Sunday’s NASCAR races were something that long-time fans have probably never seen before: it wasn’t real! Well, it was real but digital. This weekend, the Dixie Vodka 150 took place at Homestead-Miami Speedway. NASCAR esports is serious, and in it, Denny Hamlin edged out a victory over Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the Dixie Vodka 150. That’s right, Earnhardt, one of the best to get behind the wheel, was bested in sports.

This door-to-door finish is, according to ESPN, worthy of a place alongside the likes of David Pearson and Richard Petty in the 1976 Daytona 500 and Ricky Craven versus Kurt Busch at Darlington in 2003. Now that is an endorsement.

Virtual Burnt Rubber

This past Sunday’s NASCAR race featured an entire virtual racetrack, garage area, and grandstand digitized via iRacing. iRacing is the hyper-accurate racing simulation software that has been used as an escape for years by hardcore racing fans, as well as a training tool for professional racers.

Thanks to the 2020 NASCAR season being put in the garage, due to the coronavirus pandemic back on March 13th, fans had to look elsewhere for their racing fix. NASCAR cooperated and got together with teams, drivers, iRacing, various broadcasting partners, and the sanctioning body to bring the fledgling eNASCAR scene to life. Suddenly, virtual NASCAR was in the spotlight!

“We are all just looking for a connection right now,” said Cup Series driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who finished 21st on Sunday. “Today, we got one.”

Thirty-five drivers from across NASCAR’s three national touring series got together in their simulator rigs in bonus rooms and man caves around the nation. Hamlin ultimately took the NASCAR esports win, despite his pit crew (daughter) accidentally spraying Coca Cola all over his cockpit. Now, that’s a real dedication to getting a win!

There are some pretty great stories coming out of this. For example, when Alex Bowman left his seat to take a real-life pit stop (bathroom), his dog, Finn, sat in his seat for a few laps, under the caution flag. Dylan Scott performed the prerace national anthem while adhering to self-quarantine, in his garage. Tim Dugger, a fellow country music star staged a prerace concert from his home office as well.

Perhaps the best part is that everyone had a good time though. NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobbe Labonte came out of retirement, and couldn’t stop talking about how much fun he had, even though he was never a factor. TV analyst Larry McReynolds couldn’t stop talking about how real the tire wear was during the 100-lap race on the 1.5 mile oval of virtual track.

NASCAR’s media service provided postrace box scores, photos and a winner’s teleconference with Hamlin. Thousands tuned in for the race live on FS1 and a variety of streaming feeds also held the match. However, teams, drivers, and sponsors were outraged after Earnhardt (15-time most popular driver) came out of retirement, only to wreck.

NASCAR Executive Vice President Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR’s at-track “city hall” race director, tweeted, “Security-please report to @dennyhamlin car.”

Clint Bowyer raced so hard that he had to use both uses of his “reset” buttons to replace his wrecked Ford. Despite that, he seemed to have a blast. Here’s what he had to say about the race. “I have always watched these people who watch other people playing video games like they are watching real-life sports, and I’ve thought, ‘These people are goofy! But this was damn fun, even when I was wrecking. Wrecking a real car isn’t fun. The only problem I had was that this s— is hard for someone with big-league ADD like me. I walk around with a bunch of voices in my head all day anyway. This deal, I had those voices in my head for real.”

NASCAR esports is as close to the real thing as we can get right now, and kudos to Danny Hamlin for securing that victory. Hamlin wasn’t the only winner this weekend either. Last weekend, a simulation of the canceled “12 Hours of Sebring” took place, and IndyCar will be rolling out their iRacing events on Saturday.

As it is with NASCAR, IndyCar and IMSA have suspended their seasons through at least early May. Traditional racing is very reliant on sponsorships money, and so things are probably feeling very nervous around the racing scene. But eNASCAR can go a long way in gaining popularity and sponsorships. After all, cars aren’t being damaged. Virtual NASCAR is far safer!

Hamlin spoke about how this can affect the industry as well. “I think that it definitely energizes the industry,” said Hamlin, who estimated that he has raced against fellow esports junkie Earnhardt for 20 years. “I follow [on social media] lots of people that are crew guys or crew chiefs or drivers in other series. They’re all talking about it right now. You know, this is a good time. It’s Sunday afternoon. You would normally be watching in and tuning in and watching us at Homestead anyway, and what are we doing — we’re talking about a race at Homestead. I think, for sure, it energizes our industry.”

What a great time for esports! But perhaps the racers might think e-racing is a little too good. Stenhouse discussed how this all felt. “If I’m being honest, I’m a little nervous about this,” he said. “Not nervous like I don’t think I can race well. I get nervous because this e-racing might be a little too good. When we come back to do real racing, fans are going to expect every finish to be like the ones we have on iRacing!”

After pausing, Stenhouse added, “But man, what a great problem to have. Because that would mean we have turned the corner on this virus, and we’re back at the racetrack for real.”

Truthfully, I don’t understand the appeal of real NASCAR. I never have, but my family still gets together (or did before coronavirus) to watch the races. Despite that, I’m very happy that fans can still watch! It’s important to remember sometimes, that we aren’t the only target audience.

Now, virtual NASCAR esports I can support! It’s safer and is just as pulse-pounding. Nobody can get hurt this way, and requires just as much skill. Congratulations to Danny Hamlin on his NASCAR esports win!

Would you watch NASCAR esports? It’s safer, still exciting, and can be held anywhere, anytime!