Jordan Caruso dominates Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup Sachsenring Mid-Season Tournament

For the second year in-a-row, the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup Mid-Season Tournament delivered on action and entertainment, this season contested at the Sachsenring this past Saturday afternoon. While some of the biggest names in the series didn’t even make it to the Feature event, it was a former champion of the series—Team Indian Racing Festival by APPL’s Jordan Caruso—who scored the TAG Heuer Pole Award, a Heat race win, and victory in the Feature event.

The format broke the usual Sprint and Main events into Heats, a Consolation, and a Feature instead, akin to the World of Outlaws Pro Series format. This format also eliminated inverts, breaking the field into a bunch of quick races with limited spots in the Feature event. A Consolation race in between the Heats and Feature would finalize the 15-driver roster, the other 15 drivers packing things up early following elimination.

Saturday’s Mid-Season Tournament also featured the Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup All-Stars with its first All-Star Wildcard entry in the mix. In the crossover days between February and March, a Time Attack was opened to see who could beat Basic Ollie’s lap time at the Sachsenring. Of those who could, one driver would be selected to compete with the All-Stars. This Wildcard format will continue throughout the remainder of the season. Congratulations to Connor Brown, who qualified for the event, those races won by Bastian Buus and Laurin Heinrich.

The 2025 schedule continues on March 29th with the fifth race of the season, the inaugural race at Thruxton Circuit.

PESC QUALIFYING:

While the Mid-Season Tournament broke up the usual Sprint and Main race format, Qualifying was still its usual important self with up to 10 points available for the TAG Heuer Pole Award recipient. In the case of the Mid-Season Tournament, however, qualifying in the top-five would be a guaranteed pole for each Heat race.

Jordan Caruso put the quick time on the board, the front three positions locked out by Coanda Esports-affiliated drivers with Xander Reed (Kubina Racing) and Mitchell deJong (Team Indian Racing Festival by APPL) placing second and third, respectively. Williams Esports rounded out the top-five qualifying spots with Moreno Sirica in fourth and Alessandro Bico in fifth.

2025 Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup Top 5 Qualifying results from Sachsenring were as follows:

1. #12 Jordan Caruso, 1:20.840 seconds (10 points)
2. #76 Xander Reed, -0.046 (8 points)
3. #24 Mitchell deJong, -0.092 (6 points)
4. #69 Moreno Sirica, -0.113 (4 points)
5. #77 Alessandro Bico, -0.121 (2 points)

PESC HEAT RACES:

The 28-car field was split from qualifying times into five Heat races of five or six drivers. Only the top-two finishers of the three-lap dashes would advance to the Feature. The first heat race was fairly straightforward, with Caruso and Coanda Esports’ Kevin Nielsen, the top-two starters, holding on for the transfer.

The same was true for the second heat, but while it was Reed and Tristan Iglesias (Coanda Esports) moving on, the names that were not able to advance were the story in this case. Poor qualifying efforts put the first Mid-Season Tournament winner, Alejandro Sánchez (Stormforce Gaming), the driver he beat in said tournament last season, Luke McKeown (Apex Racing Team), and the defending series champion, Sebastian Job (Oracle Red Bull Sim Racing), all in the most-stacked Heat of the afternoon. Those three could not get by Iglesias or Reed and were sent to the Consolation.

Heat #3 turned up the action as well, as for the first time, one of the front row starters failed to advance. The front row consisted of deJong and Florian Lebigre (Verstappen.com Racing), but it was Elliott Vayron (Kubina Racing) who got the transfer. Into the opening corner, Vayron took a dive inside, making some contact in the process, but Lebigre was able to hang on.

As if it couldn’t get any more exciting than that, the fourth Heat kicked it up another notch. Every other pole sitter managed to get away and win in the previous three heats, but the outside pole sitter, Oscar Py (Kubina Racing), managed to get the better of Sirica on the opening lap. This allowed Sam Kuitert (Team Redline) to get into the transfer spot, but a slow down hampered his chances. Sirica took the spot back, but then blew a corner shortly after that, handing a transfer spot over to the points leader, Cooper Webster (Oracle Red Bull Sim Racing).

