For eight seasons, Álvaro Carretón wore Williams blue every time he sat in a simulator. In September, the 25-year-old from Seville announced that the run was over. Now his next race comes in a city he has never visited. Carretón is one of 38 drivers heading to the NSCI Dome in Mumbai for the F1 Sim Racing India Open: Cup of Nations, where he will race for Team Spain Red alongside Daniel Moreno, a world champion with Mercedes-AMG in 2021. Racing starts on 7 November, and Javier Guerra, the man who brought him to Williams in 2018, will be on the other end of the radio as his engineer.
Ahead of the trip, Carretón answered questions from TalkEsport founder Deepak Ojha. He talked about what kept him at one team for so long and what an engineer really does during a sim race. He also explained why he thinks this week in Mumbai could matter far beyond the result.
The event itself is new to the calendar, and the format leaves little room for error. The 38 drivers are split into 19 two-driver teams, grouped mainly by nationality and region. Thirty-six of them are invited international drivers, while the last two places go to the top two finishers from the F1 Sim Racing India Open National Championship, which Mumbai Falcons has run across the country this year. Teams move through an Opening Round, an Upper Bracket and two Lower Bracket stages before a Grand Final, with $100,000 in prize money on the line. Every stage before the final lasts only three races, and the Grand Final has four. For more on how the event came together, read our F1 Sim Racing India Open coverage.
Eight years in Williams blue
Carretón came into F1 sim racing through the official game. In 2018, he reached the Pro Draft in London, where teams picked their drivers, and Williams signed him while he was still a teenager. Over the following eight seasons he made 77 starts, scored more than 241 points and collected five podiums, two pole positions and eleven top-five finishes. According to his management, no driver in the series has stayed at a single team for longer.
TalkEsport: Eight years at Williams Racing makes you the longest-serving driver at a single team in F1 Sim Racing. What kept you there, and what did those years teach you?
Álvaro Carretón: Being part of Williams Racing for eight years has been one of the most important chapters of my career. They were the only team to offer me a full-time contract to compete in the F1 Sim Racing Series when I was just 17 years old. Thanks to that opportunity and the support of my family, Williams became like a second home to me. What kept me there was the opportunity to grow, keep learning and develop within an environment where I felt I could contribute and improve season after season.
Those years taught me a lot about consistency, teamwork and the importance of paying attention to the smallest details. Sim racing may look like an individual sport from the outside, but behind every driver there is a team, and understanding how to work together is just as important as your performance on track. I’m incredibly grateful for everything I experienced at Williams and for all the people I had the opportunity to work with throughout those eight years.
TalkEsport: You and Javier started at Williams together in 2018 and are reunited for Mumbai. What does an engineer actually do for a sim racer during a race session?
Álvaro Carretón: Javier and I started working together back in 2018 at Williams, and I can honestly say that I owe him a lot for where I am today. He was the person who believed in me and gave me the opportunity to join Williams, which changed my career.
An engineer’s role goes far beyond analysing data or providing technical feedback. It’s about having someone by your side who knows you better than anyone else in a racing environment, understands how you think, how you react under pressure and what you need at different moments. Of course, there is an important technical and strategic aspect to the role, but an engineer also helps you manage frustration, stay focused and keep a clear mindset when things don’t go as planned. Even though they’re not behind the wheel, they are deeply connected to the race, experiencing every moment with you almost as if they were driving themselves.
Having worked together for so many years, Javier and I have developed a great understanding of each other. That trust and familiarity can make a real difference, especially in a competition where communication and decision-making are so important.
Guerra was the Williams team manager when Carretón arrived in 2018, so the Mumbai trip brings the pair back together in new roles. Carretón confirmed the end of his Williams chapter on 23 September with a short message to the team.
Racing as one team with Daniel Moreno
Spain is sending two pairs to Mumbai. Team Spain White pairs Ismael Fahssi, Carretón’s former Williams teammate, with Alejandro Loureiro, which means the two Spanish teams could easily meet in the brackets. In the Cup of Nations, however, both drivers’ results count towards the team total, so Carretón and Moreno will need to share far more than a flag.
TalkEsport: You’re teaming up with 2021 world champion Daniel Moreno in Team Spain Red. How will you two work together in the Cup of Nations format?
Álvaro Carretón: It’s a great opportunity to represent Spain alongside Daniel. He has already proven what he’s capable of by becoming a world champion, so having someone with that level of experience alongside you is always valuable. This will actually be the first time we’ve shared a team, so communication, preparation and consistency will be key. We’ll need to share information, understand how each of us approaches the races and make sure we’re working towards the same objective.
The format makes the team aspect particularly important, as both drivers contribute to the overall result. It’s not just about having one strong individual performance; we need to work together and maximise the points we can score across every stage. I hope he’s had some time to practise too, because I’m ready to give it everything I’ve got!
