It’s getting close to the end of the second season for iRacing in 2022. Already in Week 8 of the 12-week schedule, 2022 Season 3 will be upon us next month. iRacing is a creature of habit, so a new build with new content is almost a given at the end of a season and the beginning of a new one. With that said, it’s about that time where they start to tease some content that will be coming at some point
On Tuesday (3rd May 2022), iRacing teased a track that was already announced back in January, that being Port Royal Speedway. They announced that alongside two other dirt venues, and one of them has already been released this season, that being Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55. They didn’t specifically say it was coming next season, but that it was “under construction” on the forums.
On Wednesday (4th May 2022), another venue was teased by the iRacing social team, that being the famed Fuji Speedway located in Japan. A fairly-complete laser scan of the circuit was posted on their multiple platforms, and even if you couldn’t tell the course by the straightaway and surrounding buildings, the bridge over the straight clearly and conveniently reads Fuji Speedway.
It definitely looks more completed than the Port Royal scan that was shared. With that said, again, we don’t know if this is coming sooner or later, and there’s been no post at this time on the iRacing forums to say otherwise.
Fuji Speedway, which sits right along the base of Mount Fuji in Oyama, opened in 1965 as a drastically different circuit. After many revisions and resurfaces, the current layout has been in play since 2005 and is graded as an FIA Grade 1 course.
The 16-corner, 4.563-kilometer or 2.835-mile racetrack that’s owned by Toyota hosted two Formula 1 events in 2007 and 2008. More recently, the venue hosted it’s traditional Golden Week Super GT event on Tuesday and Wednesday at the track.
In video games, Fuji Speedway has been represented in classics like Pole Position and in TOCA Race Driver, as well as in the Project CARS franchise. If you’re a fan of Gran Turismo, you’ve likely turned many laps on the track as it’s been included in the series since Gran Turismo 4. The most recent iteration of the venue is included in Gran Turismo 7, and it is visually stunning.
iRacing will likely also recreate the track in a beautiful fashion. Again, we don’t know if this is coming next month or later in the year, or even next year or beyond, but we do know it is happening at some point. Are you excited about this track coming to iRacing? What other Japanese tracks would you like to see included on the platform? Let us know in the comments below!
Featured Image: Alex Zanardi BMW Team RBM BMW M4 DTM. 2019 Dream Race at Fuji International Speedway, Super GT – via Motorsport Images
