Mark-Anthony Hinkson has won the E-Sports R5 Rally Championship, presented by First Citizens, for the second time.
In a dominant performance, the reigning champion won all five rounds of the competition, which is administered by Caribbean Sim Motorsport (CSM), a Member Club of the Barbados Motoring Federation (BMF).
While Hinkson was celebrating his own success, there was also good news for the whole e-sports community in the island, as CSM has been successful in lobbying for the inclusion of Barbadian nationality and the Broken Trident in driver selections in the recently-launched Electronic Arts Sports (EA Sports) licensed title of the World Rally Championship (WRC) franchise simulator game.
On his way to the 2023 title, Hinkson beat more than 60 competitors from five countries. With a maximum possible score of 250 points, along with two Power Stage wins, he finished 30 points ahead of Jamaican Thomas Hall, with fellow-countryman Kimani McGann third. Barbadians Kurt Thompson, Kevon Sealy and Blake Thompson completed the top six.
Contested over the Codemaster Dirt Rally 2.0 platform open to PlayStation, Xbox and PC players, competitors all drive R5 rally cars, in keeping with the real-world championship, with the format of events also similar.
The Ford Fiesta was by far the most popular choice, but there were also examples of the Citroen C3 and Skoda Fabia, which are seen regularly in island events, plus the Mitsubishi Space Star and Volkswagen Polo GTI.
Just as the top three real-world R5 Championship competitors won year-end prize money to donate to their designated charities, there was also a prize fund for the E-Sports players.
At each round, the top three received $100, $75 and $50 respectively, with an additional $25 to the Power Stage winner, while the overall winner received $500, second place $250 and third place $150.
CSM chairman Robert Simmons said: “Mark’s approach to the season was second to none and clearly shows he is indeed the man to beat next year, albeit that seems to be an uphill battle for the others. Mark’s eyes are now fully focused on the 2024 championship when we will move to the new EA Sports WRC 2023, also the trial events to select who will represent Barbados at the FIA World Motorsport Games to be held in Spain in October.” (PR/RB)
