How many times does an Alpine F1® Team driver change gears on the rollercoaster-like racetrack in Portugal? With thousands of possible team compositions, how does leading esports team Cloud9 craft their strategy? What if tennis players could adjust their strategy based on real-time data from their matches—including their opponents’ performance? With data from over 40 cars during a single race, how do NASCAR teams sift through mountains of information to make split-second decisions?
STAT-HUB, powered by Microsoft, answers these questions and more. This new platform, created by Microsoft with partners from across the sports world—including Alpine F1 Team, Hendrick Motorsports, Cloud9, and the Billie Jean King Cup by BNP Paribas Finals—gives fans a new look at how data informs design, influences strategy, and transforms performance.
Making decisions, boosting performance
Alpine F1 Team: Driving race strategy
Formula 1 isn’t just about the fastest drivers—it’s also about how teams take advantage of the most advanced technology, configuring their cars continuously to reach the podium.
The Alpine F1 Team cars seen on the track each week are the result of meticulous analysis of over 50 billion data points from over 200 sensors. The engineers at Alpine F1 Team need to aggregate the large amounts of data from the track, the wind tunnel, as well as the simulator—and find insights that can improve car performance. Using Microsoft Azure, Alpine F1 Team can quickly bring the data together to inform car design and optimize race strategy. Before every Formula 1 race in 2021, STAT-HUB will showcase this data so fans can see how stats play a part at the track.
Hendrick Motorsports: Accelerating decisions
Hendrick Motorsports has adopted Microsoft technology to help the team make split-second decisions during NASCAR races. Using the Lap Analyzer tool, drivers like Alex Bowman, William Byron, Chase Elliott, and Kyle Larson can work with race engineers to determine the ideal point on a turn to pull off the throttle and engage the brakes, or to identify the most efficient line around the curve, during any given race. The Lap Analyzer translates data into insights that the drive the team’s strategy on race day.
In NASCAR, teams have real-time access to data from all 40 cars on the track. This can be an extremely powerful tool, but it means teams have to be able to sift through mountains of data quickly and efficiently. Lap Analyzer and other tech-driven tools help the Hendrick team pull out the most important pieces of data so they can make smarter, faster decisions. For every race in 2021, STAT-HUB will share the data and stats that race engineers at Hendrick Motorsports are looking at to influence their race strategy.
Billie Jean King Cup: Analyzing game play
Athletes and coaches at the 2021 Billie Jean King Cup by BNP Paribas Finals will be given real-time access to data, making it possible to adjust match strategy and improve player performance based on data. The new dashboard uses the Azure cloud platform to process and analyze key elements of the game like player movement, as well as rally, shot, and scoring data.
The dashboard, available courtside on Microsoft Surface tablets, displays this information in a visual, user-friendly way that helps players and coaches quickly uncover new insights on their opponents. During the 2021 Billie Jean King Cup by BNP Paribas Finals, STAT-HUB will showcase these new stats so fans can better understand data behind performance.
Showcasing stats, engaging fans
Cloud9: Leveling up insights
Using the power of Microsoft Azure, Cloud9’s Game Insights Platform dynamically takes in information from a variety of sources—including the game’s own API and from actual video of matches. Using computer vision to create millions of data points, the system can track the movements of all 10 players throughout a match and draw critical insights that Cloud9 players and coaches can use to inform their match preparation.
For the fans, Cloud9 brings this data to life in a streamed show called ‘The 9s’ featuring news and insights from across the Cloud9 organization. A STAT-HUB dashboard will be integrated into the show so the host and guests can preview top matchups leveraging the data.
STEM Superstars
Data is essential to performing better, faster, and smarter in the world of sports. Hear from the people behind the scenes—from data scientists to engineers—who use their STEM expertise to help give sports organizations their competitive edge.
