James Baldwin (racing driver)

James Baldwin (born 28 August 1997) is a British racing driver and sim racer. He raced in the 2020 British GT Championship and the 2020 Formula One eSports Series.
Career.
Baldwin began his racing career in karting aged 8, and won three DMAX National Championships at Daytona Motorsport between 2013 and 2014. He switched to Formula Ford in 2015 and competed in four races. He ran competitively despite having little track time and facing mechanical issues, but was unable to raise the funds to continue racing. He shifted his focus to sim racing and soon found himself invited to professional events with prize money available, offering a chance to reboot his career.
Race of Champions.
Baldwin won the 2019 eROC Invitational Event, gaining entry to the 2019 Race of Champions. There, he won the eROC World Final. The prize was to represent Team Sim Racing All Stars in the Nations Cup, partnering future Formula One eSports Series rival Enzo Bonito.
Baldwin returned to ROC for the 2020 edition, held this year as a virtual event. He teamed with Romain Grosjean to win the Nations Cup as Team All Stars, having earned his place by winning the eROC World Final for a second time.
World's Fastest Gamer.
In 2019, his success in sim racing resulted in an invitation to Season 2 of "World's Fastest Gamer (WFG)", a twelve-day intensive competition between sim racers from multiple platforms. Baldwin went on to win the event and was awarded a $1 million sponsorship for a full racing season. He was the first WFG graduate to receive backing for a real-world drive. The competition was televised in a six-part documentary series on ESPN2 and Amazon Prime.
Formula One Esports.
Baldwin signed for Alfa Romeo as a third driver for the 2019 Formula One eSports series. He moved to McLaren for the 2020 season, ending the season 17th with a best result of 8th and two fastest laps.
British GT Championship.
On 5 March 2020, Baldwin was announced as a driver for Jenson Team Rocket RJN, partnering team co-owner Chris Buncombe in a McLaren 720S GT3 in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup. Due to travel difficulties brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, this was later amended to a full-season entry in the 2020 British GT Championship alongside Michael O'Brien.
Baldwin reached national headlines by winning on debut at Oulton Park. The pair went on to take three further podiums and three pole positions, finishing fourth in the overall championship and third in the Silver Cup.
Baldwin dominated the 2021 British GT Esports Championship, with three wins from five races.
On 29 April 2021, Baldwin was announced as a BRDC Rising Star.