of F1 Esports, with Ferrari driver David Tonizza – who suffered connection problems in the last triple-header – was again victim as he was rammed out of the lead by the Alfa Romeo of Jarno Opmeer, the latter claiming not to have seen the Italian’s car on his screen.
Nevertheless, as a result, Opmeer grabbed the win, while Tonizza dropped down the order, and afterwards, the winner reported on Twitter: “David_Tonizza wasn’t on my screen from the start of the race.
Needless to say, all hosting parties are playing down the issues, as no media is on hand to watch and ask questions of a high-profile series running on a simcade platform (which F1 2020 is) but clearly it does not have the capacity to run remote multiplayer for this level of event.
Nevertheless, the show must go on, and this is what Ferrari Esports reported at the end of the first of two nights of action:
The first of the two-day second round of the F1 Esports Series 2020 did not go well for the Ferrari Driver Academy Hublot Esports Team, as it picked up just a single point from two races run on the Zandvoort and Montreal tracks.
Right from qualifying for the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, things did not go well for the two FDA Hublot Esports Team drivers, as neither Enzo Bonito nor David Tonizza made the cut to Q3, having to settle for 12th and 14th places respectively. In the race, with overtaking practically impossible, the two Italians moved a small way up the order to finish tenth and eleventh in a race won by Red Bull’s Frederik Rasmussen.
Montreal. Tonizza seemed set for better things in Canada, when he took an amazing pole position, with Bonito getting no further than Q1, having to start from down in 19th place. At the start, David was overtaken by Jarno Opmeer (Alfa Romeo), the reigning champion shadowing him all the way until it was time for the FDA Hublot Esports Team’s driver to pit for tyres.
Tonzilla rejoined tenth, worked his way up to second behind Rasmussen, until he was caught by Opmeer who hit him and sent him into the barriers in the twisty part of the track. After winning the race, Opmeer said that a visualisation problem meant he could not see the other cars around him clearly. Scant consolation for Tonizza who didn’t pick up a single point. The same went for Bonito who came home 14th.
Tomorrow. In tomorrow’s second day of round 2 of the F1 Esports Series, the drivers will tackle Austria’s Spielberg track. This race can also be seen on the Ferrari Driver Academy Facebook channel and the Formula 1 Twitch and YouTube pages. It can be seen live from 20.30 CET.
