Sim racer James Baldwin joins Mercedes F1 simulator driver programme

UK-based sim racer James Baldwin has joined the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team as the newest member of its simulator driver programme.

The FIA Motorsport Games champion will assist the Formula One team by driving its state-of-the-art simulator to provide feedback to engineers working on the team’s real-world car.

Announced on February 4th, James Baldwin joins Mercedes’ extensive roster of simulator drivers, who drive virtual iterations of the team’s car on tracks that feature in this year’s F1 World Championship.

Simulator drivers spend time assisting engineers with the setup of the real car through extensive pre-event preparation. As a result, the team is able to establish a baseline setup for its real-world drivers to use during practice sessions.

Mercedes isn’t the first F1 team to utilise the services of professional sim racing drivers for its simulator programmes. In 2022, former winner of the World’s Fastest Gamer competition, Rudy van Buren, became a simulator test and development driver for Oracle Red Bull Racing.

The 2026 season is shaping up to be a busy one for Baldwin, who continues to compete in high-profile sim racing tournaments. In January, he signed with Team Redline, becoming the fifth British sim racer to join the organisation’s active roster.

Sim racing remains one of the few esports disciplines that enables experienced and aspiring players to develop skills that directly transfer over to its real-world equivalent, thanks to its accessibilty.

January saw Motorsport UK launch the Cross Car Esports Cup to bridge the gap between virtual and real competition. The winner of the event earned a testing session in an FIA Cross Car and entry into a Cross Car Championship race.

With Mercedes utilising sim racing to recruit drivers for its own simulator programme, it will be interesting to see if other F1 teams decide to follow suit.