Paris (AFP)

Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, Fernando Alonso, Simon Pagenaud, Juan Pablo Montoya, Rubens Barrichelo, Jenson Button, Lando Norris, Pierre Gasly, Jean-Eric Vergne ... the cream of motorsport competes in the 24 Hours of Le Mans virtual Saturday and Sunday .

Traditionally scheduled for mid-June but postponed to September 19-20 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the classic Le Mans has relied on eSports, like other motorsports, to maintain its original dates.

And most of the championships are still at a standstill, the monument to motor racing offers itself a plateau which it can only dream of in normal times with, alongside the big names in endurance, current and former F1 drivers , IndyCar or Formula E.

Fifty cars, thirty prototypes and twenty GTs, will start on the rFactor 2 motor racing simulation game on Saturday at 3 p.m., to cross the virtual finish line 24 hours later.

"It will be a real race, as faithful as possible to the spirit of endurance, with the drama of the 24 Hours," promises Gérard Neveu, the boss of the WEC World Championship, whose event is at its peak.

The game allows the passage from day to night, weather variations, pit stops to change drivers, tires, refuel or even repair a car after an accident.

Teams made up of professional drivers and eSport racing specialists (or "sim racers") will take turns from home.

To note in particular in LMP, the queen category, the association of opponents in F1 Verstappen and Norris, both accustomed to virtual races, veterans Barrichello and Alonso, winner at Le Mans in 2018 and 2019, or the French Gasly and Vergne, double champion of Formula E.

A little further on the grid, in GTE, we will find Charles Leclerc representing Ferrari alongside another F1 driver, Antonio Giovinazzi.

The manufacturers involved in the real championship, Toyota, Aston Martin, Porsche, Corvette and therefore Ferrari, will be at the start, as well as private teams.

The race will be broadcast worldwide via television channels such as Eurosport, ESPN and France TV (on the web), as well as on digital platforms (official websites and applications of the WEC and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, YouTube, Facebook , Twitch).

© 2020 AFP