Racing formats are relatively straight forward in most cases. But are more unconventional structures something to pursue as well from time to time?
Image credit: Honda Newsroom
The essence of racing is easily explained: Whoever covers a set distance the fastest or the most distance in a set amount of time wins. Most popular racing series operate like this, and, as a result, so do most sim racing titles. Would it make sense to switch things up a bit from time to time, though?
IndyCar tried just that over the weekend when running the non-championship $1 Million Challenge at Thermal Club in California. All "look how cool a place for rich people this is" the broadcast tried to suggest aside, the entertainment value of the event was pretty good in the author's opinion, at least for the most part. This was in large parts due to the format, both for the good and bad elements.
The format itself is quickly explained. Drivers would be split in two groups according to a random draw. They then qualified in these groups of 14 and 13 cars, respectively, for a heat race. Each group would have one of these 10-lap heats, with the top six advancing to the 20-lap final race. This had a twist, however, in the form of a half time.
For Herta, this paid off in the way that the Andretti Global driver finished in fourth position, but once again, no one had anything to stop Alex Palou - the Chip Ganassi Racing driver cruised to victory and his share of the $1 Million purse. Deservedly so, as the #10 car had consistently been at the front all weekend. Note that despite
While the two heats and the second half of the final provided lots of on-track action, the first half of the final looked a bit silly all things considered. From a strategy standpoint, the teams that decided to go super slow showed great ingenuity, no doubt. But imagine that one of them would have won despite almost being lapped in the first ten laps - that would have looked a bit weird, to say the least. Go slow in order to win? Sounds like the opposite of what racing is about.
Colton Herta (front) played it slow to go fast eventually. Image credit: Honda Newsroom
Still, the switch-up in race format was refreshing for the most part - for a non-championship race, that is. It did offer lots of action on a track that otherwise might not have been anything to write home about. With some tweaking, it could also feel a bit more legitimate, eliminating the slowing tactic of the final's first half. Suggestions have been thrown around as the race was happening already.
The event itself caused a lot of controversy with fans, and it will likely be a topic for debate amongst sim racers as well. NASCAR's introduction of stages in 2017 or even the sprint races introduced in Formula One in 2021 are good indicators that tinkering with the race format might be frowned upon.
We want to know: Would you be open to switch up race formats in sim racing from time to time? Feel free to vote in the poll above! Additionally, please share any interesting ideas for race formates you might have in the comments below!
Image credit: Honda Newsroom
The essence of racing is easily explained: Whoever covers a set distance the fastest or the most distance in a set amount of time wins. Most popular racing series operate like this, and, as a result, so do most sim racing titles. Would it make sense to switch things up a bit from time to time, though?
IndyCar tried just that over the weekend when running the non-championship $1 Million Challenge at Thermal Club in California. All "look how cool a place for rich people this is" the broadcast tried to suggest aside, the entertainment value of the event was pretty good in the author's opinion, at least for the most part. This was in large parts due to the format, both for the good and bad elements.
The format itself is quickly explained. Drivers would be split in two groups according to a random draw. They then qualified in these groups of 14 and 13 cars, respectively, for a heat race. Each group would have one of these 10-lap heats, with the top six advancing to the 20-lap final race. This had a twist, however, in the form of a half time.
Unusual Format, Unusual Tactics
After 10 laps, cars would come into the pits for a break. Teams were allowed to make only minor changes and repairs and refuel, but, most importantly, could not change tires. This led to the rather comical site of Colton Herta and Agustin Canapino going extremely slow in the first half of the final to conserve their tires for the second half. They just had to make sure that they were still on the lead lap at the half time.For Herta, this paid off in the way that the Andretti Global driver finished in fourth position, but once again, no one had anything to stop Alex Palou - the Chip Ganassi Racing driver cruised to victory and his share of the $1 Million purse. Deservedly so, as the #10 car had consistently been at the front all weekend. Note that despite
While the two heats and the second half of the final provided lots of on-track action, the first half of the final looked a bit silly all things considered. From a strategy standpoint, the teams that decided to go super slow showed great ingenuity, no doubt. But imagine that one of them would have won despite almost being lapped in the first ten laps - that would have looked a bit weird, to say the least. Go slow in order to win? Sounds like the opposite of what racing is about.
Colton Herta (front) played it slow to go fast eventually. Image credit: Honda Newsroom
Still, the switch-up in race format was refreshing for the most part - for a non-championship race, that is. It did offer lots of action on a track that otherwise might not have been anything to write home about. With some tweaking, it could also feel a bit more legitimate, eliminating the slowing tactic of the final's first half. Suggestions have been thrown around as the race was happening already.
Doing Something Different In Sim Racing?
To circle back to sim racing, possibilities are of course less limited than for real life racing series. One of the suggestions that has been done in sim racing already concerns elimination races. To use the IndyCar event as an example, that would mean a 27-lap race - as there were 27 entries - that would see the driver running last be eliminated after each lap. That way, a car would drop out each lap, with a shootout between the top two deciding the race. Similarly, eliminations could also take place after a countdown.The event itself caused a lot of controversy with fans, and it will likely be a topic for debate amongst sim racers as well. NASCAR's introduction of stages in 2017 or even the sprint races introduced in Formula One in 2021 are good indicators that tinkering with the race format might be frowned upon.
We want to know: Would you be open to switch up race formats in sim racing from time to time? Feel free to vote in the poll above! Additionally, please share any interesting ideas for race formates you might have in the comments below!
