INDYCAR ButtKicker iRacing Pro Series | Race Preview: Nashville SS

Only one race remains in the inaugural INDYCAR ButtKicker iRacing Pro Series season. On Thursday night, the 2024 season concludes with one final oval battle at Nashville Superspeedway, the same venue that crowned the 2024 NTT INDYCAR Series champion a few months ago. This 1.33-mile concrete oval in Lebanon, Tennessee will prove to be a challenge for all 33 of the top-ranked Dallara IR-18 drivers, but only three could possibly claim the title by night’s end.

Team Redline’s Diogo Pinto enters the night with the title in his grasp. After a seventh place run at The Milwaukee Mile one week ago, Pinto holds a 41-point lead over PRIVATE LABEL Team Hype’s Philip Kraus, the driver with the most oval wins this season, at two after capturing both Iowa Speedway and World Wide Technology Raceway. Kraus’s sixth kept him in the conversation, but he’ll need a win and some help to win the title. Team Redline’s Edoardo Leo also has an outside shot, but he’ll need the win, the pole, and the most laps led to even have a chance at it, 49 points behind.

As always, the final race will be broadcast live at 8:00 p.m. ET on Thursday night via iRacing social channels and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES YouTube channel and website.

Last Race:

In the penultimate race of the season, Coanda Esports’ Michele Costantini put on a clinic at The Milwaukee Mile, leading every lap from the pole. Voted for by the fans, the ninth race of the season being at an oval kept the championship conversation going into the final race of the season. It was expected that Philip Kraus would walk away with another win, but a qualifying ban due to too many incidents at Laguna Seca the week prior set him back at the start. Kraus worked his way back up to finish sixth, one spot ahead of Pinto, keeping his title chances slim but barely alive.

Track Facts:

Nashville Superspeedway is one of multiple ovals that has gone from dormant to hosting NASCAR Cup Series action over the past decade. It boasts many of the most unique features among ovals on the calendar. At 1.330 miles, it’s shorter than most other tri-ovals, and its concrete surface adds yet another challenge for drivers. The track was initially closed in 2012 after failing to land a Cup date, but reopened for the 2021 season with all three national NASCAR series on the calendar. In 2024, the NTT INDYCAR Season finale was moved from the streets of Nashville to the Superspeedway, where Colton Herta scored the victory, and Alex Palou claimed the title.

About the Series:

The inaugural INDYCAR ButtKicker iRacing Pro Series season features a purse of $50,000 with the champion taking home $20,000 at season’s end. The 10 races scheduled include a fair mix of road courses and ovals that are often found on the real-world INDYCAR schedule. Points are scored based on a similar system that the real-world series uses, with 50 points going to the winner and bonus points for laps led, most laps led, and the pole award.

For more information on the INDYCAR ButtKicker iRacing Pro Series, visit www.iracing.com/indycar-esports/. For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit www.iracing.com.

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