#LEMANS24VIRTUAL - Lucas Ordóñez is looking forward to a great show!
Back

#LEMANS24VIRTUAL - Lucas Ordóñez is looking forward to a great show!

Lucas Ordóñez is a trailblazer as the first gamer to become a professional racing driver and compete at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (2011). He is naturally taking a keen interest in the Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans, set to take place on 13-14 June 2020, the date originally scheduled for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, now postponed to 19-20 September 2020.

Lucas Ordóñez has a foot in two camps, one in the realm of esports and the other in the world of motor racing. That means he’s doubly interested in the Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans which will bring professional racing drivers and esports specialists together on 13-14 June.

Ordóñez was the first winner of the gamer-to-racer Nissan PlayStation GT Academy in 2009 and, as his prize, graduated from the “virtual” championship to become a Nissan works driver. In 2011, he made his first 24 Hours of Le Mans start, racing in the LMP2 class with the Signatech-Nissan team. They finished second in class, Ordóñez’s best result despite a further four Le Mans appearances. In 2015, he moved up to the premier league of endurance racing with an entry in the LMP1 class at the wheel of the Nissan GT-R LM Nismo. Alongside his professional driving duties, he has continued to compete in esports. During lockdown, he naturally took part in several races, most notably against Formula One drivers Carlos Sainz and Esteban Ocon. He’s really looking forward to watching the 50 competitors in the Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans, which will start at 15:00 this Saturday, 13 June. 

Lucas Ordóñez, what do you think about this, the first ever Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans? 

“It’s set to be a huge event, and very exciting, with some big-name drivers and some excellent simracers. It’s really good for the fans, who will be missing the real 24 Hours of Le Mans - it’s going to be a great show. I expect the audience to comprise both regular 24 Hours spectators and the usual esports fans. Given the history of the race and the circuit, plus the drivers competing, I think it’'ll draw a big audience. It’s a good idea to have teamed pro drivers up with simracers, rather than pitting them against one another. It’s more constructive, they’ll be able to share their experience. Simracers are usually faster because they know how to boost their speed, different tricks to those used in real-life racing. There’s a certain way of setting the car. However, some pros perform pretty well on the simulator so it’ll be interesting to bring the two worlds together."

So what are the differences between sim-racing and real racing? 

“You need to remember that esports has come on in leaps and bounds over the past ten years or so. The players use high-performance simulators, they’re pros. They train for hours. Networks are better these days and, most importantly, you can play against one another, and not just against the computer nowadays. The computer graphics are amazing too. On the simulator, you drive but you don’t take any risks, you’re there with your steering wheel and screens. In a car out on the real track, you use your body, you feel the movement, the lateral force and the braking points. Pro drivers now use simulators to familiarise themselves with the circuits. It’s really practical when they don’ thave much track time, as is the case for beginners who come to Le Mans. It’s a great tool." 
I’ll never forget my first outing at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, especially driving on slicks through the rain. Then there was the atmosphere in town, and driving through Indianapolis at night. I was the first ‘gamer’ to cross over to pro racing.”  

What about the racing driver/simracer combination? Could it inspire simracers to become professional drivers? Is that their ultimate goal?  

“It is for some of them, yes, but others are happy competing in esports. They enjoy the relationship they have with motor racing via the steering wheel and screen. It’s not the same effort, the same concentration. Nor the same danger. In any case, I’m certainly looking forward to watching the Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans!”

Major Partner

PREMIUM partners

OFFICIAL partners

All partners