iRacing | NASCAR AI Now Available

[Paul Jeffrey]

The next content batch to receive the AI treatment in iRacing has been released - NASCAR!

Ok, not all the tracks are currently capable of hosting races against the AI, for now only Talladega Super Speedway and Daytona International Speedway have been AI-enabled, but today marks an important milestone for the simulation as they bring computer controlled opponents to oval racing for the first time within the history of the sim.

Many oval racing fans have been left with something of a lack of quality single player experience for NASCAR or IndyCar style racing in recent years, so I can easily imagine this new AI-enabled content within iRacing to become very popular, very quickly once the studio manage to iron out the inevitable bugs from such a new piece of functionality.

As has been the case throughout the whole AI deployment, this new update is to been seen as something of a 'soft launch', with further enhancements and a wider roll out expected over the coming months.

Talladega and Daytona NASCAR joins the previous released Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, Skip Barber and Mazda MX5 Cup AI options on selected circuits within the simulation.

Full update notes can be found below:

iRacing BETA Interface - (03.02.14-beta)

- The iRacing BETA Interface splash screen has been updated with a "Reconnect" button when iRacing is unable to connect to servers. The splash screen will also now automatically advance to the iRacing BETA Interface once maintenance is complete if a user has arrived at it during maintenance.

- The default Restart type for AI Races has been changed to Double File Back.
- - Please note, if you select to create a Single AI Race using your Last Settings, the previous default Restart type was Double File Inside.

AI Races
- Asphalt Oval AI Races are now available!

- New challengers approach! The following cars have been enabled for AI Races:
- - NASCAR Cup Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
- - NASCAR Cup Ford Mustang
- - NASCAR Cup Toyota Camry

- The following track configurations have been enabled for AI races:
- - Daytona International Speedway - Oval
- - Okayama International Circuit - Full Course
- - Sebring International Raceway - International
- - Talladega Superspeedway

- AI Driver behavior for a variety of activities has been upgraded, including:
- - Throttle and brake application
- - Pace lap driving and spacing
- - Low speed driving
- - Deceleration actions
- - Drafting tactics
- - Two-wide racing
- - Learning individual track corners
- - Racing in traffic
- - Opponent car location prediction
- - Caution flag flying
- - Passing while pitting

- Fixed a variety of issues with AI Driver behavior, including:
- - AI Drivers could repeatedly miss their pit stall and then panic, behaving erratically.
- - AI Drivers could rear-end other vehicles when the Caution flag was thrown.
- - AI Drivers could sometimes needlessly wait behind other vehicles when preparing to enter the pits.

- Fixed an issue during post-race where the AI Race Session could crash if an AI Driver missed it's pit stall.

Cautions
- A new caution mode has been added: Full-Course Cautions where Caution Laps Do Not Count as Race Laps (DNC Cautions).
- - This caution mode is modeled after short-track oval racing, where laps under caution are not counted, though it is not intended to exactly mirror any particular series' set of rules.
- - DNC Cautions functions as follows:
- - - At the instant the caution flag is flown, the field ordering is determined (there is no racing back to the line). One goal is to roll-back scoring to the prior completed lap, thus undoing any passing that might have occurred during the lap that brings out the caution. This is accomplished as follows:
- - - - The lead contender on track and all cars on track behind them to the S/F line are reordered as to their most recent lap crossing. Laps are no longer scored for this set of cars until the green flag following the caution period.
- - - - The cars on track behind the S/F line backwards to the lead contender on track are reordered as to their most recent lap crossing, and placed behind the other group. These cars will have their next lap crossing under caution scored, thus preventing them from going a lap-down. A disabled car that does not make it back to the line will not be awarded this lap. These laps will be scored so as to preserve how they are sorted into the pace field. Subsequent laps for these cars while under caution are not scored.
- - - - Any cars not on track when the caution flies will be placed at the back of the field when they exit the pits, and will not have any laps scored during the caution period.
- - - If the selected restart setting (single file, double file, etc.) indicates that lapped cars are to go to the back of the field for the restart, and lapped cars will not get a wave-around to un-lap themselves as the caution is ending, then lapped cars will be placed into the initial pace order behind cars that are on the lead lap. Since laps under caution are not being scored, these cars will be directed to fall-back behind the lead lap cars, as opposed to passing the pace car to catch up to the end of the field. When nearing the end of the caution period, lapped cars that have become co-mingled with lead lap cars due to pitting will again be directed to fall-back and let the lead lap cars by.
- - With this new caution mode enabled, fuel is NOT consumed during these potential extra laps.

