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It’s nearly time to enter the time machine and rewind 36 years, as the iRacing Road America 500 Special Event is imminent, harking back to a time when Geoff Brabham and Chip Robinson tamed the real-world event to win.
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What is the iRacing Road America 500 Special Event?
The iRacing Road America 500 is a multiplayer Special Event where classic race cars take on the daunting Wisconsin circuit. It aims to replicate simpler times, without driver aids or paddle-shift gearboxes, but presented in a modern-day simulation.
It is based on real-world IMSA races at the same venue, also to 500 miles, held in the 1970s and ’80s – in particular, the 1989 edition.
For this iRacing event, two cars are used. The first is the Nissan GTP ZX-T used to win the 1989 IMSA drivers and teams championships, with a turbocharged V6 engine.
Then there’s the Audio 90 GTO, which also competed in that season’s championship, although not entering the first two rounds.
It uses a 2.2-litre turbocharged five-cylinder engine, with over 700bhp. To harness that power is quattro all-wheel drive.
The race will see numerous pitstop visits required, and by the end, expect dirty, tired-looking automobiles.
When is the iRacing Road America 500 special event 2025?
This year, the iRacing Road America 500 will be held during Week 6 of the service’s 2025 Season 2 during the following dates and five timeslots:
- iRacing Road America 500 timeslot #1 – Friday 25th April 22:00 BST, 23:00 CEST, 02:00 PDT, 05:00 EDT
- iRacing Road America 500 timeslot #2 – Saturday 26th April 07:00 BST, 08:00 CEST, 23:00 PDT (25th), 02:00 EDT (26th)
- iRacing Road America 500 timeslot #3 – Saturday 26th April 12:00 BST, 13:00 CEST, 04:00 PDT, 07:00 EDT
- iRacing Road America 500 timeslot #4 – Saturday 26th April 16:00 BST, 17:00 CEST, 08:00 PDT, 11:00 EDT
- iRacing Road America 500 timeslot #5 – Sunday 27th April 00:00 BST, 01:00 CEST, 16:00 PDT (26th), 19:00 EDT (26th)
How long is the iRacing Road America 500?
As hinted at in the race’s name, it’s 500 miles. That works out to 124 laps for the GTP class, which will likely take sub four hours to complete – think around three hours and 45-50 minutes for the leader to take the chequered flag first.
iRacing Road America 500 accepted cars
As discussed earlier in this guide, two cars are allowed, and each represents a class. So two classes, one car in each:
- GTP Class – Nissan GTP ZX-T (1989)
- GTO Class – Audi 90 GTO (1989)
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iRacing Road America 500 entry requirements
To participate in the 2025 iRacing Road America race, you must be an active iRacing subscriber, have achieved the D 4.0 Sportscar licence, own the Road America race track (which is $14.95 excluding sales tax) and own one of the applicable cars.
None of the accepted vehicles (listed above) are included in the base content roster for subscribers, therefore, they cost $11.95 (excluding sales tax) each.
Crucially, you can enter as a team and switch drivers in the pitstops, or you can simply complete the event solo (minimum driver number is set to ‘one’).
- Active iRacing membership
- D 4.0 Sportscar licence
- Own Road America tracks
- Own either the Nissan or Audi car
How to enter the race
To register and therefore enter the 2025 iRacing Road America 500, load iRacing before your desired time slot. Registration will open between 30 minutes and one hour before the aforementioned time (listed above).
If you match the entry conditions, the special event will be listed on the main official racing events page, and then simply click the ‘register button’.
If you are entering as a team, one member must register, or enter, the event, although other team members need not be present at that moment. That member will then select which drivers from a team join them in the race.
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Key session information
The event (and servers) will be open before the race start time to accommodate a 30-minute warm-up and an eight-minute (the usual two-lap system) qualifying session. This will set the grid for the rolling start, with each class separated.
As ever, splits will be decided by iRacing’s system. This should place you in a race with similarly skilled drivers.
The field can be as large as 50 cars across the two classes.
In 2024, the race was won in GTP by the #17 CoRe SimRacing Nissan driven by Pascal Stix, while in GTO, it was taken by Michael Polasek in the #45 Obsidian Racing Audi.
- 50-car grids across two classes
- 30-minute warm-up
- Eight-minute, two-lap, qualifying
- Rolling start
Chance of rain
The weather for the event is set to ‘dynamic’, meaning iRacing‘s expansive forecast weather system is ready and waiting.
Perhaps mercifully, the sim states that it will be overcast with a 0% chance of rain.
Top split live broadcast
For those who would like to watch the top split, aka the highest-rated drivers who have registered, the race will be broadcast live with commentary on iRacing’s YouTube channel.
You can catch the event on Saturday, 26th April 2025 at 1.30 pm BST, 2.30 pm CEST, 5.30 am PDT, 8.30 am EDT. Also, visit the iRacing Forum for further information and debate.
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