Heading into the second week of March, it appeared that the 2020 Formula 1 season would be given the green light to commence with the intention of staging a record-breaking 22 races during the year. However, within the space of a few days, it became clear that the sport's governing bodies would be forced into hasty rearrangements without having the security of knowing when the action would get underway far away from the traditional curtain-raiser in Melbourne. Although a target date was eventually set for July 5, it left drivers and teams searching for ways to fill the competitive void after several months of intense preparation had gone to waste.
Within the space of a few days, the Virtual Grand Prix Series was created, and online casinos and bookmakers reacted quickly and allowed players to place bets on the virtual races. The website CasinosToPlay.com first reported about this in one of their trending articles. A rapid turnaround with regards to organisation and planning led to the first virtual race being held at the Bahrain International Circuit on the original raceday, as drivers past and present were joined by a number of sports stars, online gamers and celebrities.
Throughout the series which featured eight races, as many as 69 people took to the track, some more frequently than others. However, as expected, the professional drivers swept up when it came to race victories as they were able to replicate their respective styles through the use of simulators. Three different drivers prevailed in the opening four races, with Charles Leclerc claiming success in Australia and China. That double-header came inbetween Formula 2 competitor Guanyu Zhou cruising to the win in Bahrain and Alex Albon emerging victorious in Brazil.
However, George Russell stole the show during the second half of the series, triumphing in each of the remaining four races. To his credit, he prevailed on tracks involving long straights at Spain and Canada, as well as negotiating the street circuits of Monaco and Azerbaijan.
While those eight races generated solid traction in terms of viewing figures and social media hits, it was always going to be forgotten in the days leading up to F1's hugely-anticipated return in Austria. Providing that the coronavirus pandemic does not worsen around Europe and the world in general, there is currently a plan to stage three races in as many weeks before a much-needed rest week. Should the ambitious strategy of the organisers pay off, it would mean 13 races being held between July 5 and November 1, taking in 10 different nations across Europe. Given the fast-moving pace of the ongoing global crisis, it remains to be seen whether everything put in place will come to fruition, but at least eight races must be staged - a mark which is currently due to be reached on September 6 - for a championship to count in the history books.