- For creating a Hosted Session via the iRacing BETA Interface, the DNC Cautions option may be found at the bottom of the "Track Options" step.
- - The option, "Automatic Full Course Yellows" must first be enabled in order to enable DNC Cautions.
- - - This Race Option has also been added to Heat Racing configurations for any Heat Races in the race weekend.

- For creating a Hosted Session via the Classic Membersite, the old caution selection dropdown has been replaced with two new checkboxes for Automatic Full-Course Cautions, and for enabling Lucky Dog rule.
- - The new setting to enabled DNC Cautions may be found in the CAUTIONS section.
- - The setting to restart single file when one caution is followed immediately by another caution is in the RESTARTS section.

- The chat message identifying which type of restart a Caution is to use has been updated.

Rendering
- Fixed an issue where the environment map was applied to materials rendered inside cockpit mirrors in an incorrect color space, which resulted in sky reflections rendering much too bright in mirrors and an extreme bloom effect on mirrors.

- Fixed an issue where the sky could be rendered in an incorrect color space.

Visual Effects
- Fixed an issue where solar flares were sometimes missing or the wrong color.

Weather
- Wind calculations have been updated to prevent relatively predictable cycles and patterns that could sometimes occur.

- The prevailing winds direction computations have been updated.
- - This fixes an issue when using "Generate Weather" where the average wind direction may have been incorrect at some tracks.

Clubs
- The Club Japan logo has been updated.

CARS:
Audi RS 3 LMS
- Transmission rev match and downshift blip parameters have been updated.

BMW M8 GTE
- Fixed an issue with the BMW logo on the wing.

NASCAR Cup Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
- This car, formerly named "NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 - 2018", has been renamed the "NASCAR Cup Chevrolet Camaro ZL1" due to real-world branding updates.
- - NASCAR branding on this vehicle has also been updated for the 2020 season.

- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

- Level-of-Detail (LODs) models have been adjusted to improve framerate performance at far distances.

- The season setup for Auto Club Speedway - Oval has been updated.

- The season setups for ISM Raceway (day and night) have been updated.

NASCAR Cup Ford Mustang
- This car, formerly named "NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Ford Mustang", has been renamed the "NASCAR Cup Ford Mustang" due to real-world branding updates.
- NASCAR branding on this vehicle has also been updated for the 2020 season.

- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

- Level-of-Detail (LODs) models have been adjusted to improve framerate performance at far distances.

- The season setup for Auto Club Speedway - Oval has been updated.

- The season setups for ISM Raceway (day and night) have been updated.

NASCAR Cup Toyota Camry
- This car, formerly named "NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Toyota Camry", has been renamed the "NASCAR Cup Toyota Camry" due to real-world branding updates.
- - NASCAR branding on this vehicle has also been updated for the 2020 season.

- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

- Level-of-Detail (LODs) models have been adjusted to improve framerate performance at far distances.

- The season setup for Auto Club Speedway - Oval has been updated.

- The season setups for ISM Raceway (day and night) have been updated.

NASCAR Gander Outdoors Chevrolet Silverado
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

NASCAR Gander Outdoors Toyota Tundra
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

NASCAR K&N Pro Chevrolet Impala
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

- The season setup for Atlanta Motor Speedway - Oval has been updated.

NASCAR Truck Series Chevrolet Silverado - 2013
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

NASCAR Xfinity Chevrolet Camaro - 2019
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

- The season setups for Bristol Motor Speedway (day and night) have been updated.

NASCAR Xfinity Ford Mustang - 2019
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

- The season setups for Bristol Motor Speedway (day and night) have been updated.

