Formula E Bans Pro Driver After He Hires a Sim Racer to Impersonate Him

[Brzlav]

I have never been a fan of him or the Abt family, but this punishment seems overly harsh. People still idolize a driver who deliberately crashed his opponent out in the real world in a real F1 car but what Abt did is a suspension? And this is only about integrity, really? Nothing to do with the fact that Audi struggles financially and just pulled the plug on DTM and has too many drivers anyway? Would they have suspended Rene Rast over the same incident? I don't believe so.

I sympathize with the drivers who don't want to be a part of this anymore.

 

[MisterWaffles]

Coming back to this article after the update. I didn't really have any opinions on anything before but after these recent development this is just stupid.

So you're saying that after a professional driver (with no serious incidents or allegations in real life before now) gets fined 10,000 euros, fully accepts the blame and gets disqualified from all future online events he still gets sacked by his team? I can understand sacking the guy who said racial slurs over a stream to save face, but sacking a real driver with podiums under his belt for misbehaving in a video game is too far. I don't support Abt cheating and he should be disallowed from any future events, but taking away his real-life career over a video game is ridiculous.

This is a pretty big blow to sim racing in my opinion. For the people that want to make it seem like it's more than just a video game, now it's going to be even harder to do so. The general public mostly still views sim racing (or any competitive online game for that matter) as merely people playing video games, and now that people are loosing real careers over it, it's going to be even more difficult to convince the general public that this should be taken more seriously than just people playing video games. I can see fans of Formula E who have no interest in ESports not taking this development well.

 

[daan]

Audi are just looking to cut costs.

 

[wowbaggerBR]

I'm not following this eSport side of things, so I could be wrong, but I have the impression that drivers are being pushed by series, sponsors and teams to do this and not everyone of them treats it as a sport, is invested on sim racing, have the necessary skill set, patience and so on. That's probably why there has been so much drama recently.

I'm not defending Abt. As much as I think that eSports isn't a replacement for the real thing, I think that you have to be accountable when you are racing, be it on a real car or not, for a team and sponsors that actually pay you to do so.

 

[Greycap]

I think that you have to be accountable when you are racing, be it on a real car or not, for a team and sponsors that actually pay you to do so.

Pretty much this. More than racing, it was a PR situation, and thinking about it that way it makes a lot more sense. Nobody would have batted an eye if he would have driven poorly but he decided to pull a completely different move.

Translating the entire thing into a business world. You have a meeting with an important business partner and you couldn't care less about it. You go anyway, sit at the far end of the table and interact as little as possible, and at the end of the day it's done and nobody questions your behaviour. But if you hire your friend to go in your place, wearing your company's colours and posing as you, I'm pretty sure the boss will want to have a word with you once the cover is blown and it is likely to not end well.

 

[Tornado]

I think you will actually find in the majority of cases, it is actually their job.

[citation needed]
Yes, drivers are expected to do more than sit in the car for a few hours each weekend and then call it a week; even discounting drivers like Takuma Sato who is seemingly constantly doing PR work for Honda and IRL, or drivers with paid seats acting as pitchmen for their racing teams and sponsors. But too many drivers in high tier levels of motorsport seem to have been responding to questions about taking part in these events with borderline contempt (and even more of them have discussed how they have no experience at all with these sorts of events even when they do try them) for me to take it at face value that in the "majority of cases" it's in their job description to take part in them when there isn't real racing happening.

Not sorry for racing drivers dropping out because they can’t casually drop the n word or let somebody else drive for them in in e-sports events. Not at all.

Maybe they are dropping out, not because they want to drop racial slurs or cheat in events, but because they don't see any point to do anything that may risk their real jobs when they don't have to. There's now been three instances of higher tier drivers losing their real jobs over things that happened in these substitute races. There's been a scandal about one of the finishes in the premiere race of one of the substitute racing series, which may very well have had real life repercussions if the person who caused it didn't also happen to win the Indianapolis 500 and come in second in the championship just last year.


