Meet the Contender: Rich Eklund

Rich Eklund, world famous sim racer, was introduced to the iRacing world by friend Dylan Murcott in 2011. Since then, Eklund is a two-time world champion.Racing for legitimate prizes didn't begin until Eklund joined an iRacing league dedicated to competing with the Mazda MX-5 in the spring of 2013, nearly a year after joining the iRacing service.

22 years old, the world-class sim-racer from Germantown, New York, has primarily raced from home. But if last year's performances by iRacing champs Evan Maillard and Steven Diem are any sign, Rich should get up to speed in the 2016 MX-5 Cup car quickly.