NASCAR Xfinity Toyota Supra
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

- The season setups for Bristol Motor Speedway (day and night) have been updated.

Supercars Ford Mustang GT
- The low fuel warning now persists for 10 seconds before self-clearing.

Supercars Holden ZB Commodore
- The low fuel warning now persists for 10 seconds before self-clearing.

VW Jetta TDI Cup
- Transmission rev match and downshift blip parameters have been updated.

[Archive] NASCAR Cup Chevrolet SS
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

[Archive] NASCAR Cup Ford Fusion
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

[Archive] NASCAR Nationwide Chevrolet Impala - 2011
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

[Archive] NASCAR Sprint Cup Chevrolet Impala COT - 2011
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

[Archive] NASCAR Xfinity Toyota Camry
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

[Archive] NASCAR Xfinity Chevrolet Camaro
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

[Archive] NASCAR Xfinity Ford Mustang
- V7 tires have been adjusted to improve straight-line stability.

TRACKS:
Atlanta Motor Speedway
- Track surface parameters have been adjusted slightly for a more accurate racing experience.

Auto Club Speedway
- (Oval) - Camera set has been updated.

Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari
- Fixed an issue where pine trees could appear too shiny in some locations.

Bristol Motor Speedway
- Track surface parameters have been adjusted slightly for a more accurate racing experience.

Chicagoland Speedway
- Track surface parameters have been adjusted slightly for a more accurate racing experience.

Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya
- (Historic) - A pair of course-cuts now trigger a 1x and gain-time penalty.

Daytona International Speedway - 2007
- NASCAR Cup branding has been added.

Daytona International Speedway
- NASCAR Cup branding has been added.

Mount Panorama Circuit
- Camera set has been updated.

New Hampshire Motor Speedway
- Animated flagman has been added to the three Road course configs.

Okayama International Circuit
- Fixed an issue where the trees could appear shiny without wind.

Phoenix International Raceway - 2008
- NASCAR Cup series ads have been updated.

Wild West Motorsports Park
- Fixed an issue with the generated cubemap at this track.

World Wide Technology Raceway
- This track, formerly named "Gateway Motorsports Park", has been renamed the "World Wide Technology Raceway" due to real-world branding updates



iRacing is available exclusively on PC.

Want to ask our community something about the sim? Start a thread on the iRacing sub forum here at RaceDepartment!

 

[Brendan24]

Having a great time racing with the iRacing AI. I was really excited for the ovals but the first thing I did with the Cup cars was take them straight to Watkins Glen, and had a lot of fun! Still haven't even tried Daytona/Talladega, should probably get around to that. I'm looking forward more to the 1.5 mile and short tracks that take a little more finesse and driving input though if im honest

 

[Ricardo Rey]

Not a NASCAR guy, but the AI are awesome on road as well!!

 

[M D Gourley]

'Boogity, Boogity, Boogity,...this is Talladega, let's go racing boys'.
Loving the AI Oval racing , prefer Talladega as it's an easier track from my point of view to race on, especially with the track road marking which I found makes it easier to keep your line (total noob here) ...lol
Once I got the AI settings right i was able to keep up and get into the front group of cars by drafting each car when a gap became available...and it was intense,...it's a totally different mind set from racing Road with maybe a couple of cars around me to racing oval with having other cars 'all' around me,...any slightist variation on my line could / would result in crashing.
Screenshots from a 15 lap race around Talladega...got to Lap 13 before I made a mistake...lol

Dang...I did it again...lol

 

[traind]

Didn't test it yet (atm, i'm focusing on acc), and, to be honest, not really interested by superspeedways, but for sure I'll give it a go. it's very surprising to see iracing starting oval with cup series cars, I mean, these cars are really difficult, i was sure they'would start with trucks...
i have to precise that I run nascar class A fix (so these cars), but only for participation credit (i'm a road guy, so i run oval without any train or ambition, don't care beeing last, i just want my 7$/season^^), but it should be interesting to see how many people it (the AI) could convinced to run the serie (as when they start AI with the porsche cup, suddently the participation increased a lot)
@++

On the road course side I had the sense all the AI choices are also tire model v7 cars, probably to avoid having to redo things after switching to v7.

