Explaining a racing incident is like trying to describe a dream. It felt incredibly real and monumentally unjust at the moment, but now it just sounds like, 'So the other car was... just there... and then, you know, I wasn't.
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NEWS FLASH
Brief Expo Recap from Redditors: The Chicago Sim Gaming Expo showcased the latest in virtual racing hardware, with a major consensus that Active Pedals are the next evolutionary step forward for serious racers. High-torque wheelbases from brands like Simucube still reign supreme for delivering the most authentic front-wheel feel, with a noticeable performance gap compared to lower-end options. While motion platforms are delivering increasingly immersive thrills, the community is now buzzing with rumors of a new Simucube product launch expected at the German expo in October.
A Rare Sighting: Seven-time Formula 1 champion Michael Schumacher made a rare, secret helicopter trip from his residence in Mallorca to Gland, Switzerland, to meet his first granddaughter, Millie, in April 2025. The visit was meticulously planned by his wife, Corinna, to ensure total privacy and comfort for the former driver, who has remained out of the public eye since a severe brain injury in 2013. This carefully guarded event highlights the family's unwavering commitment to keeping him connected to personal milestones while fiercely protecting his dignity and privacy.
The Champ's Side Quest: Just a week after his Monza victory, Max Verstappen fulfilled a long-held dream by making his Nürburgring Endurance Series debut on the legendary Nordschleife obliterating his competition. Before hitting the track, the F1 star first had to jump through the controversial hoop of passing a mandatory classroom exam to secure the required German racing permit. The weekend's plan involved racing a Porsche Cayman to qualify for a top-tier drive in a Red Bull-liveried Ferrari 296 GT3, an adventure his team viewed as a positive distraction.
SIM RACING SNIPPETS
Prancing horse arrives: To coincide with the Italian Grand Prix, Assetto Corsa EVO has confirmed the iconic Monza circuit will be added to the game and strongly teased the inclusion of Ferrari's 2025 SF-25 Formula 1 car. This is a significant move for the early access sim, as licensing a current-spec F1 car is uncommon and its complex hybrid powertrain introduces a brand-new technology to the platform.
Precision in the details: Conspit's ARES 12 wheelbase enters the high-end sim racing market with a proprietary motor engineered specifically for racing simulation, which, when paired with a 23-bit optical encoder, aims to deliver exceptionally smooth and precise force feedback by eliminating errors common in magnetic systems. The company emphasizes an approach by testing the actual torque output at the wheel, packaging the advanced tech in an aerospace aluminum body with a Formula-inspired quick release system.
Massive season update: The iRacing 2025 Season 4 build delivers the long-awaited new Sim UI alongside a trio of new cars—the Aston Martin Vantage GT3 EVO, Dallara IL-15, and Ford Mustang GT4—and the legendary Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez track. This release also features a complete physics and tire overhaul for the entire GT4 class and a huge track modernization effort, with four circuits like Sonoma and Charlotte being completely rescanned and six others receiving major art updates.
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MOTORSPORTS REPORT
Strategic signing: Alpine has locked in Formula E champion Antonio Felix da Costa for its World Endurance Championship team, a move originally intended to replace Mick Schumacher who was expected to depart for Cadillac. Now, with Schumacher’s plans up in the air and a potential McLaren Hypercar seat on his radar, Alpine is left with a guaranteed star in da Costa and a slim chance of convincing its current headliner to stay.
Ricciardo's next chapter: Following his retirement from racing, Daniel Ricciardo has officially become a Global Ford Racing Ambassador, with a specific focus on the high-performance Raptor brand and lifestyle. He framed the partnership as an authentic next step, citing his personal connection as a long-time Raptor owner and his admiration for Ford's ability to innovate and have fun while using motorsports to advance road car technology
Promising weekend cut short: VPX Motorsport with SRN Community Member, Alex Ellis had the triple-header at Barber Motorsport Park starting on a high note, with the drivers expertly navigating the field from P7 to secure a strong P4 finish in the Road America makeup race. Their momentum came to an abrupt end at Barber when an unfortunate, no-fault collision took them out of the top 5 and forced the car's retirement, though the crew's performance and pace were a clear display of their dedication.
FEATURED COLUMN
Year One - How the Chicago Sim Gaming Expo Forged a New Tradition
Traveling to the inaugural Sim Gaming Expo in Chicago with the Into The Apex Podcast, I could not help but imagine what I see around the campgrounds and events at IMSA or IndyCar weekends in North America–traditions built year-by-year with growing camaraderie, history, anticipation. The Sim Gaming Expo is the beginning of that for sim racers in North America. In fact, sim racers have that type of connection, built around a love of motorsport, every day.
The Expo floor is a lively playground for sim enthusiasts–a variety of them thanks to the inclusive category of Sim Gaming–with it’s heart and founding making it a distinct home for sim racing. One day was never enough to digest everything on offer–even on the third and final day, I still found myself wanting to revisit the Simucube, Corsair, Cube Control exhibits for one more taste of the finest sim racing products in the world. The layers of the floor looked like this: endless sim racing rigs waiting for you to test and experience; wheels, pedals, all to get a feel of; was that a full commercial plane cockpit?; a media stage with constant engagement, and behind, overlooking the entire floor, a massive projection of live sim competition. A crowd gathers for live sim racing, passersby pause because of the energized play-by-play of the live broadcasters, cheering and clapping and disbelief at the close battles.
The floor may close, but the relationships and stories never do. The shared energy traveled from the halls, to the after parties, and back home with each person. I would dare say the sim racing experience for the next year has become just a little more enhanced, a little more personal, for everyone who was there. The only question about next year, is will you be there?
MEMBER FEATURE
This week, our Community Spotlight shines on Tyler Beamon, a cornerstone of the sim racing world!
Since 2022, Tyler has shared his passion as an iRacing writer focusing on road racing and endurance events. He's the co-founder of MAD Sim Racing, a community built on the camaraderie of team events, lively Discord chats, and meetups at live races.
But many know him best as co-host of the Into The Apex Podcast, a weekly show started in 2020 that masterfully blends the worlds of virtual and real motorsport. Featuring notable guests from across the industry, the podcast has the unpredictable feel of friends gathered at the track.
From insightful articles to fostering a vibrant community, Tyler’s dedication is a massive asset to us all. Cheers, Tyler!
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SRN RECAP AND UNFILTERED THOUGHTS
Indy 6 hour was once again such a fun time and a success. I mostly took care of arranging teams and took a small step back from some other aspects. I found that I was getting too invested at times in the endurance series, which isn’t a bad thing, but creating some more time for myself to be able to progress the community forward in other areas was important to me.
SCEL Championship wrapped up, but wait, there’s more! The official prize ceremony will take place where Jason will be announcing and conducting the giveaways for the season end.
I was sent a Pimax Crystal Super from Pimax to try out and wow.. I am thoroughly impressed so far. I’ve used it for just over 5 hours now and am going through the honeymoon phase with it, but I have found a lot of clarity.
I was at the 2008 Atlanta layout one week previous with Outlier Setups and the qualifying setup put me consistently in the top 4 starting grid. These setups continue to perform week in and week out. Unfortunately my race luck was hindered by my own technical issues that were hardware related and one botched pit stop where I sped through the pits for 1 second due to recalibrating my brake load cell and pressing the brake pedal too light on entry.
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