It seems like many of these drivers don't consider these events to actually be important in the first place and were taking part for the fun of it, so when faced with the reality that other drivers are losing their jobs over them if something happens in the race that reflects badly on the sponsor, it seems pretty understandable that some drivers would want nothing to do with them now even if they didn't plan on doing the things those other three drivers did.

 

[Andre75]

Funny, how all these pro athletes, from Rudy Gobert to Abt, don't know how to make sincere appologies. All they do is either read obviously management crafted statements, or make excuses that insults the intelligence of people. Prank my behind.

Add to that, I straight up laughed out loud at: "I accept the disqualification from the race." You do accept?!
"In addition, I will donate €10,000 to a charitable project.” Haha. The gall. When it's public knowledge that you're being fined to donate...

A stiff apology is a second insult... An Abt apology is a straight up lie.

 

[Famine]

There's been a scandal about one of the finishes in the premiere race of one of the substitute racing series, which may very well have had real life repercussions if the person who caused it didn't also happen to win the Indianapolis 500 and come in second in the championship just last year.

I haven't followed the rest of the fallout from this, but I'm assuming from the above that nothing happened to Pagenaud (after he also lied about the crash)... but what about Santino Ferrucci who, and I'll be as polite as I can about this, is an absolute no-mark by comparison?

 

[Tornado]

but what about Santino Ferrucci who, and I'll be as polite as I can about this, is an absolute no-mark by comparison?

And has also claimed it was a racing incident where he was too careless in trying to close the gap between them based on things that worked in NASCAR iRacing series he took part in; and after his blase response in the immediate aftermath has been repeatedly apologetic about it for being a risk he shouldn't have taken and for ruining the ending of the race. I've watched enough actual races in this series, even narrowing it to the Indy 500 alone, where someone figured that they could just force their car in and make it stick at 230MPH, where his story is at least plausible. I don't really believe it, but it's plausible. It's not a scandal every time Sato does it in an actual race.



And while the McLaren boss (who employs the other driver who was way too aggressive and wrecked the previous leader all of 3 seconds earlier) probably thinks otherwise, I can't imagine the powers that be found what Ferrucci (or O'Ward, for that matter) did comparable to Pagenaud deliberately Days of Thunder-ing the leader a few minutes earlier and then lying about it. If Ferrucci had done that, after his history in F2? I'm absolutely sure he'd be suspended when the real races start next week. O'Ward maybe too.

 

[tunaphis]

Audi/VW really don't need more bad press.Let some corporation foot the bill for a egame center where it's a level playing field and fly the drivers in.
Try telling a angry wife it was a prank,You'll be living in your car by lunchtime.

 

[RACECAR]

Pretty much this. More than racing, it was a PR situation, and thinking about it that way it makes a lot more sense. Nobody would have batted an eye if he would have driven poorly but he decided to pull a completely different move.

Translating the entire thing into a business world. You have a meeting with an important business partner and you couldn't care less about it. You go anyway, sit at the far end of the table and interact as little as possible, and at the end of the day it's done and nobody questions your behaviour. But if you hire your friend to go in your place, wearing your company's colours and posing as you, I'm pretty sure the boss will want to have a word with you once the cover is blown and it is likely to not end well.

And if I'm not mistaken, isn't this effectively deception AND violating an agreement? I feel like some of the people against this punishment are completely missing that part.

 

[tunaphis]

"Audi said in an earlier statement that "integrity, transparency and consistent compliance with applicable rules" were top priorities."
Still laughing.
(Lifted from the ABC News AU website)

"This applies to all activities the brand is involved in without exception," the carmaker said."
Stop it,It hurts.

 

[mustafur]

And has also claimed it was a racing incident where he was too careless in trying to close the gap between them based on things that worked in NASCAR iRacing series he took part in; and after his blase response in the immediate aftermath has been repeatedly apologetic about it for being a risk he shouldn't have taken and for ruining the ending of the race. I've watched enough actual races in this series, even narrowing it to the Indy 500 alone, where someone figured that they could just force their car in and make it stick at 230MPH, where his story is at least plausible. I don't really believe it, but it's plausible. It's not a scandal every time Sato does it in an actual race.



