The 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship kicked off on March 27-29 in front of a live audience at DreamHack Birmingham with a refreshed TGR Haas F1 Sim Racing Team line-up and a highly competitive field.

Returning drivers Joris Croezen and Tamás Gál were elected to take to the track for Event 1, which opened with the Chinese Grand Prix.

Qualifying set the tone for the weekend, highlighting the tight margins expected this season. Both drivers progressed to Q2, with Hungarian Gál narrowly missing missing out on the top 10 shootout in P11. Teammate Croezen secured his first Q3 appearance of the season, finishing the session in P6.

The race around Shanghai International Circuit saw Croezen gain a position from P6 on the grid – starting the race on the medium compound –while Gál dropped to P12 on hards. By lap 10, Croezen had climbed to P2 as the frontrunners made their pit stops, before pitting on lap 11, with Gál stopping three laps later for ,medium tires and a new front wing. On lap 18, Croezen battled Aston Martin’s Rubén Pedreño as he caught the cars yet to stop.

Once pit stops were complete, Croezen settled into P5, with Gál in P16. The Dutchman defended hard from Alpine’s Otis Lawrence on lap 23, briefly losing the position but regaining it two laps later after Lawrence made contact with Jarno Opmeer of Red Bull. At the flag, Croezen secured a strong P5 finish, while Gál crossed the line in P17.

The race unfolded in improved conditions, with the Haas drivers swapping positions off the start before settling into P6 and P7 by lap 10. Gál switched to hard tires on lap 11, while Croezen opted for mediums two laps later. As pit stops cycled through, they ran P8 and P9 by lap 20 before Gál was overtaken by Mercedes’ Thomas Ronhaar and McLaren’s Alfie Butcher after a late dive into Turn 11. In the closing laps, Croezen battled Butcher - who carried a three second time penalty - while Gál recovered to P10. Croezen finished P7, but a post race five second penalty dropped Gál from P9 to P14.

The final day of Event 1 saw the grid take on the Bahrain International Circuit. Qualifying unfolded under the floodlights, where Croezen was unable to progress beyond Q1 for the first time this season, finishing P16. Gál advanced to Q2 but, despite improving on his final run, was eliminated in P13.

On the final lap, while running P9, Croezen capitalized on a collision between Frederick Rasmussen of Red Bull and Julian Klaffenbock of Mercedes, moving up to P7 at the checkered flag and securing another strong points finish. Gál ultimately came home in P14.

Tamas Gál, TGR Haas F1 Sim Racing Team driver, said: “First of all, congratulations to Joris for scoring 24 points for the team. We worked hard together to show that we deserved more than we got last season. On a personal note, I’m very disappointed - I got hit in two races after some technical issues in my first qualifying session. Things didn’t go my way, but there are still nine races to go.”

Joris Croezen sits sixth in the drivers’ standings after the first event, with Tamas Gál 20th, while TGR Haas F1 Sim Racing Team occupies seventh in the teams’ standings. Racing resumes for Event 2 on April 22-23, tackling Jeddah, Barcelona and Silverstone.