Sony starts search for 'F1 World Champion'

Sony is launching an international competition next month to find the world's best player-driver of its all-new PlayStation game 'Formula One 2001', which goes on sale 25 May.

In Britain, Sony Computer Entertainment will hold a competition to find the national champion player-driver who
will then go forward to enter the 'PlayStation Formula One 2001 World Championship' finals at the United States Grand Prix. Winners will be able to watch their real-life F1 counterparts in action at Indianapolis throughout the weekend, perhaps picking up a few tips for their own event.

Entry to the competition will be open from 25 May until 27 July. The UK's 16 best player-drivers, eight from the PSone* and eight from PlayStation*2 versions of the new game, will be invited to Silverstone in August to take part in the final play-offs for the British Championship.

At Silverstone, competitors will face a series of head-to-head game battles to decide who is the 'PlayStation Formula One 2001 British Champion'. The winner will enjoy a VIP trip to the American Grand Prix at Indianapolis in September as a guest of Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE), the creator of PlayStation, and entry to the World Finals of Sony's F1 championship.

To qualify for the British Championship Finals, competitors face the challenge of setting the fastest time for a single lap of one of the world's greatest race tracks - the 4.331 mile Spa-Francorchamps circuit in the Belgian Ardennes. This stunning track is captured to perfection by the Formula One 2001 game's highest quality next-generation graphics and gameplay, which replicate every detail of driving the daunting, sweeping circuit through the forests, in this season's F1 cars.

British F1 ace Jensen Button is a keen PlayStation gamer and the 21-year old Benetton-Renault driver has set a target time for a single lap of Spa to give competitors something to aim for.

Players enter the competition by setting their fastest lap and then registering that lap time with Sony, together with a unique Verification Code which will be displayed automatically by the game. There is no limit to the number of entries that a competitor can register, so players who purchase the new game will be able to heighten their skills by driving lap after lap around Spa, before registering their ultimate lap time. Only their single fastest lap will qualify.

Entrants may register their best lap time on the Sony Computer Entertainment website [ www.uk.scee.com/f1 ]. Full details of the competition rules can also be found on the website.

The 17 countries running national championships taking part in the 'PlayStation Formula One 2001 World Championship' include: Austria, Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

PlayStation F1 fans resident in more than 70 other countries around the globe will be able to enter the competition via a special 'Rest of the World' Sony website.

'Formula One 2001' brings astounding reality to PlayStation Sony's latest motor racing computer game, is the world's first game to feature this year's Formula 1 season. It promises to deliver new levels of unrivalled realism, with a wealth of on-track excitement for experienced gamers, while people who are new to the PlayStation experience, can tailor the game to suit their skills.

Officially licensed, Formula One 2001 takes 1 or 2 players to the 17 Grand Prix circuits hosting rounds of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship, to race against the 11 teams and 22 drivers contesting this year's title-fight. SCE has spent over 12 months developing this game which redefines
standards for computer games and realistically recreates real-life scenarios - could you beat Schumacher at Monza or Hakkinen at Spa?

Beginners can learn to drive an F1 car using the 'Quick Race' mode - with all driver aids switched on to ease the task - while experienced game racers can tackle full-length Grand Prix weekends and the whole 17-race championship series. The 'Time Attack' mode allows up to 16 players to battle for the honour of fastest lap time around their favourite circuit.

Formula One 2001 will be the only F1 game to feature dual expert commentary by Murray Walker and Martin Brundle. Sony's Formula One 2001 will be available from launch for both PSone* and PlayStation*2 formats.