Michelle R. Martinelli

For The Win

Jimmie Johnson got a taste for what a weekend double running NASCAR and IndyCar Series races would be like – albeit a virtual one.

And even though he struggled mightily in the first event of the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series – an exhibition series started while the regular NASCAR season is postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic – he still said simulation racing in IndyCar is more challenging than NASCAR.

"I feel like there are two hurdles for me to get over in the IndyCar rig," Johnson told For The Win about the IndyCar iRacing setup, which mimics details ranging from the car's high speeds to the lack of power steering. "One, the nuances of the sim, and two, just the real experience to know what you're looking for."

The seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champ – who plans to retire from full-time racing at the end of the 2020 season – has repeatedly expressed his interest in IndyCar racing in the future.

So initially, he bought an iRacing rig focused on IndyCar and sports car racing with a more reclined seat to "prepare for '21 and '22 for the different bucket list races I want to compete in." He previously had an IndyCar test at Barber Motorsports Park scheduled for April 6, so a couple times a week, he was getting in a few practice laps.

But things quickly changed. Both the IndyCar and NASCAR seasons were put on hold because of COVID-19, the 44-year-old driver's test was canceled, and racing moved to the virtual world.

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And Saturday, Johnson made his IndyCar iRacing debut at Watkins Glen International – a road course in New York state that NASCAR visits once a year – finishing 16th out of 25 drivers.

He said the difference between racing NASCAR's stock car and IndyCar's open-wheeled car on the road course was "mind blowing" – and partly why he ended up crashing in the chicane known as the bus stop during the IndyCar race.

"At Watkins Glen, [IndyCar is] probably 15 to 20 seconds faster a lap there in a real car from one to the other," Johnson said comparing IndyCar's speed to NASCAR's. "So braking points, carrying speed through the bus stop, carrying speed through the corner – that all changes so much."

It may have been Johnson's first IndyCar iRacing event, but it wasn't the first time he used his IndyCar setup to compete. He used it in the first NASCAR Pro Invitational Series event at the virtual Homestead-Miami Speedway two Sundays ago, putting him at what he called a "pretty big disadvantage."

He finished 31st after starting dead last in 35th, while Denny Hamlin and Dale Earnhardt Jr., who have decades worth of experience in the virtual racing world, finished 1-2.

"I thought I knew what I was doing, and then I realized I had no clue, especially when you have to log in to the game to race and compete," the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet driver said, thinking his minimal IndyCar iRacing experience might help him. "It's just a different animal."

So last week, he got a NASCAR-specific rig and a tutor to help him overcome some of the technological difficulties he was dealing with. Whether it's the iRacing program itself or the apps that racers use in conjunction with it, Johnson said learning how much goes into virtual racing has "been really eye-opening."

"The level of knowledge you need about computers is incredible," Johnson said.

"Every day last week, I was up until midnight, one in the morning, going to school and having a tutor literally teach me how to run and operate things at the right level, so I can be competitive, let alone even drive the thing. Driving has its own challengings. So that part's started off as fun, and then of course, my competitive spirit kicked in and now it's frustrating."

But the seven-time champ has improved.

In the most recent Pro Invitational Series race at the virtual Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, he finished 19th after starting 25th. However, he acknowledged he still has plenty of work to do to figure out the differences between a real car and a simulated one, which is "very difficult when you can't feel or sense the car to give it the input."

While Johnson could compete in another virtual NASCAR and IndyCar double – the IndyCar iRacing Challenge features five more events held on Saturdays through May 2 – there's a possibility he could have the opportunity for a real-life one too.

IndyCar canceled and rescheduled several events, including the GMR Grand Prix on Indianapolis Motor Speedway's road course, which was originally set for early May. That race is now July 4 – the same day as NASCAR's XFINITY Series race on the road course and the day before the Cup Series race on Indy's oval.

Johnson reiterated that he "would entertain" the idea of a NASCAR-IndyCar double that weekend but ruled out the famous Memorial Day Double, which is the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600, calling it "just not realistic for me."

"My interest [in IndyCar] is there," Johnson said. "It has been for a long time. The ovals I don't have an interest in doing in this stage of life. I just really don't. So I'm open to a double if the right situation happened."