- St. Petersburg track on the way
- NASCAR Ram Truck and Audi RS3 LMS Gen2 TCR set for inclusion
- New TCR, GTE, classic IMSA, NASCAR and Lotus 49 physics
- Track art updates
iRacing’s Season 2, 2026 build is close to release, and Senior Vice President and Executive Producer Greg Hill has been busy writing an enormous dev blog detailing the changes fans can expect to see in March.
Check out some of the highlights below.
New content
Track
St. Petersburg has been teased previously, but it’s finally time for the Floridian venue to make its iRacing debut.
Using roads from the city, plus a runway from the nearby Albert Whitted Airport, the track is affectionately known as ‘St. Pete’ has been a mainstay of the IndyCar schedule for over two decades.
It’s also the season-opener this year, with Round 1 of the 2026 championship taking place this weekend alongside a round of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (starring a certain three-time Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti).
Being a street circuit, St. Pete is bumpy, featuring long straights punctuated by tight corners, and it’s almost guaranteed to provide an action-packed race.
Cars
- NASCAR Cup Series Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
- NASCAR Ram Truck
- Audi RS3 LMS Gen2 TCR
The NASCAR Cup Series Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 was already released in time for the beginning of the Cup season, but it will be joined by the NASCAR Ram Truck and the Audi RS3 LMS Gen2 TCR car in Season 2.
New to the 2026 Craftsman Truck Series, Ram is set to lend its main protagonist to iRacing, pending final approvals. This will bump the service’s Truck roster up to four to match the real-world championship.
Finally, the Gen2 Audi RS3 LMS TCR car is also on the way, moving the Gen1 car into Legacy status. For those who purchased the older car in the last year, credits will be offered as recompense.
Track refreshes
- Barber Motorsports Park
- Lanier National Speedway
- Langley Speedway
- USA International Speedway
- Long Beach
- Sebring
- Red Bull Ring
Season 2 is a good one for short track fans, as Lanier National Speedway, Langley Speedway and USA International Speedway will all receive art overhauls.
Likewise, Long Beach and Sebring have also been upgraded, while the Red Bull Ring will get three-dimensional kerbs.
Barber Motorsports Park has also been re-done and was completely re-scanned. This means the old circuit layout will be retired. Fortunately, those who own the previous version will automatically receive the new track for free.
However, there are no plans to reintroduce Barber’s short layouts.
New TCR physics
Tying in with the new Audi RS3 TCR, the entire category is receiving a physics overhaul, bringing it into line with the GT3, GT4 and LMDh updates we’ve seen previously.
Wet and dry tyres have been revamped, with reduced pitch sensitivity leading to more consistent car behaviour across the class, including the Hyundai Elantra N, Honda Civic Type R, Hyundai Veloster N and two Audis.
New GTE physics
Similarly, iRacing’s GTE cars, including the Ford GTE, Ferrari 488 GTE, BMW M8 GTE, Corvette C8.R, and Porsche 911 RSR, have been given the same treatment, with the cars now featuring revamped set-ups, wet compound tyres and a fresh Balance of Performance calculation to ensure performance parity.
New historic IMSA and Lotus 49 physics
Some of the service’s older content will also receive some attention in Season 2, with the historic Audi 90 GTO and the Nissan GTP ZX-T IMSA cars slated to feature the latest wet and dry tyre models.
The Nissan’s turbo and suspension have been revised, slowing it down a tad to better reflect its performance in the +period.
The Audi’s gearbox behaviour has been adjusted too, so upshifting with a clutch will positively affect lap times, which is more befitting of its manual synchromesh gearbox.
The ‘60s Lotus 49 has also been looked at, with its all-weather rubber updated to iRacing’s modern standards. It should perform well in both wet and dry conditions as a result, with its suspension and braking systems overhauled too.
NASCAR physics
The latest Cup cars should already be updated to 2026 standards owing to iRacing’s special pre-season update, with aero and engine enhancements offering more realism. The supporting NASCAR O’Reilly series cars have also had their drafting model improved.
IndyCar
Top speeds for the Dallara IR18 IndyCar will increase in Season 2 thanks to aero and engine tweaks, with changes to oval-track behaviour beginning to roll out as part of a long-term dynamic surface project.
Future improvements
The blog also revealed that iRacing is working to improve the sim’s graphics, sounds, AI, and user interface. However, for many iRacers, the biggest future development is Career Mode, with Hill revealing that there will be more information about it in the next dev blog, in approximately three months’ time.
For more information on the Season 2 2026 iRacing build, including further information on UI and AI updates, check out the official dev blog here.
Chat with the Community
Sign Up To CommentIt's completely Free