2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship – Event 3 Recap

TGR Haas F1 Sim Racing Team endured a mixed set of results, showing flashes of potential, but ultimately missing out on consistent points finishes. Joris Croezen competed in all three rounds, joined by Tamás Gál for Rounds 7 and 8, before Gábor Csontos made his debut in Round 9.

At Spa-Francorchamps, both drivers progressed comfortably through Q1 before rapidly changing weather impacted Q2. After the first runs, Gál sat P4 while Croezen was P11, but worsening conditions left Croezen narrowly outside of the cutoff. Gál advanced to Q3 for the first time this season and secured P8 on the grid.

Wet conditions persisted into the race. Croezen dropped to P14 after contact at Turn 1 and fell further to P17 following a lap 2 collision with Mercedes’ Julian Klaffenbock, as Gál held P8. As the track began to dry around lap 10, the switch to slicks followed shortly after. The team double-stacked both cars on lap 12 for medium tires, with Gál rejoining P10 and Croezen P15.

Gál briefly climbed to P7 by lap 15 but slipped back in the closing stages, ultimately finishing P11 – just outside the points – while Croezen crossed the line in P14.

At Zandvoort, a difficult qualifying left both drivers eliminated in Q1, with Crozen P17 and Gál P18, prompting an aggressive race approach. Starting on soft tires, Croezen gained two positions early while Gál moved up to P17 on hard tires. Croezen pitted on lap 7 for the medium compound and later climbed as high as P8 before pitting for a second time for hard tires on lap 19.

Gál extended his first stint before pitting on lap 15, but with the medium tires proving ineffective, he stopped again on lap 25 for another hard tire. He finished P16, later promoted to P15. Croezen recovered to cross the line in P10, but a post-race penalty for a lap 3 incident with Aston Martin’s Duncan Hofland dropped him to P12.

Round 9 at Circuit of The Americas began with qualifying in the rain, with Csontos making his debut alongside Croezen. Early laps were set on the intermediate tires before a late switch to softs as the track dried. Croezen was eliminated in Q1 in P18, while Csontos progressed to Q2 and finished P15.

Both drivers made strong starts in the race, with Csontos – on medium tires – surging to P8 by the end of lap 1, while Croezen settled into P15 on the hard tire. Csontos briefly dropped back before opting for an early stop on lap 7, switching to hard tires and rejoining at the rear. Croezen ran long and pitted on lap 19 for mediums, rejoining behind his team mate.

Croezen made progress through the field to reach P13 by lap 25, but could not make any further moves, taking the checkered flag in the same position, while Csontos finished P17 on his F1 Sim Racing debut.

Joris Croezen, TGR Haas F1 Sim Racing Team driver, said: “We all know how brutal F1 Sim Racing can be. Event three hit us hard across three tracks that clearly weren’t our strongest. A penalty while finishing in the points at Zandvoort summed it up pretty well. Now it’s time to regroup, reset, and fight until the very end for the last three races of the season."

Tamás Gál, TGR Haas F1 Sim Racing Team driver, said: “We clearly lacked pace at this event compared to the previous ones, which isn’t what we were aiming for. Still, I want to focus on the positives from my qualifying performances, including my first Q3 appearance of 2026.”

Gábor Csontos, TGR Haas F1 Sim Racing Team driver, said: “I want to thank TGR Haas F1 Sim Racing Team for giving me the opportunity to make my debut – it was a real dream come true.

“It was far from an easy task, having to adapt to a new environment and a new rig with less than an hour of on-site practice, but I gave it everything I had and was more than pleased to reach Q2. I’m also proud of the start of the race, running as high as P7 before the pit stop. Unfortunately, I lost ground afterwards and slipped outside the top 10.” 

The 2026 F1 Sim Racing Championship finale takes place May 27-28 for Round 10 – Mexico, Round 11 – São Paulo, and Round 12 – Abu Dhabi.