Created: 2025.12.02. 11:47
Széchenyi István University’s simulator team, SZESE E-Sport, concluded the autumn season with international podium finishes and a domestic showcase that attracted thousands of visitors. The Sim Racing Expo in Dortmund, the championship finals in Prague and the PlayIT event proved to be three key milestones that demonstrated the high level at which the University’s competitors perform in this rapidly evolving sport.
Formed only this year, the University’s professional simulator racing team has already achieved significant success on both the national and international stage. The team includes university students as well as talented high school racers, all of whom have competed in prestigious events such as the Sim Gaming Expo in Chicago and the virtual Le Mans Majors 24. Simulator racing is far more than a technical hobby; it is a complex sport requiring concentration, strategic thinking, reaction speed and teamwork. At Széchenyi István University, these skills are developed within an organized framework, offering young competitors a cohesive community where they can learn from one another and from more experienced drivers.
The autumn season began in October with the world’s largest simulator event, the Sim Racing Expo in Dortmund. After a pre-qualifying round involving more than a thousand entrants, six University racers advanced to the online championship stage. Among them, Balázs Pálla, a student of the Mechanical Engineer in the Agriculture and Food Industry programme, and high school competitor Marcell Mórocz secured their places in the LAN finals. The final was held on a new platform, Project Motor Racing, which was unfamiliar territory for all participants. Although the University’s racers set some of the fastest times during free practice, technical difficulties hindered their performance in the final. Even so, the two young drivers delivered outstanding results, finishing in 2nd and 3rd place and earning total prize money exceeding one thousand euros.
The next major stop came in early November in Prague, which hosted the LAN finals of the Czech SimRacing Championship 2025. Thirty-two competitors qualified for the highly competitive field, including four members of the University’s e-sport team. The stakes were exceptionally high: the winner would earn a racing license for real-world motorsport, specifically for the 2026 F4 CEZ Academy Championship—an opportunity that, following a season Renault Twingo racing, could lead directly to Formula 4. Dávid Tóth emerged victorious, securing a full-season racing opportunity. Just one week after returning from Prague, he participated in a mandatory track aptitude test in Most, Czechia, where he not only familiarized himself with next year’s car but also set the fastest time in the field—an extremely promising start to the upcoming season.
As the winner of the Czech SimRacing Championship 2025 finals, Dávid Tóth was able to test a Formula 4 car during the track aptitude session
Mid-November brought Hungary’s largest gaming and e-sport event to Budapest. Széchenyi István University hosted a nearly 500-square-metre exhibition space at PlayIT, which drew more than 12,000 visitors. The University partnered with Révész Racing, Paza Tech, and several prominent figures from the national and international sim racing community. On display was the racing truck of seven-time European champion Norbert Kiss—also a member of SZESE E-Sport Pro—which visitors could experience both in real life and via simulator. The stand featured continuous on-stage competitions with substantial prizes, and one of the panel discussions focused on the connection between professional simulator racing and real-world motorsport.
More than a thousand visitors tried the simulators at the University’s PlayIT stand, including racing driver and commentator Dani Nagy (Photo: Márta Bóta)
Leading figures of the sport—among them Dani Nagy and Norbert Kiss (second and third from the left)—also discussed the transferability between simulator racing and real-world motorsport (Photo: Márta Bóta)
This year’s events clearly highlighted that racing no longer exists solely in the online realm. “Simulator racing is a highly advanced and professional discipline, and it is a tremendous accomplishment that our team has reached the international elite in such a short time. This branch of motorsport develops complex skills—concentration, discipline, strategic thinking, engineering mindset, and teamwork—that can open successful career paths for young people. These valuable competencies can be applied on real, offline racetracks, in engineering fields, or even in motorsport media. Our results this year clearly demonstrate that sim racing can truly serve as a gateway to real-world competition,” said Zsolt Nagy, staff member of Széchenyi István University’s e-sport division and leader of the simulator team.