 

[Deleted member 205301]

On the road course side I had the sense all the AI choices are also tire model v7 cars, probably to avoid having to redo things after switching to v7.

Smart, you're right

 

[RichardHessels]

Great, can finally have my son wreck a i-car, without the risk of people shouting.

 

[Anomalistics]

- AI Driver behavior for a variety of activities has been upgraded, including:
- - Throttle and brake application
- - Pace lap driving and spacing
- - Low speed driving
- - Deceleration actions
- - Drafting tactics
- - Two-wide racing
- - Learning individual track corners
- - Racing in traffic
- - Opponent car location prediction
- - Caution flag flying
- - Passing while pitting

more than rF2 in 7 years.
I think I will renew my membership, I don't know, ACC got me for the moment

Only a matter of time before iRacing takes over

 

[John Addison]

Yeh watching NASCAR can be a challenge. Lost my interest in it a long time ago. But climb into the sim and run at Daytona or Dega.......holly crap! Hang on! Hope they get the Indy cars added to AI. Now that will be something.

 

[F_B]

Short race with the MX5 at Sebring. Good fun those AI guys.
The Porsche cup car AI at Road Atlanta is a mess though.

 

[Anomalistics]

Short race with the MX5 at Sebring. Good fun those AI guys.
The Porsche cup car AI at Road Atlanta is a mess though.

Why is it a mess? I'm curious

 

[RCHeliguy]

Indeed. Oval racing is much harder than it looks. It's like baseball: it looks easy, until you try it for yourself.

Not sure that analogy holds up well. I never thought baseball was easy, just very boring, and when I played it I also found it very boring. Golf requires great skill, but is boring as hell unless you are with a bunch of guys socializing using golf as a backdrop.

However, I didn't find driving oval racing boring. There was plenty going on all the time. In fact it feels busier than road racing.

 

[F_B]

Why is it a mess? I'm curious

I'll add a video later.
They’re quite slow at some corners or crash, especially throughout turn 1 to 5. Also they have problems in the last turn, the fast right hander. Just tried it with the Porsche at this track, but I imagine that slower cars (Mazda & Skippy) do not have these problems.

Edit:

Here's the Porsche / Road Atlanta video

 

[Anomalistics]

I'll add a video later.
They’re quite slow at some corners or crash, especially throughout turn 1 to 5. Also they have problems in the last turn, the fast right hander. Just tried it with the Porsche at this track, but I imagine that slower cars (Mazda & Skippy) do not have these problems.

Even if the skill percentage is set high? Shame all cars haven't been optimized for the tracks if this is the case..

 

[Deleted member 205301]

I'll add a video later.
They’re quite slow at some corners or crash, especially throughout turn 1 to 5. Also they have problems in the last turn, the fast right hander. Just tried it with the Porsche at this track, but I imagine that slower cars (Mazda & Skippy) do not have these problems.

Did you try to work on the roster ? It could really helps you to have your dream'race

 

[delpinsky]

Without the monthly subscription I would probably hop in the iRacing bandwagon, considering the offline racing with AI. Good to see iRacing improving with damage model and AI!

 

[Kurupt CDN]

Not sure that analogy holds up well. I never thought baseball was easy, just very boring, and when I played it I also found it very boring. Golf requires great skill, but is boring as hell unless you are with a bunch of guys socializing using golf as a backdrop.

However, I didn't find driving oval racing boring. There was plenty going on all the time. In fact it feels busier than road racing.

Just for clarification (baseball player here)
Are we talking softball with a bunch of drunk half ass talented co eds or baseball?
There's a big difference in someone under handing a beach ball to you than stepping into the box with someone hurling a rock at 90 mph + backed by 8 other talented guys throwing just as hard

On a side note.
As great as the AI are and only gonna improve with time....it kinda boggles my mind why anyone would even consider getting into iracing just for offline ai racing, soley due to the cost?
Hell, if ya got money to burn....go for it ..it's good!
Personally for the rest grab AMS or RF2 for $20 lol

If you use iracing for mp the AI is just an added bonus to the service!

