Just a couple of decades ago imagining that a person could end up in the world of motorsports by racing in a virtual environment was considered an impossible thing to do. Fast forward to the present day and the sim racing industry has blossomed beyond bounds.
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Games like iRacing prove to be the closest thing to real-life racing, only requiring a setup involving steering wheels, pedals, and a racing seat. This has made the overall entry point into racing considerably cheaper.
A perfect case in point – Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron, who made the jump into the Cup Series from a sim racing background. Recently, while speaking with journalist Bob Pockrass, the HMS driver shared his perspective on iRacing and how it could be a potential entry point for future racing drivers.
Williams Byron talks about Sim Racing in a positive light
Byron was asked if he still felt like carrying the banner for iRacing and if he considered that to be the development tool for entering the sport.
The HMS driver responded, “I do. I think that I’m always the computer kid that everyone looks at, which I embrace. I feel like that’s my nature — I’m very data driven, facts driven, and I like to look at things in black and white.”
“So I think data and simulation has always been that for me. And it’s nice that the sport is working in that direction. I feel like I have an advantage in that sense. I’ve noticed the sport really evolve and how much we use simulation. And I’m always going to have roots there.”
William Byron is known as the kid who initially learned his racing skills through iRacing. What he said about his development — and what did his parents think when he spent so much time online racing? pic.twitter.com/u04vMtI5sc
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) September 21, 2023
Later on, Byron mentioned that he personally has been able to see both sides of the spectrum through the last few years of his career. He explained how he has raced in Sim environments as well as short tracks across the country. Therefore, he feels “weathered” with both real-life racing and Sim racing.
What did Dale Earnhardt Jr. say about the benefits of iRacing in the past?
Looking back a few decades into the past, the only way to judge and understand how viable a racing circuit would be was to physically build the track and wait for feedback from the drivers and the fans. However, with the development of technology and simulator racing games like iRacing, things have become more and more easier.
Ahead of the inaugural street course race in NASCAR at Chicago, iRacing had laser-scanned sections of the streets where the proposed track was to be built. Subsequently, they developed a working virtual racing track and hosted a proper sim racing event on it. This was the first time the drivers were able to experience the track and deliver their feedback, way before the physical track had even been manifested.
While speaking on the Dan Patrick Show, NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. mentioned, “It saves NASCAR, saves track promoters, builders, millions and millions of dollars and it probably saved just an incredible amount of money…”
It indeed did. They did not have to spend massive amounts on a physical track and they got what they needed. It was a win-win scenario for NASCAR. Therefore, the use of sim racing software can be considered a game changer in the American Motorsport landscape today.
