Earlier this year Mobil 1 and Forza Motorsport gave gamers the chance to pit themselves against professionals with the “Legend vs. Leaderboard Rival Events” series. Players could see if they could lap the game’s Maple Valley Raceway on the Xbox game faster than three-time NASCAR Cup champion Tony Stewart and Indy NXT race winner Jamie Chadwick. Now 2009 Formula 1 champion Jenson Button has joined the fray.
The challenge, which is part of Mobil 1’s ongoing 50th anniversary celebrations, once again takes place on Maple Valley — a fictional track that’s been a mainstay of the Forza Motorsport franchise — with the 1971 Lotus Elan Sprint the car of choice.
“ is super slow. It’s so slow,” said Button. “The funny thing about racing cars is they don’t have to be fast to be fun. And it doesn’t have to be fast to be competitive. Sometimes the slowest form of racing is the most fun.”
“Lots of sideways, lots and lots of opposite entries and then trying to gather it all up. But it’s amazing. Even when it’s something that’s slow. There’s frustrating things to it so you don’t want too much. But it was good fun.”
The first two rounds of the Legend vs. Leaderboard series featured Stewart lapping in a 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 302 (in 1m 57.453), and Chadwick in a 1970 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 (in 1m 54.859).
The challenge with Button runs from Sept. 26 to Oct. 9, 2024, and can be accessed by logging into the Rivals section of Forza Motorsport.
As well as the opportunity to say you’re quicker than a bona fide motorsport legend, players can also be in with a shot at winning a custom in-game driver’s suit.
