Welcome to the CDM Boremula 1 World Championship - a league/series on iRacing combining the Pro Mazda with 1997 Formula 1 liveries to go some way towards replicating the 1997 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.
The main ethos behind this series - like a lot of others that I run - is entertainment. I wanted the cars to look the part while still being distinguishable from the real things, while giving viewers and drivers something to get nostalgic about. The Pro Mazda (previously named the Star Mazda) has a small rotary engine, less than 200 horsepower, but a lot of downforce. They can produce incredible racing and are great fun to drive once you get used to them - they like to oversteer on downshifts.
The championship follows a calendar similar to what Formula 1 did back in the day, only limited by the track choice on iRacing and the fact that a lot of circuits have been updated massively since 1997. The season gets under way in mid-February, but still in Australia as Formula 1 so often does, however - thanks to no Albert Park or Adelaide - we're racing at Phillip Island. We then go to Interlagos, Imola, Catalunya, Montreal, Silverstone and Hockenheim - all of which appeared on the 1997 calendar in slightly different form. There will then be a six-week "summer break" before we start again at the Hungaroring at the end of July. This will be followed by visits to Spa Francorchamps, Monza, Red Bull Ring, Nurburgring and Suzuka.
Everything is based around maintaining an enjoyable atmosphere for the drivers and competitors first and foremost, with protests and conflict around incidents kept to a minimum, but close, competitive racing is of course encouraged. The first season's driver and team line-up is to be determined by a pre-season testing evening on the 26th of January, where drivers will have three 30-minute Qualifying sessions to set times at different circuits. They will be awarded points based on their finishing positions in each session, and have their scores totted up at the end.
These scores will then be placed alongside the finishing order of the 1997 Formula 1 World Championship, and drivers will be assigned to their corresponding car. Simple, right?
The series and idea in general has received positive feedback since its reveal and I thoroughly hope that it continues to live up to the hype as the year goes on.
Check out the additional sections below for more information on the series, or watch back previous races if you didn't manage to catch them live.
Catch up with the latest Boremula 1 News