 

[MarkR]

I hadn't played iRacing since 2014 but a super cheap £6 for 3 months offer popped up and I decided to dip my toe back in. Just my personal view but back in 2012-14 I always felt the cars lacked any real sense of feeling or connection and I largely agreed with the iceRacing nickname it often had back then. I had low expectations and I'm glad to say iRacing has changed a lot for the better!

I realise this thread is about the NASCAR AI and I would have tried them but I wasn't convinced enough to pay for the cars and circuits just yet!

I jumped in and gave the road AI a go today too - just straight into the game no messing with setups etc - just to see how the Mazda Mx5 Cup felt to drive and how the AI behave at Lime Rock and in Oculus VR.

I agree with @F_B (and thanks for the Porsche video to see when it isn't so good), the AI Mazda MX5 cup cars offer some great racing fun, I set them at 70-90% and started from the back to see how they were to race. I didn't select the 'avoid me' option as they seem to race fairly to me and have a good awareness of the player car.

My impressions:

++ For pure dry track racing vs the AI this is a good experience. I'd certainly consider paying for more cars and tracks if they were up to that standard.

+++ the selectable range eg 70-90% is a good innovation, allowing the user to set the field spread rather than just a set ability/aggression.

+++ Oculus performance is excellent, certainly as good as anything else out there at the moment.

+ Car/wheel feedback - it's certainly much better than in 2012, the cars do feel connected to the track. However, I couldn't find a good balance. The FFB seems to need to be quite heavy to get any real sense of track feel and car weight (much heavier than a real MX5 Cup car), kerb feel is generally good if a bit aggressive as a result of having to run the wheel weight on the high side.

+ Track feel - again it's much improved and it was easy to react to what the car was doing 'underneath' me. Comparing with ACC the track was pretty lifeless.

-/+ Does it feel like driving a real MX5 Cup car? I started my real track time in various MX5's and honestly, to me, iRacing still doesn't feel much like the real MX5, the car still seems to float over the surface too much rather than have real contact with the tarmac and a feeling of grip in the corners. On the other hand, as a racing game car, it is certainly fun enough to drive so I won't knock it too much.

The addition of AI has regained my interest and if I see more positive news about the track AI I might well be tempted to give it another go and buy some content. I've tried online racing in iRacing and in many other leagues and groups and it has always ended in a lot of silly bickering over nothing and petty biases so I'm reluctant to get involved these days.

For now, I'll stick with ACC and look forward to giving AMS2 a go but I will almost certainly give iRacing with AI another go as it develops.

 

[RCHeliguy]

Just for clarification (baseball player here)
Are we talking softball with a bunch of drunk half ass talented co eds or baseball?
There's a big difference in someone under handing a beach ball to you than stepping into the box with someone hurling a rock at 90 mph + backed by 8 other talented guys throwing just as hard

Does it matter? How often are you actually at bat? Remember I never said easy, just boring. You are sitting on the bench a lot longer than you are at bat, and you are standing in the outfield/infield where ever waiting around for large periods of time. Maybe if you are at a base and there are men on base there is a bit more to deal with, but otherwise boring as hell at least to me.

The biggest challenge is staying awake and sharp during the huge pauses between action.

 

[Kurupt CDN]

Does it matter? How often are you actually at bat? Remember I never said easy, just boring. You are sitting on the bench a lot longer than you are at bat, and you are standing in the outfield/infield where ever waiting around for large periods of time. Maybe if you are at a base and there are men on base there is a bit more to deal with, but otherwise boring as hell at least to me.

The biggest challenge is staying awake and sharp during the huge pauses between action.

Yes lol
As like racing and any other sport in general....the experience varies based on the talent around you

Not defending it and everyone is allowed their own opinions, for none baseball fans I understand it seems boring...for those that understand the game within the game...there is alot going on.

 

[RCHeliguy]

FWIW, I don't watch any sports at all. I much prefer to participate rather than be a spectator. I'm just not wired that way. My Dad was all state football, basketball and baseball in HS and I think it broke his heart when I got into bicycle racing instead. That said, I've never watched a televised bicycle race either. Boring as hell to watch.