Erebus Academy launches Eseries for teens

The Erebus Academy has launched an Esports competition of its own to develop rising racing talents.

WATCH: DOOHAN PREVIEWS ESERIES DEBUT

As the stars of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship take to the virtual race track for the ongoing BP Supercars All Stars Eseries, teen talents will be given the chance to race in a dedicated online environment.

The iRacing-based competition will be run in conjunction with online racing broadcaster Just Send It and will be broken into two age groups: 13-15 years and 16-18 years.

“We see this as a great opportunity to introduce a younger demographic to our sport in the current climate,” Erebus CEO Barry Ryan said.

“While we’re not racing in the real world, we are in a really fortunate position where we can still engage with our fans and give them an opportunity to race in front of us.

“iRacing isn’t something unfamiliar for us, with an in-house simulator used as part of our drivers training in the lead up to many events.”

The contest will kick off on Thursday May 14, with time trial shootouts held across two consecutive days.

Competitors will then qualify for Saturday’s races by placing inside the top 40 at Okoyama International Circuit, Japan, and Summit Point Motor Sport Park in America; in both an iRacing Legacy Holden V8 Supercar and Legends 34 Coup.

Prizes will be awarded for each race, with major prizes going to the entrant with the best average lap time across both time trials circuits in each age group.

Major prizes include a full day of training at Norwell Motorplex in a Toyota 86 and a race-prepared go-kart with Sera Driver Development.

Penrite Racing’s Anton De Pasquale and co-driver Brodie Kostecki – both accomplished iRacers – will be part of a dedicated race control team throughout all sessions.

De Pasquale has had a long association tutoring and mentoring the next generation of drivers and sees the Eseries as another way to give back to the sport where so many have helped him.

‘’It’s such a cool initiative from the Erebus Academy and something I am really looking forward to help steer,’’ De Pasquale said.

‘’I particularly enjoy working with the younger kids because they are really eager to learn and to be honest, I get as much out of it as they do.

‘’I’ve been really fortunate to have had a lot of people help me with my career and take an interest in me and I’ve been involved with the Erebus Academy and driver training at Norwell for a number of years now, so it’s an extension of getting kids involved in motorsport, just in another way. ‘’

The Junior Esports Competition is open to the public and will be broadcast on Twitch and the team’s Facebook pages, with fans urged to enter via the team’s website.

Entry is free and open from now until 11:59pm AEST Sunday May 10.

For more information and to register, visit www.penriteracing.com/jr-esports-comp