Forza Motorsport at 80th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans

Posted: 12 Jun 2012 06:52 AM PDT

Forza Motorsport at 80th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans

This coming weekend will be the 80th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans race, one of the world’s most prestigious motorsports events. We’re incredibly excited to announce that Forza Motorsport is now a sponsor of the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and, in celebration, we’ve got a full slate of cool stuff ahead during the race, both for fans who are attending the race in person, and for those of you who will be watching from home.

First up, it’s incredible to have the “Forza Motorsport” name associated with the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and, if you watch the race live, you’ll see the “Forza Motorsport” logo on display at the entrance to the Hunaudieres (Mulsanne) Straight, along the Straight itself, and at the first chicane, which has been officially renamed as the “Forza Motorsport Chicane”.

If you’re one of the thousands of lucky motorsports fans who will be on-hand at the race, you won’t have to go far to find Forza activities. We’ll be on-hand with the official Forza Motorsport tent, which will be found in the Village Area behind the grandstands and directly across from the SRT tent. Those who visit the tent will be able to take part in lots of fun activities including:

Forza Horizon – Play a demo version of the latest Forza game, Forza Horizon. Forza fans on hand at Le Mans will be among the first people in the world to play Forza Horizon, which was last shown at E3 2012.

Drive the 2013 SRT Viper GTS – Available both in Forza Horizon, as well as in a soon-to-be-released free download for Forza fans, the 2013 SRT Viper is a car that must be driven to be believed. This American supercar will be playable by Le Mans attendees both in the Forza Horizon demo, as well as in Forza Motorsport 4.

Driver Appearances – Several Le Mans race drivers will be on hand, giving autographs, hanging out, and doing hot laps in Forza 4 so fans can test their driving acumen against a real racer. Imagine, you could be at Le Mans, driving the famed Le Mans track, trying to lay down a better lap than guys that will be doing it for real over the course of the weekend.

Tournaments and Prizes – We will be conducting our own competitions in the Forza Motorsport tent as well. Le Mans fans will be able to compete against one another and win prizes for fastest lap times and driving skill.

If you plan on being at this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans race, and you get a chance to visit the Forza Motorsport tent, we want to hear from you! Post your pictures on our official forums on Twitter using the hashtags #forza4lemans or #forzahorizon or on our official Facebook page. We’ll be featuring our favorite photos throughout the weekend!

For those who’ll be attending live, or for those looking to get in some Forza action along the way, the Forza community team will be here for you. First up, we’ll be watching the race live on Speed Channel and via our official Facebook page for another edition of “Turn 10 Track Days”. The community team will be checking in on the chat all race long, enjoying the race with you guys, asking trivia questions, and giving away a few prizes here and there.

Of course when we aren’t watching the race, we’ll be playing Forza Motorsport 4 (or, more likely, doing both). If you want to get in some Forza 4 action during the race, we’ll have you covered there too. First up, we’ll be holding our “Game With Dev: Le Mans Edition” on Saturday, June 16. In true Le Mans fashion, this will be an endurance event—a four-hour chance to play with the Forza community team, and win unicorn cars in the process. Join us from noon-4 p.m. Pacific in our official Facebook chat room to get in on all the fun!

In addition to Game With Dev, we’ll firing up a dedicated Le Mans-themed online hopper, featuring both a 2.4 multi-class race on Le Mans, and a Le Mans prototype race that will go for an astounding 360 laps! Those of you who decide to undertake this beast of an event and actually complete the race, send us a photo of your completed (360 of 360 laps) race (and your XBL Gamertag) to our e-mail address (forzacontests@microsoft.com) and we’ll hook you up with unicorn cars. In addition, we’re planning some fun Le Mans Rivals Mode events that you’ll be able to find in the Community Monthly section of Rivals Mode and will only be available for Le Mans weekend. Look for more details soon!

Whether you’re attending the race in person or watching from home, we’ve got lots of ways for you to enjoy this weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans race with your fellow Forza fans. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for live updates for the track, as well as updates from the in-game activities we’ll have going all weekend long. Join us for all the fun online as we get ready to celebrate one of the year’s biggest motorsports events!