The critical stage of the MotoGP™ eSport Championship – the Global Series – continues on Friday.

After an epic opening to the year, the second round of the 2023 MotoGP™ eSport Global Series is poised deliver yet more entertainment when it kicks off this Friday at 16:00 (GMT+2).

Just 17 points cover the top five in the Global Series standings after an exciting opening round delivered surprises aplenty! Experienced names Trast73 (1st) and adriaan_26 (2nd) may top the table as it stands, but a host of new names are threatening the established order!

The Global Series is set to showcase the best of the MotoGP™ eSport Championship once again as 11 of the fastest gamers in the world go head-to-head over four rounds that will decide the 2023 Champion. The 11 finalists contest four rounds, three of them virtual events, before the finale takes place at the world famous Ubeat Live Gaming Show in Barcelona on the 11th November.

Each round will pack a greater punch than before. To mirror the changes to MotoGP™ in 2023, gamers will compete in a Tissot Sprint during each round, as well as two longer-length races.

Six nationalities are represented, with the finalists hailing from Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Spain, and the UK. Trast73 (Monster Energy Yamaha) is one of the favourites going into Round 2 as he defends a five-point advantage over reigning Champion adriaan_26 (Repsol Honda Team). But watch out for Jack Hammer4658 (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), winner of Race 1 in Round 1, and Global Series rookie PLaT1ForLyfe (Mooney VR46 Racing Team), who scored an amazing podium in Race 2.

Presenters Jack Gorst and Kiko Giles will host the second hour-long show of the year, which will begin with highlights of qualifying before the 11 riders take on the three tracks that will put the finalists’ skills to the test.

Sachsenring is the venue for the second Sprint of the year, before the Mobility Resort Motegi and Pertamina Mandalika Circuit host Race 3 and Race 4 of the championship, respectively.

The riders will be playing on the new official MotoGP™23 Videogame from videogame developer, publisher and longstanding partner Milestone – which is available to buy now – with race direction and the event powered Lenovo Legion PCs.

Fans can watch on selected TV broadcasters, as well as on motogp.com and esport.motogp.com and across social media platforms including YouTube (via the MotoGP™ and MotoGP™ eSport channels), MotoGP™ eSport Twitter, Instagram, Facebook (via MotoGP™ and MotoGP™ eSport pages) and Twitch via MotoGP™ and MotoGP™ eSport.

Who will take another step towards becoming the 2023 MotoGP™ eSport Champion? Tune in on Friday the 15th September at 16.00 (GMT +2) to find out!