{"id":357627,"date":"2026-03-25T17:43:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T17:43:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/357627\/"},"modified":"2026-03-25T17:43:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T17:43:13","slug":"aston-martin-aramco-esports-strengthens-sim-racing-line-up-with-key-additions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/357627\/","title":{"rendered":"Aston Martin Aramco Esports strengthens sim racing line-up with key additions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" object-cover w-full h-full\" width=\"1264\" height=\"700\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Esports_announcement_development_drivers_header.jpg\" alt=\"Esports announcement development drivers header\" itemprop=\"image\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Aston Martin Aramco Esports is delighted to announce the return of experienced racer Shanaka Clay and the addition of rising talent Liam Stevens ahead of the 2026 Formula One Sim Racing season. Both will play vital supporting roles on and off the simulator. <\/p>\n<p>The duo will work closely with the team&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.astonmartinf1.com\/en-GB\/news\/esports\/aston-martin-aramco-esports-team-confirmed\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">driver line-up<\/a> of Rub\u00e9n Pedre\u00f1o, Jan Haladej and Duncan Hofland, helping to elevate performance across the board.<\/p>\n<p>Shanaka brings a wealth of experience, having previously competed for the team. He will bring valuable insight and leadership in his role which extends off the sim.<\/p>\n<p>Liam joins as an exciting young prospect. With impressive raw speed, he is ideally suited to a dynamic role within the team&#8217;s progression.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" object-cover w-full h-full\" width=\"1440\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Esports_announcement_development_drivers_gallery_3.jpg\" alt=\" \" \/><\/p>\n<p>&#13;&#13;Shanaka Clay, Development Driver, said:<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;m happy and excited to be returning to Aston Martin Aramco Esports after competing with the team back in 2021.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;ll be doing my utmost behind the scenes this season to support the team whilst also taking a bit of time to reset, refocus and continue developing myself both on and off the track.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;m really motivated to keep progressing as a driver while also building my understanding of the wider team environment and becoming a more rounded professional in my time here.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Liam Stevens, Development Driver, said:<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;m absolutely delighted to have joined Aston Martin Aramco Esports as development driver.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;ve thoroughly enjoyed working with the whole team so far and I can&#8217;t wait to continue supporting the guys in any capacity that I can. I&#8217;m excited and motivated to be working with Ruben, Jan, Duncan and Shanaka, as they will all help me continue to improve.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" object-cover w-full h-full\" width=\"1440\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Esports_announcement_development_drivers_gallery_1.jpg\" alt=\" \" \/><\/p>\n<p>Make it yours<\/p>\n<p>2026 Replica Team Kit<\/p>\n<p>Formed with precision, worn with pride. 2026 demands a fresh approach. Shop the new collection.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-default has-icon theme-lime-essence text-2sm uppercase\" aria-label=\"Make it yours\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.astonmartinf1.com\/gb\/en\/team\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">SHOP NOW<\/p>\n<p><\/a><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" object-cover w-full h-full\" width=\"683\" height=\"512\" data-scroll=\"\" data-scroll-offset=\"-40%\" data-scroll-call=\"toggleLazy, Scroll, main\" data-scroll-lazy=\"https:\/\/assets.astonmartinf1.com\/public\/cms\/6jCm1V4lfEUuAhxd7tqxwb\/ccf534303672807b021fa06e883697b1\/AMF1_Lance_Puma_381_16x9_EXPORTED.jpg?&amp;h=512&amp;w=683&amp;fit=thumb\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"AMF1 Lance Puma 150 Exported\"\/><\/p>\n<p>I \/ AM DROPS<\/p>\n<p>Amplify your fan experience<\/p>\n<p>From exclusive collabs to once-in-a-lifetime prizes, I \/ AM DROPS is a series of unique and ultra-limited moments and fan experiences.<\/p>\n<p>Sign up for I \/ AM or sign in to unlock.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-default has-icon theme-opal-green text-2sm uppercase\" aria-label=\"I \/ AM DROPS\" href=\"https:\/\/www.astonmartinf1.com\/en-GB\/access-I-AM\" target=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">SIGN UP \/ SIGN IN<\/p>\n<p><\/a><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" object-cover w-full h-full\" width=\"683\" height=\"512\" data-scroll=\"\" data-scroll-offset=\"-40%\" data-scroll-call=\"toggleLazy, Scroll, main\" data-scroll-lazy=\"https:\/\/assets.astonmartinf1.com\/public\/cms\/3WYRtJnrwQ6ArCGvt5rAGC\/ca05f4e30ff300e192a82882fa4cdf9d\/IAM_Drops_1440x1200.png?&amp;h=512&amp;w=683&amp;fit=thumb\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"I AM DROPS asset for 50:50s 1440x1200\"\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Aston Martin Aramco Esports is delighted to announce the return of experienced racer Shanaka Clay and the addition&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":357628,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[4155,85816,104093,173255,59201,13317,173254,13318,85,46,173256,173259,173257,173258,105],"class_list":["post-357627","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-4155","tag-aston-martin","tag-aston-martin-aramco","tag-duncan-hofland","tag-esports","tag-f1","tag-f1-sim-racing-championship","tag-formula-one","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-jan-haladej","tag-liam-stevens","tag-ruben-pedreno","tag-shanaka-clay","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357627","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=357627"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357627\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/357628"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=357627"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=357627"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=357627"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}