PODIUM eSPORTS TO LAUNCH 2020 SEASON WITH PODIUM eSPORTS SPEEDWEEKS
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Podium eSports’ second season will begin with Podium eSports Speedweeks, a week-long celebration of sim racing culminating with the second annual Podium eSports Daytona 500 on February 2.
Podium eSports Speedweeks will begin on January 27, when the Dirt Sprint Car – 360 will take to Volusia Speedway Park in a free-to-enter race. The next three days will see the Super Late Model compete at New Smyrna Speedway, the NASCAR K&N Pro Chevrolet Impala compete at Daytona International Speedway – 2007, and the NASCAR XFINITY Series compete at Daytona International Speedway. The Super Late Model race will use open setups, while the K&N race will be a charity race to support iRacer Tyler Moore. On Friday, January 31, the focus shifts to the Podium eSports Daytona 500.
The Podium eSports Daytona 500 returns in 2020 as iRacing’s largest fixed-setup tournament-style Daytona 500 event. Time Trials will be held on the evening of January 31, with the two fastest cars locking themselves into the front row for the feature race.
Qualifying Day for the Podium eSports Daytona 500 returns on Saturday, February 1, as drivers will race their way through one of eight heat races, two last-chance qualifiers and two duels to set the grid for the feature race. In 2019, over 170 drivers competed on Qualifying Day for 43 starting spots.
The 2020 Podium eSports Daytona 500 will be held on February 2, 2020. The green flag will fly at 1:30 p.m. ET, and will use the Beta UI’s daytime transition capabilities. It will be run in-sim at the same time as it will be run in real life. The inaugural Podium eSports Daytona 500 paid over $7,500 in prize money.
“The Daytona 500 is Podium eSports’ largest event each year, and we are excited to bring it back in 2020 for the iRacing community,” said Podium eSports Chief Communication Officer James Pike. “Between the 8+ hours of racing on Qualifying Day and the full-length Daytona 500 on Super Sunday, we expect few events in iRacing to feel larger than the Podium eSports Daytona 500.”
Every event of Podium eSports Speedweeks will be broadcast on the Podium eSports Twitch channel, which can be found at twitch.tv/podiumesports/.
The Podium eSports Daytona 500 costs $30 to enter. For more information on the event, including the event rulebook and registration forms, visit www.podiumesports.com/daytona-500.
Podium eSports Speedweeks Calendar
| Date | Car | Track | Laps | Entry | Purse |
| January 27 | Dirt Sprint Car – 360 | Volusia Speedway Park | 30 (heat format) | Free | N/A |
| January 28 | Super Late Model | New Smyrna Speedway | 125 | $5 | $100 paying to top five |
| January 29 | NASCAR K&N Chevrolet Impala | Daytona International Speedway – 2007 | 80 | $10 | Charity race |
| January 30 | NASCAR XFINITY Series | Daytona International Speedway | 100 | $10 | $200 paying to top 10 |
| January 31 | Daytona 500 Time Trial Night | Daytona International Speedway | 2 | $30 (for entire weekend) | N/A |
| February 1 | Daytona 500 Qualifying Day | Daytona International Speedway | 20/30/60 | $30 (for entire weekend) | N/A |
| February 2 | The Second Annual Podium eSports Daytona 500 | Daytona International Speedway | 200 | $30 (for entire weekend) | TBD |
2020 Podium eSports Daytona 500 Schedule
| Date | Time | Session | Number of Laps | In-Sim Time |
| January 31 | 9:00 p.m. ET | Qualifying | 2 | Night |
| February 1 | 1:00 p.m. ET | Heat 1 | 20 | Afternoon |
| February 1 | 1:45 p.m. ET | Heat 2 | 20 | Afternoon |
| February 1 | 2:30 p.m. ET | Heat 3 | 20 | Afternoon |
| February 1 | 3:15 p.m. ET | Heat 4 | 20 | Afternoon |
| February 1 | 4:00 p.m. ET | Heat 5 | 20 | Afternoon |
| February 1 | 4:45 p.m. ET | Heat 6 | 20 | Afternoon |
| February 1 | 5:30 p.m. ET | Heat 7 | 20 | Afternoon |
| February 1 | 6:15 p.m. ET | Heat 8 | 20 | Afternoon |
| February 1 | 7:00 p.m. ET | LCQ 1 | 30 | Late Afternoon |
| February 1 | 8:00 p.m. ET | LCQ 1 | 30 | Late Afternoon |
| February 1 | 9:00 p.m. ET | Duel 1 | 60 | Night |
| February 1 | 10:30 p.m. ET | Duel 2 | 60 | Night |
| February 2 | 1:30 p.m. ET | Race | 200 | February 2, 1:30 p.m. |
About Podium eSports
Podium eSports, home of the best broadcasts in sim racing, launched in January 2019. Podium eSports uses the iRacing motorsports simulation to deliver the most entertaining competition on the service. In its first year, Podium eSports earned over 40,000 views from 300+ hours of content. Podium eSports has also 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 www.podiumesports.com.
Media Contact
James Pike
Chief Communications Officer
(336) 413-9004
james.pike@podiumesports.com