GRID SET FOR PODIUM eSPORTS SOUTHERN 500
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — After six days of qualifying, the starting grids have been set for the Podium eSports Southern 500 and the last-chance qualifier.
The top 35 qualifiers have locked themselves into the Southern 500, while the rest of the field will fight for the final eight starting spots via the last-chance qualifier (LCQ). The LCQ will be held at 4 p.m. ET on Sept. 2, and will run for 75 laps. There will be one attempt at a green-white-checker finish if needed. In-sim weather conditions will mirror those of the feature race, save for a 4:00 p.m. start time.
The starting grid for the first 35 positions of the Podium eSports Southern 500 is below:
| Grid Row | Inside Line | Outside Line |
| 1 | Graham A. Bowlin | Derek Justis |
| 2 | Matt Bussa | Justin Lisonbee |
| 3 | Ryan A. Hill | Tyler Dalton |
| 4 | Jimmy Mullis | Zack Novak |
| 5 | Jason Jacoby | Daniel Faulkingham |
| 6 | Trent Ringler | Nicholas Morse |
| 7 | John Theodore | William E Moore |
| 8 | Adam DeBlasio | Chris Simard |
| 9 | Kollin Keister | Keith Maiato |
| 10 | Michael Fenlason | Justin Faulkner |
| 11 | Aaron Smith II | Seth DeMerchant |
| 12 | Parker Brookfield | Brett Punkari |
| 13 | Josh Duffety Wong | Garrett Manes |
| 14 | Raul Martinez3 | Collin Bowden |
| 15 | Briar LaPradd | Christian Pedersen |
| 16 | Aaron Rodgers | Tyler King |
| 17 | Kenneth McCullough Jr | Vicente Salas |
| 18 | Dalton Cowden |
The starting grid for the last chance qualifier is below:
| Row | Inside | Outside |
| 1 | Josh Lambert | Joseph R Jones |
| 2 | Josh Bonwell | Colt Cecil |
| 3 | John Taylor3 | Blake Griffith |
| 4 | Patrick Shelton | Justin Botelho |
| 5 | Oliver Cordell | Paul Mulrain |
| 6 | Dylan D Thomas | Austin Edwards |
| 7 | Thomas Grau | Jake Potak |
| 8 | Matt Kocher | Keith Haney |
| 9 | Bryson Tomlinson | Thomas Lewandowski |
| 10 | Gerald Campbell | Sean Kalist |
| 11 | Kyle Urbanik | Jordan Werth |
| 12 | Daniel Jackson3 | Jordan Coren |
| 13 | Tom Morano | Jacob Bell |
| 14 | Dave Coburn | Tyler L Jones |
| 15 | Timothy Adams2 | Chris T Jones |
| 16 | Will L Davis | Jason R Long |
| 17 | Luis Salmaso | Malik Ray |
The Podium eSports Southern 500 will start at 6:00 p.m. ET on Sept. 2 and will be broadcast on the iRacing eSports Network.
About Podium eSports
Podium eSports, home of the best competition in sim racing, launched in January 2019. As one of the only companies in sim racing to combine its competition and broadcast divisions, Podium is uniquely positioned to transform sim racing in the world of esports and help sim racing realize its full commercial potential. In addition to administering its own series, Podium has partnered with the Porsche Club of America and the CARS Tour to develop the CARS eSport Tour and the Porsche Club of America Sim Racing Series. Podium eSports races are broadcast live on the Podium eSports Network, which can be found at twitch.tv/podiumesports. For more information, visit podiumesports.com.
Media Contact
James Pike
Chief Communications Officer
(336) 413-9004
james.pike@podiumesports.com