Reigning F1 champ crashes out of the lead of the year's biggest virtual race Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Reigning F1 champ crashes out of the lead of the year's biggest virtual race Max power. News by Martin Robinson Editor-in-chief Updated on 17 Jan 2022 39 comments It's a month until we get to see the new generation of F1 cars properly unveiled, but ahead of all that this weekend saw the competitive return of reigning champion Max Verstappen as he took part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual. Hosted on rFactor 2 and organised by Motorsport Games in collaboration with the ACO, it's perhaps the biggest virtual race of them all and a welcome fixture on the calendar ever since it was first ushered into life as a replacement for the real thing during the early days of the Coronavirus pandemic back in 2020. As ever the event attracted some considerable talent from the world of racing, with the likes of Juan Pablo Montoya, Felix Rosenqvist and Oliver Rowland joining Verstappen - as well as a return of sorts for Mercedes to Le Mans, the silver arrows taking to the Circuit de la Sarthe in an official capacity since its infamous real-life outing in 1999 when its cars had the unfortunate tendency to hurl themselves into the scenery in spectacular fashion. There was no such drama this year, with the Mercedes team retiring on the three hour mark after blowing an engine, while out front Max Verstappen proved that his mercurial talents are just as apparent in the virtual world as in real racing as he put in a triple stint that saw his Team Redline capture and hold onto the overall lead. His second set of stints behind the wheel wasn't quite so positive, however, with Verstappen making a mess of the Ford Chicane and ripping two wheels off the Oreca LMP2 car, crashing out of the lead and putting an end to Team Redline's efforts. The race was ultimately won in convincing fashion by Realteam Hydrogen Redline, with Felipe Drugovich, Oliver Rowland, Michael Smidl and Jeffrey Rietveld taking the top spot. Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More News Atari will hold RollerCoaster Tycoon rights for another decade Ups and downs. 7 Lady Dimitrescu will be a tad smaller in Resident Evil Village's Mercenaries DLC Level the playing field. 1 Overwatch 2 suffers another DDoS attack and character roster bugs Mei Mei. 7 Nintendo Switch firmware update lets you take screenshots in the Switch Online app The app on your console, not your phone. 7 Latest Articles Atari will hold RollerCoaster Tycoon rights for another decade Ups and downs. 7 Jelly Deals Logitech's G Pro X gaming headset is its lowest-ever price during Amazon's Early Access sale Prime Members can get it for just £52. Jelly Deals Save over £500 off the retail price on this beefy ASUS TUF Dash gaming laptop from Amazon Under £1080 for an RTX 3070 laptop. Lady Dimitrescu will be a tad smaller in Resident Evil Village's Mercenaries DLC Level the playing field. 1 Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store