The final Heat may have been the most consequential for the Consolation. While Alessandro Bico drove away and Gustavo Ariel (Team Redline) managed to swipe the second and final transfer, it was the battle for third that changed the outlook of the final chance to advance. Elvis Rankin (Coanda Esports) and Carlos Fenollosa (Drago Racing) were side-by-side entering the final corner, but contact sent them both around, handing third to William Chadwick (HYMO Setups). For Chadwick, this was a 10 position gain in the starting lineup of the Consolation, a spot inside the top-five at the start. The other two would have to start at a disadvantage now in the last chance battle.

Advanced via Heats:

• Heat 1 | #12 Jordan Caruso & #3 Kevin Nielsen
• Heat 2 | #76 Xander Reed & #38 Tristan Iglesias
• Heat 3 | #24 Mitchell deJong & #9 Elliott Vayron
• Heat 4 | #54 Oscar Py & #37 Cooper Webster
• Heat 5 | #77 Alessandro Bico & #21 Gustavo Ariel

PESC CONSOLATION RACE:

The remaining 18 drivers that failed to advance through the Heats would be sent to a last chance Consolation race, an eight-lap event where the top-five would move on and everyone else would be eliminated. Drivers were positioned on the grid based on where they finished in the Heat races, which meant the top-five was composed of drivers who finished third in their respective heats.

Julien Soenen (Coanda Esports) led the field to the green, but Sánchez got the jump on the right side into Turn 1. In fact, Sánchez got too good of a jump, a black flag for a jump start, which meant he would have to go down pit road and end his chance to advance. In that opening corner, however, Sánchez was still on track and the leader, which put Soenen in a compromised position. Yohann Harth (Apex Racing Team) took advantage and took the lead as Soenen fell to second.

Elbows were out, despite drivers being warned pre-race that transfer spot incidents would be heavily scrutinized. An incident between Lebigre and Sirica would be perhaps one of the biggest contacts of the race. Sirica, who qualified the fourth fastest time, was sent down to finish in sixth after the contact, missing the Feature. Lebigre finished fourth, advancing to the Feature. The contact also allowed Diogo Pinto (Team Redline) to move up into the final transfer spot, behind Lebigre.

Chadwick, who benefitted in his Heat race from two other drivers knocking each other out, held his own and advanced to the Feature by finishing in third. That left many big names on the outside looking in. Sánchez was one of them, who should have been an easy lock if not for the jump start penalty. McKeown was caught up in some rough racing, and only managed to finish in 10th. Perhaps the biggest name to miss the show, however, was Sebastian Job. Job started 17th out of 18 drivers and worked to get up as far as he could, but with only eight laps, he could only get up to finish in seventh.

Advanced via Consolation:

1. #90 Yohann Harth
2. #93 Julien Soenen
3. #88 William Chadwick
4. #2 Florian A Lebigre
5. #44 Diogo C. Pinto

PESC FEATURE RACE:

16 laps were put on the board for the Feature race at the Sachsenring. At the front of the field was a sea of Coanda-affiliated drivers. Caruso, Reed, deJong, Py, Nielsen, Iglesias, and Vayron all started in seven of the top-eight spots thanks to their Heat race finishes. Only Bico, who started in fifth, broke that chain up. The Team Redline/Oracle Red Bull Sim Racing/Verstappen.com Racing entries were mired in the back half of the field, with Webster, Ariel, Lebigre, and Soenen all taking spots from ninth on back.

It was a fairly straight-forward race as a result. Caruso, Reed, and deJong all managed to break away from the rest of the pack. Caruso was just too good, as Reed couldn’t get to him through the entirety of the event. deJong eventually lost their draft, but held on for a podium finish. Behind them, the fight was on for fourth. Bico was looking to mix it up, and contact was made among him, Py, Nielsen, and Webster. Vayron had the only major incident of the race, colliding with Webster part-way through the event, ultimately finishing last.

A fastest-lap bonus was also on the table, which meant that a total of 90 points were on the line for Caruso if he could get it. Unfortunately, his Coanda teammate Soenen managed to snipe it, despite finishing in 14th, claiming the points with a 1:21.325 second lap time. Caruso’s lap time was good enough to place in third, just behind another Coanda car in Kevin Nielsen.

