With the 1987 Chevrolet Monete Carlo and Ford Thunderbird coming to the racing sim service in June 2020, there’s now a pretty epic iRacing trailer for the 1987 NASCAR cars to build your anticipation.
The video shows the cars as driven by legendary drivers Bill Elliott and Dale Earnhardt. And recreates when the pair battled at the 1987 ‘The Winston’ at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Elliott took pole position and led the most laps of the race. But following a caution and with 8 laps left, Earnhardt was in the lead. After a tap from the closing Elliott, Earhardt was sent to the infield grass, recovered, and maintained the lead in what has now become known as the “pass in the grass”
Earnhardt took victory, Elliott finished 14th after the contact cut his left rear tire and forced him to pit, and Elliott then bumped Earnhardt’s car following the race, which results in $2,500 fines for both racers for aggressive driving.
The two 1987 NASCAR cars will be available for iRacing 2020 Season 3, along with the open wheel Indy Pro 2000 and US F2000, the Ford F-150 NASCAR truck, a rescanned version of Kentucky Speedway, and the recent release of North Wilkesboro Speedway.
Given the recent exposure of sim racing to a much wider audience during the global pandemic, it’s a great time for iRacing to be releasing these cars. The older NASCAR fans who weren’t even aware of virtual motorsport will have seen the professional drivers and series using sim racing as a way to compete during restrictions on sporting events. And now they’re seeing how it can relive classic racing using accurate models of the cars and tracks from the period.
Along with the famous pass and the historic NASCAR footage, it’s worth checking out the video at 2 minutes and 30 seconds to see a crash involving a ‘blowover’ where the aerodynamics of the car send it up and into the air.
If this has got you interested in subscribing to iRacing, you can sign up, here. The membership includes free cars and tracks to get started with, but you can see everything available in our iRacing car list and iRacing track list. And check out our iRacing coverage for the latest news on all new additions, as we wait to find out what licence class will be required to race the new cars. They’ll probably cost $11.95 each to access, which is the normal price for additional cars in iRacing.
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