The premise behind the annual Race of Champions is fairly simple: take the best drivers from the world’s major racing series, put them in unfamiliar cars and turn them loose on racetracks, both paved and dirt. To ensure the best viewing experience for attending fans, the competition has been run in sports stadiums since 2004.

Since the race is an international event (complete with Nation’s Cup honors), it’s been held in France, England, China, Germany, Spain and even in the Canary Islands. The only sure way to compete is to be a series champion in F1, WRC, NASCAR, endurance racing or touring car racing, and then the Race of Champions scouts will come knocking on your door.

Now there’s another way for us mere mortals to race in the event (virtually), found via Autoblog: racing game specialist Invictus will launch a Race of Champions game, for the iPhone, iPad and Android mobile devices. Look for the Race of Champions game to hit app stores later this month, well in advance of the 2011 Race of Champions.

The game will include tracks and cars from various Race of Champions years and events, and will include both on and off-road segments. Game developers received input from pro drivers, including world rally superstar (and Race of Champions co-founder) Michele Mouton, and Invictus promises it will be the most advanced racing game ever developed for a mobile device.

Players can go head to head with friends, or challenge actual lap times set by past event winners such as Sebastian Loeb and Michael Schumacher. Unlike Gran Turismo’s GT Academy, however, you can’t turn skill in the Race of Champions game into an actual ride in the series.