M2 Competition are delighted to announce that one of the world’s leading online racers, Cem Bolukbasi, will make his Formula Renault Eurocup debut with the team at Hockenheim this weekend.
Cem, from Istanbul, Turkey, is an official sim racer for Red Bull Racing Esports Team and as a professional Toro Rosso driver in F1 esports.
The 21-year-old has arrived at Hockenheim direct from competing at the second F1 esports event of the year in London, UK, on Wednesday night.
One of 60,000 entrants in F1 esports in 2018, Cem spectacularly made the top-20 global list and was entered into the pro-draft, which he won; earning him selection by Red Bull through its Toro Rosso squad.
Cem made his circuit racing debut earlier this year in the GT4 European Series, and remarkably scored a podium finish in the pro-am division at only his second event at Misano, racing a BMW M4 GT4.
Prior to this, he had competed internationally in WSK karting and tested both an FIA F4 and a British F3 car in 2015. For his Eurocup debut, he partners regular M2 Competition Kush Maini.
Brussels-based M2; the most successful team in the history of New Zealand’s prestigious Toyota Racing Series, made a dream debut in the Formula Renault Eurocup at Monza in April with an overall podium and a rookie class win.
Notable drivers to have graduated from M2’s ranks include Formula 1 racers Lando Norris and Lance Stroll, newly-crowned FIA Formula 3 Champion Robert Shwartzman and renowned world-level GT racers Alex Lynn, Nick Cassidy and Raffaele Marciello.
Cem Bolukbasi said: “This is a dream come true for me. I knew about M2 Competition through my trainer, and when I found out there might be an opportunity to race in Formula Renault, I tried everything I could with my sponsors and my agent to make it happen. I was in London at the F1 esports event on Wednesday night and I was sat on the grid, 30 seconds before the last race at Montreal, when we finally confirmed the deal. I was so excited, but I had to put it out of my mind and just focus on what I was doing first. One of the reasons I started racing online was that I knew that an opportunity to race in real motorsport might come along, so I intend to grab this chance with both hands and give it my absolute best. I’d like to thank AXA Turkey and TEM Agency, without whom none of this would be possible.”
Elise Moury, Team Manager, said: “We are delighted to welcome Cem to the team. Although he’s never raced a single-seater, he has driven them before, and his experience of competing at the highest level of sim racing, where every tenth of a second is as keenly fought over as in real life, means his attention-to-detail and ability to learn will be an asset this weekend. We’ve always prided ourselves on helping young drivers develop their potential in a nurturing environment, and we’ve seen many of our rookie racers, like Lando Norris and Lance Stroll, go on to achieve incredible success in world-level motorsport.”
