The eNASCAR Pro Invitational Series concluded with a special race Saturday afternoon at the virtual North Wilkesboro Speedway. Racing fans and drivers were able to take in the scenes of North Wilkesboro Speedway with some old school signs like Pontiac, the colors of the Winston brand, and much more. The drivers went with an old school paint schemes for this race. Ryan Preece and Cole Custer led the field to the green flag.
Anyone else have flashbacks watching that first lap back around North Wilkesboro? pic.twitter.com/vPX0CAx1rj — NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 9, 2020
Cole Custer led twelve laps before being overtaken by Ryan Preece, who led thirty-two laps. Christopher Bell led the most laps in this race with sixty-one laps. Ross Chastain led thirty-one laps, and Denny Hamlin led twenty-four laps. Hamlin passed Chastain to take the lead with nine laps to go and would go on to win the race.
"move, plz."@dennyhamlin gives the bumper to @RossChastain as he moves into the top spot at North Wilkesboro! pic.twitter.com/AZJPxswdAo — NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 9, 2020
No monitor issues this week for @dennyhamlin. 😎 Retweet to congratulate the No. 11 on his virtual win at North Wilkesboro! pic.twitter.com/njGD7ApDO4 — NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 9, 2020
There was a total of seven lead changes and eight caution flags for a total of fifty-three laps, including the big one that involved Austin Dillon, Landon Cassell, Brennan Poole, and others.
IT'S THE BIG ONE AT NORTH WILKESBORO! (also @ClintBowyer is all of us trying to avoid an iRacing wreck) pic.twitter.com/T5dJ0rXkV9 — NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 9, 2020
iRacing had one more major announcement during the race for their subscribers, and that was Bill Elliott, and Dale Earnhardt’s 1987 cars will be available along with North Wilkesboro Speedway next month.
It just wouldn't be a complete race at North Wilkesboro without these two in it, right? #ProInvitationalSeries '87 Monte Carlo & Thunderbird. Coming Soon. pic.twitter.com/jLkBvMwoiY — iRacing.com (@iRacing) May 9, 2020
With the victory, Hamlin now has two wins in the eNASCAR Pro Invitational Series. His last win came at the virtual Homestead-Miami Speedway two months ago. Rounding up the top ten had Timmy Hill finishing second, Tyler Reddick in third, Ross Chastain in fourth, Austin Dillon in fifth, Garrett Smithley in sixth, Brennan Poole in seventh, Parker Klingerman in eighth, Kevin Harvick in ninth, and Landon Cassell in tenth.
Virtual North Wilkesboro results: #ProInvitationalSeries pic.twitter.com/2SS28D2U0P — Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) May 9, 2020
The stars of NASCAR will now get ready to resume the NASCAR season next Sunday live from Darlington Raceway at 3:30 pm on FOX. Of course, we can’t move forward without thanking iRacing for providing entertainment during the pandemic. While it’s only for the rest of the May that NASCAR will be back live, there is a chance that virtual motorsports could resume on television if there are no other live events scheduled in June.
This week, IndyCar announced their season will start June 6th at Texas Motor Speedway, so there could be a chance that after Darlington and Charlotte, NASCAR could head to Texas for more live racing. As for the virtual racing world, they made a case as too why they should be taken seriously and a reason that television networks like FOX should continue to air virtual racing events every week. Virtual motorsports are in good hands.
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