© Oracle Red Bull Sim RacingOpmeer Shines in Texas ShowdownJarno Opmeer sealed a third podium finish of the 2025 Formula 1 Sim Racing season with a determined drive at the Circuit of the Americas.
TheDutchman,whositsthirdintheDrivers’Standingson88pointsaftereightrounds,passedhisteammateFrederikRasmussenlateoninwhatwasathrillinginter-teambattle.
Rasmussen had led the race as late as Lap 21 but would have to settle for a P4 finish despite delivering an excellent performance at a track where he won last season.
The result leaves Rasmussen ninth among drivers on 51 points, while Oracle Red Bull Sim Racing remains second in the Constructors’ Standings with 133 points.
With memories of last year’s victory still fresh, Rasmussen started the race from fourth on the grid after a strong performance in qualifying. With teammate Opmeer just a few spots back in seventh, the Dane was quick off the line and looked to have beating of Bari Broumand ahead of him, but the Ferrari driver managed to rebuff the move into Turn 1 and hold onto third place.
Both Oracle Red Bull Sim Racing drivers opted to start the race on the hard tyre and overtaking proved difficult for the pair during the opening stint. There was some movement ahead though, with Broumand passing polesitter Otis Lawrence and then Thomas Ronhaar to take the lead of the race as the pit window approached.
Nicolas Longuet was the first driver to blink, heading to the pits on Lap 11 to exchange his hard tyres for a set of the mediums. Rasmussen and Broumand followed suit a lap later, with Opmeer waiting until Lap 14 before coming into the pits.
The undercut meant that Rasmussen emerged behind Longuet, but the Dane quickly rectified the situation with a brave move up the inside at Turn 19. Longuet had held the inside line through the Turn 17 and 18 right-handers, but Rasmussen was able to carry enough speed to put himself in position to beat the Ferrari man to the next apex and complete a thrilling pass.
By the time the last of the long runners had pitted on Lap 17, Rasmussen was running in P2 behind only Broumand, while Opmeer had moved into P4 thanks to a nice pass on Alfie Butcher. Opmeer was also beginning to close the gap to Longuet ahead of him, taking advantage of his fresher tyres to do so.
It was Rasmussen who would make the next move though, passing Broumand for the lead into Turn 12. Rasmussen had stayed close to Broumand throughout the twisting first sector, before using the DRS down the long back straight to his advantage to make his move.
The drivers continued to trade places over the next few laps, each time utilising the powerful DRS on the run into Turn 12. However, Thomas Ronhaar was now also posing a threat after he passed Opmeer and Longuet in quick succession to move into third.
On Lap 21, with Ronhaar applying pressure from behind, Rasmussen and Broumand nearly made contact at Turn 16 but were just able to avoid calamity thanks to some skilful driving from both racers. Ronhaar would not be deterred though and passed Rasmussen on the following lap with a late braking move into Turn 1.
Opmeer was also keen to get in the on the action and after passing Longuet, he overtook Rasmussen for P3 at Turn 13. The pair continued to battle for the remaining laps but there was no more late drama, with Opmeer leading his teammate over the finish line for a great team result.
