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Red Bull Racing Esports team drivers Aurélien Mallet and Robin Betka put on exciting displays of driving at the Le Mans Esports Series Pro Teams regular season final and will now go into the Pro Team Grand Final as qualifying champions with $10,000 in prize money.
The regular season final was held at Spa-Francorchamps motor-racing circuit in Belgium and the duo picked the Porsche 911 RSR as their car of choice. They both took a race each and collected podium finishes with Mallet finishing P3 in the sprint race and Betka winning the endurance race by more than two seconds.
Even though Mallet lost his rear wing at some point, it didn’t stop him from securing third place. He said: “It was not the race I was expecting. I started on the front row but I had to make my way through the field after being pushed off track. I was down in tenth place and recovered to third. I finished less than a second behind the race winner, who was our competitor for the championship lead. Thankfully, my teammate Robin did a fantastic drive in the endurance race, nailing the strategy to claim the win. Now we must focus on repeating that performance during the Super Final.”
The Spa-Francorchamps circuit is traditionally the venue of the final race before Le Mans as it gives teams an opportunity to hone their preparations for the French 24-hour marathon. The 2020 Super Final, staged on September 18, will again be held at the famous Circuit de la Sarthe located in Le Mans, Sarthe, France, ahead of the world’s most famous endurance race and the conclusion of the FIA World Endurance Championship.
Teammate Betka, who faced dramatic weather conditions during the endurance race, said: “Starting at the back of the grid (reverse grid start) alongside our main competitor really added to the pressure. I approached the race very conservatively because I wanted to avoid a crash at all costs.
“After some back and forth in the crazy reverse grid traffic, I managed to get through the pack. Our pace and successful pit stop strategy allowed us to build the gap and take home the win. I’m very proud of our performance and will be heading to the Super Final with full confidence.”
