Jarred Walker – In Motion Staff Writer
According to NASCAR.com, iRacing, widely known as the most realistic racing simulation video game in existence, currently has more than 100,000 active subscribers worldwide.
On March 11, Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19. The NBA immediately suspended the season. This decision was arguably the moment everything officially changed in America and most people started taking COVID-19 seriously. Soon, sports leagues everywhere began suspending or cancelling their seasons.
Before anyone knew it, there were no sports to watch. Many leagues tried their hand at the virtual video game world, such as the NBA holding an NBA 2K20 tournament that was broadcast on national TV, but ultimately wasn’t a hit.
NASCAR is a bit different. Since its inception in 2008, iRacing has proven to be so realistic to the point that real NASCAR drivers have used it to improve their craft in the actual car. The simulation uses real-world data and knowledge that is applied to the game to make it as close to authentic as it can get. NASCAR has been heavily advertising the platform in the past few years and has even started broadcasting some of the races online to watch for free entertainment. Some fans and media members were skeptical and on the fence about it while others genuinely enjoyed it and thought it was fresh.
With COVID-19 wreaking havoc across the globe, NASCAR decided to bust out the virtual platform on FOX with an abundance of big-name drivers competing at the Homestead-Miami Speedway. These drivers included Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson, just to name a few. FOX incorporated their own virtual broadcast, which was comical at times, but fun.
The race featured wrecks, fierce side-by-side racing, laughter and a photo finish between Earnhardt Jr. and Denny Hamlin with Hamlin coming out on top. The fanbase’s reaction to the entire show was overwhelmingly positive. According to Adam Stern, eSports reporter for Sports Business Journal, the broadcast brought in over 900,000 viewers. All of this led to NASCAR’s decision to continue running these races on a weekly basis until they can get back to real racing.
Dalton Hopkins, local motorsports writer, explained his support for the medium.
“iRacing provides that outlet where you don’t have to spend an arm and a leg to open up your own race team and get started,” said Hopkins. “As for the racing, it’s been pretty damn fantastic. NASCAR was kind of ahead of everybody else with this because they’ve had it on standby. It’s a great way to stay relevant and it’s only going to get more and more popular. When we get back on track, I would not be surprised if we saw NASCAR rise in popularity. I’m honestly really excited to see what happens in the future.”
Although some major separate controversies have occurred on the platform over the past few weeks with drivers such as Darrell “Bubba” Wallace, who “rage quit” after an upset early virtual loss, and Kyle Larson, who has been suspended from the league indefinitely for his use of racist slurs, iRacing has helped NASCAR become the biggest eSports producer and a great escape for those seeking any type of sports entertainment during this global pandemic.
For more information about iRacing, how to subscribe and how to get a racing rig set up, visit www.iracing.com.