And while the McLaren boss (who employs the other driver who was way too aggressive and wrecked the previous leader all of 3 seconds earlier) probably thinks otherwise, I can't imagine the powers that be found what Ferrucci (or O'Ward, for that matter) did comparable to Pagenaud deliberately Days of Thunder-ing the leader a few minutes earlier and then lying about it. If Ferrucci had done that, after his history in F2? I'm absolutely sure he'd be suspended when the real races start next week. O'Ward maybe too.

"It was soo worth it"

 

[TamasToth]

Poor drivers doesn't like virtual racing? They want to get out? I'm so sorry that Da Costa stops streaming and twitching, I'm about to cry...
not.

Everyone of them can walk away, if "just a video game" seems to be too hard for them to handle, to behave, to be a sportsman. It's fine.
Then their sponsors' turn to decide if they worth a cent.

Brave, heroic... bunnies.

 

[GOTMAXPOWER]

Audi should be more honest about why they've let Abt go, they've dropped a driver who is 17th in the championship nowhere near his teammate with probably 0 races left on his contract given the cancellations. I presume they think it's a good look to act on their morals but it has backfired badly with others drivers coming out with their perspective. Being honest and saying that they're promoting one of their other factory drivers (Muller/Rast) when DTM dies would've been a much better look.

Also 🤬 esports, people take this crap too seriously, it sucks the fun out of the games.

 

[Veinz]

There is no doubt in my mind that they want Rene Rast in their FE car since they are leaving DTM. Abt has been pretty medicore. But it seems a lot of people are still missing the big picture here. It’s obviously serious business when money is involved.

 

[Tired Tyres]

Coming back to this article after the update. I didn't really have any opinions on anything before but after these recent development this is just stupid.

So you're saying that after a professional driver (with no serious incidents or allegations in real life before now) gets fined 10,000 euros, fully accepts the blame and gets disqualified from all future online events he still gets sacked by his team? I can understand sacking the guy who said racial slurs over a stream to save face, but sacking a real driver with podiums under his belt for misbehaving in a video game is too far. I don't support Abt cheating and he should be disallowed from any future events, but taking away his real-life career over a video game is ridiculous.

This is a pretty big blow to sim racing in my opinion. For the people that want to make it seem like it's more than just a video game, now it's going to be even harder to do so. The general public mostly still views sim racing (or any competitive online game for that matter) as merely people playing video games, and now that people are loosing real careers over it, it's going to be even more difficult to convince the general public that this should be taken more seriously than just people playing video games. I can see fans of Formula E who have no interest in ESports not taking this development well.

From Audi's perspective they would not like their brand to be associated with a cheat. There is nothing stupid or ridiculous about that.

 

[MaxAttack]

I can understand the condemnation he took over this, it was dishonest and he really should have just said "I can't make it", but the actual Audi team suspension leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

I'm not all informed on formula E, but this stinks of "great excuse to get rid of him/get in that driver we've been talking to". It feels a little underhanded and too harsh a punishment - as others have mentioned, this isn't the drivers' jobs, and while it being a charity event makes his actions kinda crappy, I think it's a step too far to take his seat in times like these.

Reading what @GOTMAXPOWER has said about Abt's performance and the team's opinion kinda reinforces my gut feeling here - there's more at play than this one incident.

 

[MatskiMonk]

There is no doubt in my mind that they want Rene Rast in their FE car since they are leaving DTM. Abt has been pretty medicore. But it seems a lot of people are still missing the big picture here. It’s obviously serious business when money is involved.

They may well be lining Rast up for the 20-21 season, but there's no reason to think DTM won't be Rast's main commitment up until November. There's no FE calendar at the moment, but DTM have published their target revised calendar. If there's no clashes they might be able to drop Rast into FE for some practice, but I'd be surprised if they abandoned defending all three titles for the sake of a slightly less mediocre result in FE. Rast would be massively behind and Audi already only have half the points of the leaders.

