Video: Vettel defeated by sim racer at Race of Champions

Sebastian Vettel and Team Germany had an early bath from the Nations Cup competition at the Race of Champions, as they were knocked out in the quarter-final stages.

Vettel's day did not go particularly well, as he lost both of his quarter-final heats against Team USA drivers Colton Herta and Jimmie Johnson – a combination that went on to fight Team Norway in the final.

But it was the first race of the day that proved somewhat embarrassing for Vettel, as the four-time F1 World Champion lost out against Aston Martin eSports racer Lucas Blakeley.

Driving the eRoc rallycross cars, Vettel lost out by just 0.080 seconds to the young Scottish racer, who participates in the F1 eSports Pro Series.

An early upset for the F1 stars

Partnering Mick Schumacher for Germany, Vettel's loss meant that the two F1 drivers could not get a clean sweep against the eSports drivers.

While Schumacher responded to beat Jarno Opmeer, before seeing off Blakeley, the defeat for Vettel meant he had to beat Opmeer to ensure Germany made it into the quarter-finals.

With Vettel's form in the quarter-finals proving poor, Schumacher's two wins were not enough to get Germany through into the semi-finals.

Vettel's losses meant that Team Germany were unable to match their past imperious form in the Nations Cup, with Vettel and Michael Schumacher winning every year between 2007 and 2012, as well as victory alongside Pascal Wehrlein in 2017.

Vettel will be back at the wheel on Sunday, gunning for individual glory in the Race of Champions.