2025 Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup Mid-Season Tournament results from Sachsenring were as follows:

*: Fastest Lap awards five bonus points in Mid-Season Tournament

PESC POST-RACE PENALTIES:

As previously mentioned, transfer spot incidents were more heavily scrutinized this week with offending drivers getting even more severe of a penalty. The two drivers that were hit with these were Vayron and Lebigre. Vayron’s was in the incident with Lebigre during the Heat race, while Lebigre’s came during the consolation while racing against Sirica. Webster was also subtracted five points for his incident with Vayron in the Feature.

• #2 | Florian A Lebigre | -20 point penalty
• #9 | Elliott Vayron | -20 point penalty
• #37 | Cooper Webster | -5 point penalty
• #38 | Tristan Iglesias | -5 point penalty
• #69 | Moreno Sirica | -10 point penalty
• #91 | Elvis Rankin | -5 point penalty

2025 Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup points through the fourth round at Sachsenring are as follows:

1. #37 Cooper Webster | Oracle Red Bull Sim Racing, 221 points
2. #12 Jordan Caruso | Team Indian Racing Festival by APPL, 192 points
3. #24 Mitchell deJong | Team Indian Racing Festival by APPL, 175 points
4. #3 Kevin Nielsen | Coanda Esports, 173 points
5. #47 Alejandro Sánchez | StormForce Gaming, 162 points
6. #1 Sebastian Job | Oracle Red Bull Sim Racing, 159 points
7. #90 Yohann Harth | Apex Racing Team, 158 points
8. #96 Luke McKeown | Apex Racing Team, 153 points
9. #38 Tristan Iglesias | Coanda Esports, 152 points
10. #44 Diogo C. Pinto | Team Redline, 145 points
    #21 Gustavo Ariel | Team Redline, 145 points

Making the main event was huge for Webster in his chase for the championship, and finishing eighth helped to continue his reign despite Caruso claiming 85 points in the process. The race format was not kind to the likes of Webster’s teammate, Sebastian Job, nor to Sánchez or McKeown. The trio entered the day second, third, and fourth in the points. They exit with Sánchez in fifth, Job in sixth, and McKeown down in eighth.

The 5-point penalty for Webster, though, means the championship lead is at 29 points exiting the Sachsenring. Caruso jumps up to second with his dominant day, and now deJong and Nielsen fall into the order in third and fourth.

PESC ALL-STARS RECAP:

Three of the Porsche Factory Drivers were in attendance for this week’s Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup All-Stars event, as well as the first Wildcard of the season in Connor Brown. The Factory Drivers were all fast, with Laurin Heinrich scoring the pole position, just ahead of Bastian Buus. Matt Campbell was also in the field and ran steady near the top-five.

It was a quiet day for the points leader, Casey Kirwan, who failed to win for the first time in 2025. Kirwan did pick up a pair of third place finishes however, finishing behind Heinrich and Buus in both races, including after the invert. Buus took the first race, while Heinrich captured the second.

2025 Porsche TAG Heuer Esports All-Stars Sprint results from Sachsenring were as follows:

1. Bastian Buus
2. Laurin Heinrich
3. Casey Kirwan
4. Pablo Vicente
5. Matt Campbell

2025 Porsche TAG Heuer Esports All-Stars Feature results from Sachsenring were as follows:

1. Laurin Heinrich
2. Bastian Buus
3. Casey Kirwan
4. Stradi
5. Matt Campbell

2025 Porsche TAG Heuer Esports All-Stars points through Sachsenring are as follows:

1. Casey Kirwan, 173
2. PulpoLopez, 100
3. Basic Ollie, 89
4. Stradi, 87
   Pablo Vicente, 87

Kirwan continues to lead the way in the All-Stars standings with only three races to go. The Pulpo Lopez holds second over Basic Ollie in third, but both Stradi and Pablo Vicente are mounting a charge late, now both 13 points behind Lopez, tied for fourth.

The next Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup and All-Stars event will be on in another three weeks, with the inaugural race at Thruxton Circuit scheduled at the end of March. There will also be a chance for community members to participate in the All-Stars race in future races through the Wildcard program. More details are available here.

Coverage for the next event will kick off on Saturday, March 29th at 18:00 GMT (2PM ET) with the Porsche All-Stars up first. After the All-Stars, the Supercup begins their second round at 19:00 GMT (3PM ET).

For more information on the 2025 Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup season, visit www.iracing.com/pesc.
For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit www.iracing.com.

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