After Dale Earnhardt Jr’s “Gut Punch” Admission, NASCAR Driver Shares “Hard to Fathom” Possibility on Controversial IndyCar Decision

The Indy 500 is among the oldest and most historic races in American open-wheel racing. A lot of fans and drivers have memories attached to some or the other Indy 500 event. But there’s an update that is causing concern for many, with Dale Earnhardt Jr considering it to be a “gut punch” for the community.

Recently, RACER magazine’s Ryan Kish reported that iRacing and IndyCar’s licensing agreement is due to expire at the end of 2022, and a new agreement is yet to be finalized between the two parties. In effect, that would mean players of the game will not be able to race the Indy 500 on their simulators.

Moreover, it also means the esteemed iRacing Indy 500 will no longer take place until a new agreement is finalized. That new agreement, however, is more of an “if” than a “when.”

Dale Earnhardt Jr and Anthony Alfredo come down hard

Dale Earnhardt Jr was among the first big names to come out and express dissatisfaction with the news. “I don’t understand this decision by @IndyCar to not continue a decade long partnership with @iRacing. This is such a gut punch for that community. After all both brands accomplished together, including during the past few challenging years…🤷🏼‍♂️” tweeted Dale Jr.

NASCAR driver and iRacing team owner Anthony Alfredo also expressed disappointment by tweeting “There’s more. Events with three of the Dallara cars can no longer be broadcasted either. To put that into perspective, imagine no more structured events with NASCAR Cup car, NASCAR Xfinity car, or NASCAR Truck. Unbelievable. Hard to fathom anyone would even consider that.”

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What happened between iRacing and IndyCar?

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iRacing is an online simulation video game that allows players to simulate racing. As one of the most popular simulation games, it provides people the chance to experience something they otherwise would never be able to do—race in NASCAR or IndyCar. But the expiry of IndyCar’s licensing agreement changes that.

A memo written by one of the staff members at iRacing broke the news on community forums. The memo, confirmed by the RACER magazine, said “Our current license agreement with IndyCar is set to expire on December 31, 2022. IndyCar has signed an exclusive license with another developer that goes into effect on January 1, 2023.”

The memo also noted, “Most significantly, we will no longer be able to run an official IndyCar-branded series and there will not be an iRacing Indy 500. You will also see the removal of the IndyCar Series logo from our sites.

“We plan to continue to support the Dallara race cars (IR18, DW12 and Dallara IR-05). There will be no changes (unlimited use and racing) in regard to the non-IndyCar series at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for other series — NASCAR, IMSA, etc. Until the new license agreement is finalized, we won’t know all of the details so there may be further changes.” 

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iRacing Indy 500 has been a headlining event for years, and this announcement is bound to upset a lot of people. The quicker the two parties reach an agreement, the better will it be for all.