Alpine Esports launches signing Vitality-Renault F1 duo

French sports-business car manufacturer Alpine Cars have announced it is launching its F1 Esports campaign for its Alpine Esports division. The Renault owned company enters Formula 1 Esports alongside creating its own esports event for racing titles.

Alpine Esports Team is bringing in two racers and a team manager ahead of the 2021 Formulae 1 Esports Pro Circuit. The team has signed the driver pairing of Nicolas Longuet and Fabrizio Donoso. These two players led Vitality-Renault’s F1 squad to third in last year’s championship, despite them only 18 and 21 years old. Alpine Esports has collaborated with Team Vitality as Renault Sport Team Vitality but is now going ahead with its dedicated Esports team.

Furthermore, the pairing is now guided by Team Principal Richard Arnaud, Race Director Robin Bondon, Performance Manager Julien Southon, Ambassador Thom “Thomb” Brouwer and Coach Samba Sy.

This not the only newsworthy element of the Alpine Esports endeavour. The company is parring with Race Clutch Racing, who previously had a partnership with Vitality Renault’s F1 esports team. Alpine’s F1 Esports roster will train and prepare for the 2021 competition from its HQ in Limoges, France. But that is not all. Alpine Esports aims to hire and train the best Esports racers in the world. The car company is committed to its esports endeavour to compete in the biggest virtual racing competitions.

As for other racing esports, the organization wants to target the wider world of sim racing and their esports scenes. The first event of their plans Assetto Corsa, with a plan for six races and prizes for each of those events. 

Speaking on the move, Laurent Rossi, Alpine Cars CEO, said: “We are delighted to announce the first Alpine Esports team participating in virtual competitions and championships this year. By partnering with Race Clutch, Alpine Esports Team will seek out and train the best Sim racers in the world with the ultimate goal of winning. The team have fantastic facilities and a superb line-up to make it happen. The Esports team will also continue to bridge the gap between virtual and real races, as these bridges move closer and closer each year between the two worlds. It will also learn from our Formula 1 and Alpine Racing programs. We can’t wait to see our team and our drivers compete virtually in 2021.”

The announcement is not the first time Renault has associated itself with esports.  The team remains working alongside Team Vitality’s Rocket League team, one of the better teams in the RLCS. As it stands, Team Vitality is one of the best teams in Europe, competing against BDS Esports for several Major trophies.