Motor sports goes up full lap in viral sports

Get this: Some 1 million people have tuned in to watch professional racers play a video game on national television. Seriously.

The mind-boggling success of virtual racing over the past month has put motor sports out front in the race to create competition while sports is shutdown because of the coronavirus pandemic. Nearly every series now has regular virtual racing for its competitors and a lot of it’s on national television — and it’s online for fans who prefer to watch that way. Drivers are gaining newfound fame, even sponsorships.

“I think we are honestly still in the early stages of figuring out how to make this work as good as we can,” said IndyCar driver Conor Daly. “You have four different areas where your brand can build — Twitch, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter … maybe I continue to develop a YouTube channel, who knows? There’s stuff that I think you’ll end up doing during this time that will no matter what help you in the long run, and that’s just what we’re trying to do is when we do go back to racing.

“Maybe we’ve built a bigger fan base, we’ve built a bigger brand for our sponsors and the people that do support us.”

All of which would be welcome news for motor sports, which has faded since its heyday amid attendance and sponsorship declines. For now, virtual racing will have to do.

NASCAR was able to push out its iRacing Series that already had tremendous infrastructure from an existing league for serious gamers. There was a draft with real teams such as Joe Gibbs Racing, Chip Ganassi Racing and Team Penske selecting gamers to represent them.

All NASCAR had to do was grab its product, swap the amateur racers with its stars, and Fox Sports said it would broadcast the races. Viewership in two of the last three Fox races were the most watched in esports history and the cable networks have all scrambled to create their own virtual racing content.

“All of the race teams are trying everything they can to keep their sponsors and keep their employees,” said Dale Earnhardt Jr., the retired NASCAR star who is a longtime virtual racing fanatic, owner of an Xfinity Series team and NBC Sports analyst.

Part of the appeal is the ability to watch the drivers in action on home-based simulators that can cost up to six figures. Drivers are smartly using online social feeds to give viewers an inside look and listen — ringside seats to the bad-mouthing, cursing and comedic talents of the racers.

It’s a rare chance for a fan to follow the emotions of a driver in real time.

Carlos Osorio The Associated Press NASCAR Cup driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., left, with Jimmie Johnson at Michigan International Speedway in 2016, is a virtual racing fan.