 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (May 2021) |
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| Category | Sim racing / eSports |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Inaugural season | 2020 |
| Folded | 2021 |
The eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series was a series of iRacing sim racing events originally organized for NASCAR drivers to compete in after its 2020 seasons were put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[1] Drivers from all of NASCAR's series competed in races, including Hall of Fame drivers Dale Earnhardt Jr., Bobby Labonte, and Jeff Gordon. Originally supposed to be a one-time event (the first race of the 2020 season at Homestead-Miami, it quickly became a weekly series, and later included the Saturday Night Thunder series of races for drivers in the lower series of NASCAR. In each race, the series races on virtual versions of the racetracks.
In 2020, the tracks run were the ones that the NASCAR Cup Series would have raced at that weekend had the real races not been postponed due to COVID, except for the final race at North Wilkesboro, a former NASCAR track which last hosted a NASCAR race in 1996, to launch the track joining iRacing. On January 26, 2021, NASCAR and iRacing announced the Pro Invitational Series would return in 2021 to compensate for a reduced schedule for NASCAR's three national series, as the majority of race weekends only featured races without any practice or qualifying. Although Fox and NBC were supposed to split broadcast rights for the 2021 slate, the season was canceled following the former's share.[2]
- ^ Srigley, Joseph (March 17, 2020). "NASCAR, iRacing Expand Partnership to Include eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series". TobyChristie.com. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
- ^ Tomlinson, Joy (July 2, 2021). "iRacing Pro Invitational Series to Be Discontinued for the Rest of 2021". Frontstretch. Retrieved January 4, 2022.