AMA-sanctioned World's Fastest Motorcycle Gamer Challenge begins

The winner of the challenge will be awarded an AMA No. 1 plate. That means that, for the first time, an AMA national title will be decided in esports.

“The AMA’s mission includes promoting the motorcycle lifestyle, and that extends to the digital universe,” said AMA Chief Operating Officer James Holter. “We’re pleased to partner with Init Esports, a specialist in online competition, to develop the rules, structure and fairness of play that elevates online motorcycle racing to a recognized AMA discipline.”

Init Esports, which was cofounded by motocross pioneer Stefy Bau, announced the series in late 2020, with the racing to begin as early as 2021. Mark Gardiner’s article on the first AMA-sanctioned esports series is essential reading if you’ll be following the series or if you just want to understand why esports is such a big deal. The AMA and Init have nailed down the final details for the Challenge since Mark’s article was written, and now they’re ready to begin.

As part of the multi-year agreement, racers will need a copy of RiMS Racing and an AMA esports license. 

“We created the digital competition license to encourage accountability in the gaming world,” said Stefy Bau, Init Esports founder and CEO. “To drive or race a car or motorcycle in real life you need a license, and by replicating this model in the digital world, our hope is to combat the toxicity we see in parts of the gaming industry. With greater accountability for the gamers, my hope is to provide a safe and fair environment that stimulates more diversity and inclusion in motorsports and gaming.”

There is no entry fee beyond the initial simulator purchase and license. Once entered, lap times will be recorded through the racers’ Xbox, PlayStation or Steam/Epic accounts. Sessions will be three laps each with predetermined environmental settings in the simulator.

Phase One (January 29 to April 9) will virtually race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, Silverstone, the Million-Dollar Highway in Colorado, and the Great Victoria Desert Road in Australia. Phase Two (April 10 to May 21) runs the first three of those locations and the best combined time will win the title.

Both the AMA and Init hope to create an experience that draws the best esports racing talent while encouraging competitors to participate in motorcycling beyond the virtual world. To that end, the winner will spend two days with a U.S. Superbike team. As they see it, simulated racing can bring new interest to racing and riding in general, while simultaneously offering new ways for existing motorcyclists to compete.

Esports are still a fairly new concept to motorcycling, but that may change quickly. Dorna Sports recently published the numbers behind their 10 virtual races over the last year, and the reported figures are staggering: “more than 3,100 pieces of digital content created, generating more than 10 million interactions… and 52 million video views, of which 12 million were fans watching the events live.” No wonder the AMA is getting involved with a series of its own. Now, it’s time to get racing with Phase One.

RiMS Racing is now available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC and Nintendo Switch.