Toyota GAZOO Racing have signed a multi-year title agreement with the eSports WRC Championship, with the 2020 winner walking away with a brand-new GR Yaris road car.
The virtual series is currently in its fifth season and uses the WRC series of games as a platform for its competition with seven of the 11 qualifying rounds so far complete in the 2020 season.
Toyota’s new GR Yaris is built with technology and expertise from the Japanese manufacturers WRC title winning car and features all-wheel drive and 1.6 litre turbo charged engine.
WRC Promoter Oliver Ciesla said on the news of the agreement: “Since physical events have been affected by recent circumstances, eSports is, now more than ever, a way for our fans to experience the thrill of motorsports competition even more intensely.”
“The eSports WRC Championship has grown in stature over the last five years to become one of motorsport’s leading virtual competitions. We’re pleased to welcome the enthusiastic participation of Toyota Gazoo Racing, a WRC manufacturer team, to the tournament.”
Toyota’s deal with the game’s developer NANCON will be part of both WRC8 and WRC9, which is scheduled to be released in September and the company’s head of publishing, Benoît Clerc added: “We’re very proud of the progress we’ve made since the creation of eSports WRC, which has become inseparable from the development and work performed all year long on the WRC video games.”
“It has now become an unmissable event for every fan of off-road racing games. Thanks to the support of Toyota, the 2020 year will benefit from significant reinforcement, and we’re very impatient to continue collectively expanding WRC eSports.”
Currently the virtual series is led by Lebanese driver Sami-Joe, who has a close lead over defending and double champion Lohan Blanc.
