The Red Bull Racing Erena Sim Racing training facility opens in the UK

UPDATE (February 12, 2021): The facility has been renamed Red Bull Racing Erena. Updated details below.

Red Bull Racing Esports has opened a new training facility for its sim racing team in the UK.

The facility is designed to help improve the skills of the current crop of 12 Red Bull Racing Esports team drivers and serve as an academy hub for aspiring sim racers.

The new home for the sport is in the heart of the Red Bull Racing Technology Campus in Milton Keynes.

It was officially called “The Red Bull Racing Erena”.

Red Bull Racing Esports launched a competition for fans to name their new home for the sport, including a chance to win prizes such as a Red Bull Racing F1 game seat and some of the best Fanatec gear, by both Max Verstappen and signed by Alex Albon.

The competition had almost 5,000 entries and was won by Max Superfan – and compatriot – Björn.

“I immediately thought of Red Bull Racing Erena because the ‘e’ stands for esports. I still can’t believe I won. A game seat was high on my wish list, but having a Red Bull Racing signed by Max and Alex is absolutely great. “

Red Bull’s sim racers will train from the facility in the run-up to major competitions, and in some cases the team will also compete from the field.

The news comes after Alfa Romeo’s Jarno Opmeer and Red Bull were crowned world champions in the grand finale of the 2020 F1 Esports Series, which Aramco unveiled after a thrilling final this week. Jarno Opmeer clinched his first F1 Esports Series title while Red Bull took home his second team’s championship to secure the lion’s share of the series’s $ 750,000 sweepstakes.

The new space – named by fans who submitted over 4,000 entries for a Playseat competition – is divided into four main areas: training area, competition area, console area and driver’s locker area.

The training area has six F1 Esports Pro series play seats with Fanatec setup and 240 Hz AOC screens connected to a 9 × 9 video wall that display driver data. Each member of the team has HyperX peripherals, including the Cloud II wireless headset.

There will also be a Citrix data dashboard for the team manager to monitor training and events.

The competition area offers two playseats with a triple AOC screen and Fanatec wheelbases with direct drive for additional force feedback. One of the rigs will also come with a full Fanatec drifting setup.

The console area is designed as a chill-out zone in which the team can relax away from the virtual race track. This area is equipped with a 65-inch Philips OLED TV that can be connected to a PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X with Playseat PUMA gaming chairs. There’s a Sonos Arc with sub and additional speaker configurations for Dolby Atmos surround sound.

Red Bull says there will be an option for the public to rent the space on a selected number of days per year.

Fans can also take a tour of the Red Bull Racing factory and experience firsthand how the esports drivers train.

The separate Red Bull Gaming Sphere in London will be temporarily closed due to covid-19.

View high resolution images of the Red Bull Racing Esports facility here.

Dom is an award-winning writer who graduated from Bournemouth University in 2007 with a 2: 1 degree in multimedia journalism.

An avid League of Legends and World of Warcraft gamer, he has written for a number of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV, Riot Games and others. He was Head of Content for the British Esports Association until February 2021 before returning to Esports News UK full-time as an esports consultant helping brands and companies better understand the industry.