F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Formula E uncovers Abt imposter 'Race at Home' ruse!

Audi's Daniel Abt was disqualified from his podium finish in Saturday's Formula E Race at Home Challenge after the German driver admitted a pro sim racer had raced in the event in his place.

Abt - or rather the Audi driver's entry - finished third behind Oliver Rowland and Stoffel Vandoorne in yesterday's virtual Race at Home Challenge which took place at Berlin's Templehof Airport.

But doubts whether Abt had taken part in the event emerged immediately after the checkered flag, when a quizzical Vandoorne questioned whether his real-life FE rival had actually been the one doing the driving.

According to website The Race, Formula E's smart techies quickly uncovered the senseless shenanigans when they cross-referenced the IP addresses of the relevant drivers and discovered that the #66 Audi had been operated by pro sim racer Lorenz Hoerzing!

Abt was logically disqualified and ordered to make a "compulsory donation" of €10,000 to a charity!
As for Hoerzing, the imprudent imposter has been banned outright from FE's Race Challenge.

A flustered Abt was forced to admit his misdemeanor, issuing a personal statement on Sunday.

"I would like to apologize to Formula E, all of the fans, my team and my fellow drivers for having called in outside help during the race on Saturday," said Abt

"I didn’t take it as seriously as I should have. I’m especially sorry about this, because I know how much work has gone into this project on the part of the Formula E organization.

"I am aware that my offence has a bitter aftertaste, but it was never meant with any bad intention.

"Of course, I accept the disqualification from the race. In addition, I will donate 10,000 Euros to a charitable project."

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Michael Delaney

Recent Posts

Las Vegas GP: Thursday's action in pictures

The opening day of running at the Las Vegas GP was a smooth but chilly…

56 mins ago

Williams' headaches persist into Vegas practice

Williams is continuing to fight uphill battles this weekend in Las Vegas as a knock-on…

2 hours ago

Ferrari's Sainz 'not satisfied with where we are' in Vegas

It was a solid start to the Las Vegas weekend for Ferrari with Carlos Sainz…

3 hours ago

Norris labels McLaren long-run pace ‘shocking’ in chilly Vegas

Lando Norris didn’t hold back in his assessment of McLaren’s performance on the opening day…

4 hours ago

Hamilton delighted with ‘consistently strong day’ in Vegas

Lewis Hamilton was particularly happy with his opening day of running at the Las Vegas…

6 hours ago

Verstappen stuck with 'draggy' rear wing for Vegas

Red Bull fears that its prospects for this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix - which…

7 hours ago