Thank goodness NASCAR isn’t the NBA

While NBA players are playing H-O-R-S-E and having 2K tournaments, NASCAR drivers are still able to actually drive against one another.

As NASCAR fans, we are all disappointed with the fact that it has been more than a month since we last saw on-track action.

NASCAR postponements: TRACKER

The March race at Phoenix Raceway wasn’t supposed to be the race at the four-turn, 1.022-mile (1.645-kilometer) oval in Avondale, Arizona that led into a lengthy break, with that track having taken over as the host of the season finale in November to lead into the three-month offseason.

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But as NASCAR fans, we also need to be mindful of and grateful for the fact that we still have the opportunity to watch the drivers compete against one another on Sundays via the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series, which NASCAR and iRacing introduced in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

iRacing has been described by many drivers has being as close as possible to the real thing, and it’s not hard to see why when you look at some of the rigs drivers are using to compete in these virtual races. While it does technically fit the definition of “video game”, iRacing is a simulation platform above all else.

So even while NASCAR is not in action at real-life tracks, the drivers are still able to compete against one another by driving, which is exactly what they’d be doing in the real world.

Meanwhile…

This is literally the NASCAR equivalent of having Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney time themselves running around their houses and using that as a replacement for live NASCAR action. Winner moves on to race Kyle Busch in the semis.

And that’s not the best part.

The NBA also introduced the 2K Players Tournament, a tournament in which the professional ballers face off against one another in NBA 2K20.

If you want a “video game”, here’s a video game.

Unlike in NASCAR, where the drivers are still driving their own cars on Sundays against one another like they would be in a normal world, NBA players are not literally controlling themselves in 2K like they are in real life. They are picking a team to use for a video game.

As Fox NASCAR announcer and four-time Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon noted during the broadcast of the opening race of the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series at virtual Homestead-Miami Speedway, these video games are overwhelmingly animation-based and don’t even remotely involve players doing what the pros actually do in real life.

These are one-on-one video games using entire team rosters, played by moving joysticks and clicking buttons on a controller. Trying doing that on an actual NBA court and you’ll be a free agent the next morning.

Several drivers, most notably William Byron, who now competes for Hendrick Motorsports in the Cup Series, have utilized iRacing to propel themselves into NASCAR. When’s the last time an NBA team signed a new player from 2K?

This isn’t meant to downplay the NBA’s effort to engage fans during this time. But just look at NASCAR’s upside here compared to that of the NBA. There is no comparison.

According to Sports Business Journal’s Adam Stern, the viewership for this past Sunday’s eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series at virtual Bristol Motor Speedway on Fox and Fox Sports 1 dwarfed that of the NBA’s 2K Players Tournament on ESPN and ESPN2.

The NBA is obviously far more popular than NASCAR, especially among younger fans. But these numbers should shock absolutely nobody.

Keep in mind the wording of Stern’s second point: NBA had a higher percentage of its viewers in the 18-49 demographic. But as a whole, NASCAR still drew in far more fans in this age range.

As NASCAR fans, let’s be grateful that we haven’t had to resort to virtual 8 Ball Pool tournaments or something along those lines during this time off and that our drivers can still drive against one another on Sundays, much like they would in real life.

Let’s give the NBA some credit here; they’re trying to keep things interesting for their fans during an unexpected indefinite suspension of the season. But NASCAR’s advantage over the rest of the sporting world is almost unbelievable right now, and the NBA’s attempt to keep the competition going illustrates that to a T. The same can be said for IndyCar and Formula 1.