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Jake Nichols wins virtual #GeorgeFloyd100 charity event

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Photo by Justin Melillo / TRE via iRacing.com.

#JusticeForFloyd. #SayTheirNames. #BlackLivesMatter.

These are just a few of the trending hashtags on social media and around the country after the tragic death of George Floyd on May 25th, 2020.

It has sparked an outrage across the country, protests upon protests taking place to raise awareness for the continuing systemic racism that has plagued the United States of America for a long time.

It sparked Monon Rahman, an engineer for Rick Ware Racing, and Rajah Caruth, one of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity racers, to step up and bring awareness in the racing community.

Rahman and Caruth put together the charitable event with a push from their friend, Brad Perez (road crew member for Martins Motorsports). The event would be named the #GeorgeFloyd100, a 44 lap race at the virtual Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval utilizing the iRacing.com technology on Friday night.

101 sim racers signed up and donated to the George Floyd Memorial Fund – a minimum of a $9 donation (to represent the almost nine minutes in which Floyd pleaded with the officer that he couldn’t breathe) was required to enter the event, and many went beyond that, raising over $1,300 just among the entrants days before the event.

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Photo by Justin Melillo / TRE via iRacing.com.

A donation pool aimed at helping the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund for the main event was established. Steve Luvender/Trading Paints, Zach McAfee/Sim Seats, and Kyle Riley/FTF Racing committed to funding the pool, a $1 donation per each individual viewer during the broadcast on STN Racing.

The broadcast, produced by Zack Johnson, brought on the on-air talents of Evan Posocco and Josh Mertz, and reminded viewers the entire night about the cause.

Many of the participants had their cars blacked out, or painted up with logos, banners, or anything else to bring awareness to the situation.

101 drivers were shortened down to 41 after qualifying and last chance events earlier on Friday night.

When it was all said and done, Jake Nichols, driver of the No. 24 for Mode Motorsports in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, took home the victory.

Nichols led 12 laps of the 44 scheduled, including the most important one, passing Allen Boes (Total Advantage Motorsports) with four laps to go to take the win.

Brian Mercurio, up-and-coming driver for Lowline Racing who is attempting to make the iRacing Pro Series later this season, started on the pole, and led the most laps, 18.

Mercurio possibly led the second most important lap, the one at the competition caution at lap 20.

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The moment of silence. Photo by Justin Melillo / TRE via iRacing.com.

During the caution, Mercurio led the entire field down pit road and brought them all to a stop, as a three minute moment of silence was observed. The three minutes represented the three minutes that Floyd was unconscious, still under the officer’s knee.

The field shut off their virtual engines, and the broadcast went silent, only once interrupted by the sound of the virtual AI pace car passing by.

Nichols took the lead after staying out with Santiago Tirres during the caution. Tirres led the field back to the green, but Nichols took over on lap 27.

Boes attempted to stretch the fuel mileage, and was able to successfully do so when it was all said and done, but wound up with a fourth place finish. Zack Novak and Kenny Brady rounded out the podium behind Nichols.

Check out some of the social media highlights:

#GEORGEFLOYD100 RESULTS:

  1. Jake Nichols
  2. Zack Novak
  3. Kenny Brady
  4. Allen Boes
  5. Austin Johnson
  6. Brian Mercurio
  7. Michael P Frisch
  8. Chase Alvey
  9. Santiago Tirres
  10. Evan Rice
  11. Jake Poulin
  12. Mike Rasimas
  13. Blake Sasser
  14. Jacob Fisher
  15. Ethan H Smith
  16. Ray Alfalla
  17. Daniel Silvestri
  18. Garrison Hogan
  19. Liam Brotherton
  20. Justin Botelho
  21. Nick Olsen
  22. Shawn M. Butler
  23. Austin Drake
  24. Nick DeGroot
  25. Brandon Hauff
  26. Tre Shuttlesworth
  27. Leigh Overton
  28. Eric R Prewitt
  29. Julian Perez
  30. Covy Moore
  31. Jonathan Taylor
  32. Rajah Caruth
  33. Brandon Buie
  34. Zachery Robinson
  35. Dylan Ault
  36. Steven Rosales
  37. Ethan Kurtz
  38. Donovan Strauss
  39. David Schildhouse
  40. Chris Overland
  41. Nate S Stewart

Photo Gallery (all photos by Justin Melillo / TRE via iRacing.com):

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Justin Melillo View All

Columnist / Reporter / Photographer / Webmaster for TheRacingExperts.com

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