F1 duo Verstappen and Norris team-up for iRacing's Bathurst 12 Hour

The pair will race for Team Redline, which has been competing in virtual racing since 2000 and won the first iRacing World Championship 10 years later.

The Esports squad has grown in stature because the likes of Verstappen and Norris use the competition to keep their skills sharp.

Redline has a two-car entry for the Bathurst 12 hour, with Norris and Verstappen part of an eight driver squad split across its two BMW Z4s.

Introducing a star-studded line-up for the @iRacing Bathurst 12h featuring 2 BMW Z4 teams, Team Redline 4X and Team Redline SR Boost...??

Make sure you watch us try to survive the mountain this weekend! ? pic.twitter.com/d8YT30Q7Gk

— Team Redline (@TeamRedlineSim) February 7, 2019

Other star names in the team include McLaren simulator driver Rudy van Buren - the winner of World's Fastest Gamer - Supercars star Shane van Gisbergen and touring car ace Nicky Catsburg.

Castburg told Autosport: "We all like sim racing. It's off-season and we've been on the sim a lot this winter.

"[Redline boss] Atze Kerkhof has been in the epicentre of all this. With that team we have trained a lot together in the winter. And that has lead to this.

"We share a BMW Z4, just like you would in real life.

"So Max virtually gets out of the car and I get in, then I drive a couple of stints and then the rotation continues.

"I'm really looking forward to it, also because my participation in the real Bathurst 12 Hour last weekend only lasted an hour due to a problem with the oil pump!"

The iRacing Bathurst 12 Hour begins on Saturday February 9 and can be viewed live here.

iRacing is one of the most popular forms of online racing, largely because the popular community offers a wide variety of racing series under one roof - including NASCAR, Indycar, Supercars, protoypes and F1-like 'FIA Grand Prix' cars.

Autosport says

Tom Errington, American Racing Reporter @tomgerrington

The news that Verstappen and Norris will team-up together in a virtual race is a pertinent reminder that the lines between virtual and real-world racing are becoming increasingly blurred.

F1's declaration earlier this week that an Esports driver could reach F1 within the next decade was shortsighted. Those drivers are already there in the likes of Verstappen and Norris.

While it's tempting to get drawn into the noise whenever Esports makes a breakthrough, such as Lucas di Grassi's defeat to Enzo Bonito in the Race of Champions, the fact F1 stars incorporate the likes of iRacing into their training speaks volumes.

Commercial factors means F1 is always going to promote its Esports series above all else, but it would be wise to look at what the next generation are already doing as it plots its future course.

Motorsport Esports is always said to be on the verge of a breakthrough, but in reality it has already happened and this is just the latest evidence of that growth.