Reading what @GOTMAXPOWER has said about Abt's performance and the team's opinion kinda reinforces my gut feeling here - there's more at play than this one incident.

If you're not up to the job in the car, and start behaving like a clown outside the car, it's not hard to see this outcome as obvious.

 

[Tornado]

"It was soo worth it"

and after his blase response in the immediate aftermath

where his story is at least plausible. I don't really believe it, but it's plausible.

Coldest tale, gentleman.

 

[mef]

Audi should be more honest about why they've let Abt go, they've dropped a driver who is 17th in the championship nowhere near his teammate with probably 0 races left on his contract given the cancellations. I presume they think it's a good look to act on their morals but it has backfired badly with others drivers coming out with their perspective. Being honest and saying that they're promoting one of their other factory drivers (Muller/Rast) when DTM dies would've been a much better look.

Also 🤬 esports, people take this crap too seriously, it sucks the fun out of the games.

Agreed. It was stupid to not ask permission for a 'prank' like this (that's Abt explanation) but Audi firing a driver over this makes no sense on its own.

For Audi to claim this sacking is based on morals is pretty rich considering they have defrauded millions of customers because they lied about diesel emissions. Audi is honest when it suits them, just ugly.

 

[Djuvinile]

Time for consumers and fans to ban Audi.. this is really too ridiculous to be true! i think his explanation video says it all. im not a formula E or Abt fan but this is beyond stupid. look at all F1 , wrx and motogp drivers doing e-sports.. its just all fun and banter who cares.. I think he would have a strong case in court if he would suggest going to trial.

 

[FT-1]

I think he would have a strong case in court if he would suggest going to trial.

Doubt it. Although it was intended to be a harmless prank, there is also the chance this could be seen as cheating or fraud. Abt wouldn't really have much going for him if the contract he signed said he would be punished for either of the aforementioned acts.

 

[redhed17]

A few thoughts.

I don't know how these drivers are paid, whether a full time contract, or pay as they drive, but I assume advertising duties above and beyond being a walking billboard are part of whatever contract they have. The sim racing could be put to them as part of their advertising duties when there is nothing for them to do to earn their money, or possibly any money at all atm. I would hope that any real life racing driver would have the option to not take part, but if they have chosen to be involved, or had no choice, then they take it seriously as they would any task an employer gives out. I would assume that a morals aspect would be mentioned somewhere in their contracts too.

After the American driver (can't be bothered to find out his name) was rightly sacked for the racist remark, I would imagine that the employers of any drivers involved in these sim races may have had a word or two about not bringing them into disrepute in any way, seeing as most of the drivers are more visible than they would be in a real car race with possibly just a camera over their shoulder. With all that in mind, what Abt did, for whatever reason, is not following the orders of his employers. Possibly not adhering to his contract. And bringing said employers harm to their reputation by association.

That Abt doesn't seem to think it is serious doesn't help people having too much sympathy for him.

Some people have said that it is rich of Audi to be pulling someone up on being deceitful, given the recent corporate history of the Volkswagen Audi Group. I would think that their hardline stance may have something to do with that. They now want to appear as squeaky clean, and an employee/driver found to be cheating, whether it was real racing, or simulated racing, is something they have to be seen not to tolerate.

As for the fine and being suspended being enough of a penalty. I think the Abt's father sponsors the Porsche Racing team, so money may not have been as big a penalty to him, with money in the family, compared to other drivers.

His reaction to what he did may have contributed to him losing his job at the end of it. There may be other things going on in the background, but whilst this is not as serious as the racist remark in many ways, that was at least said in the heat of the moment. This was done with planning, a lot of planning, and possibly also breaking quarantine/social distancing rules from wherever he was streaming from by getting the other driver in.

I would hope that Audi would have taken the same stance if Abt would have been the fastest driver on the grid, and leading championships, but who knows.