TalkEsport: Every stage before the Grand Final is just three races, with elimination on the line. How do you prepare for a format like that?
Álvaro Carretón: In a format like this, consistency is probably one of the most important factors. With only three races in each stage, every result matters and there’s very little room to recover from mistakes. My approach is to prepare as thoroughly as possible, understand the track, build confidence and make sure I can deliver consistent pace rather than simply chasing the fastest possible lap. The Super Pole qualifying format adds another tricky element, as even the strongest drivers can make a mistake and suddenly find themselves starting further down the grid.
You also need to be adaptable. Race situations can change very quickly, especially when you’re competing against drivers from different backgrounds and with different approaches. I already know some of the competitors, either from the F1 Sim Racing Championship or from various online community championships, so it will be interesting to race against familiar faces in this environment. Daniel and I are racing as one team, and that’s how we need to approach the competition.
TalkEsport: What does a normal week of practice look like for you right now?
Álvaro Carretón: My preparation usually combines several different elements: track familiarisation, qualifying practice, race simulations and reviewing data to understand where I can improve. I also work on consistency and racecraft, because being quick over a single lap is only one part of the picture. You need to be able to reproduce that performance over a full race and make the right decisions in different situations.
Practice varies with the time of the year, but on a normal day preparing for F1 Esports I spend around eight hours training on the simulator, although this can change depending on the competition. I also make time for other sports and regular gym sessions. Even though sim racing doesn’t involve the same physical demands as traditional motorsport, I believe staying physically fit is important for maintaining concentration and overall performance. It also helps me manage the physical strain and muscular discomfort that can come from spending so many hours in the simulator.
First trip to India, and a message for Indian sim racers
For Indian fans, the Cup of Nations is a rare chance to watch drivers from the global F1 Sim Racing scene in person. Tickets are on sale through District, and the races will also stream on the official YouTube channels of Formula 1 and Mumbai Falcons. Carretón, for his part, is arriving with more than a racing suit.
TalkEsport: Is this your first time competing in India? What are you expecting from the event and the crowd at the NSCI Dome?
Álvaro Carretón: Yes, this will be my first time ever visiting India, so I’m really looking forward to the experience and to being part of an event of this scale. Bringing together 38 drivers from different countries and regions under a national team format makes it a very interesting competition. And who knows? This could be the beginning of something even bigger for the future of F1 sim racing.
I’m particularly excited about the opportunity to compete in front of a live audience at the NSCI Dome. Sim racing events are evolving, and seeing the discipline brought into a venue of this scale is a great sign of how far it can go. I’m expecting a very passionate atmosphere, and hopefully we can give the fans some exciting racing. I’ve also brought a few small gifts for some lucky members of the audience!
Fans who can’t make it to Mumbai have a shot at something too, as his management team at Dry Tongue is giving away two lifestyle jerseys designed for him this week.
TalkEsport: Sim racing is growing quickly in India. What would you tell Indian drivers who want to reach the level of the F1 Sim Racing Series?
Álvaro Carretón: I think the most important thing is to be patient, consistent and willing to learn. Having natural speed is important, but it isn’t enough on its own. You need to understand the fundamentals, develop your racecraft, learn how to analyse your performance and be open to feedback. Competing in online leagues and racing against stronger drivers is also a great way to gain experience and understand what is required at the highest level. Some recent F1 Sim Racing champions first made a name for themselves in online sim racing communities, showing that these platforms can be a genuine pathway to professional competition.
I’d also encourage young drivers to take the community side seriously. Networking, learning from others and building relationships within sim racing can open doors to opportunities you might not expect. The level is getting higher every year, but there are also more opportunities emerging around the world, and events like the India Open are a great example of that.
TalkEsport: What’s next for you after Mumbai?
Álvaro Carretón: My full focus is on the India Open. I want to make the most of this opportunity, represent Spain as well as possible and hopefully achieve a strong result with Daniel and Team Spain Red. Not long ago, I announced my departure from Williams Racing, bringing an end to an eight-season journey with the team. It was a huge part of my career, and naturally, its conclusion leaves me with a few question marks about what the future holds. I’m still highly motivated to compete at the highest level of sim racing, and I’m looking forward to exploring the opportunities that may come next.
I certainly hope this won’t be my last time competing at an event in India. If the India Open becomes a regular fixture on the F1 Sim Racing calendar, it would be a massive step forward for the championship, bringing the competition to new audiences and creating more opportunities for drivers like me to compete on an international stage. I really hope this is just the beginning.
That last line is a fair summary of the week ahead, both for Carretón and for India. He arrives in Mumbai as a free agent with eight years of experience, a world champion beside him and an engineer who has known him since he was 17. Three races at a time, he gets to show the rest of the paddock what comes after Williams.
