'Race for the World' rakes in $70k - Leclerc takes title

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Charles Leclerc was crowned the winner of the 'Race for the World' series after triumphing in the third and final installment of the Esports challenge which raised over $70,000 for COVID-19 relief efforts.

The six-race online series was set up by Leclerc and several of his F1 colleagues with the aim of raising funds for the World Health Organisation’s COVID-19 Solidarity Relief Fund.

Racing on Codemasters' 2019 F1 platform and streaming their efforst on Twitch, Friday's group of drivers kicked off their evening with a race at the Circuit de Catalunya in which former McLaren charger Stoffel Vandoorne put one over on poleman Arthur Leclerc and Luca Albon.

Charles Leclerc came out on top of a fierce battle with Louis Deletraz and Williams' Nicholas Latifi to finish fourth.

But the Ferrari driver was a force to be reckoned with from the outset in the second race held at the Red Bull Ring which saw Leclerc and Alex Albon engage in a proper showdown that led to the Red Bull driver pipping his rival on the final lap.

However, Albon's abuse of track limits and corner cutting yieled a series of penalties that demoted the British-Thai racer to third, leaving the runner-up spot to his young brother Luca.

Overall, the online virtual mini-series generated over $70,000 of donations for the WHO, with the fund raising remaining open until midday Saturday.

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