Can Sim Racing Make You a Better Driver in Real Life?
Yes! Sim Racing absolutely does improve your driving and make you a better driver in real life.
Chances are most people have played a racing game at some point in their lives, whether that be an old arcade racer, Need for Speed or even Mario Kart!
Sim racing is an elite subset of racing games which focus principally on realistic and authentic driving physics and car handling, with the viewpoint of making the simulation as close to reality as possible.
Nowadays, we have abundant high quality software (simulation games) and excellent hardware (pedals, wheels, motion platforms etc) which means that sim racing is closer than ever to reality.
Transferrable skills is a key benefit of sim racing; that is, you are able to use skills learned in sim racing in the real world. This makes sim racing an invaluable asset for any driver. Whether it's practising your race craft or learning the racing line, what you learn in the sim makes you a better, more prepared and capable driver in real life. We all know how expensive even grass roots motorsport is, so having a simulator to train on is a must.
Nowadays, there are many examples of sim racers who have made the transition in to real racing and enjoyed success. Jon Armstrong is a sim racing rally champion, turned into current 2026 WRC Rally1 driver with M-Sport!
Image copyright belongs to WRC, attribution: https://www.wrc.com/en/teams/m-sport-ford-world-rally-team
And another example we will discuss is WTCR driver Norbert Michelisz for yet more proof that sim racing improves your driving. Norbert was an extremely fast racer in the early 2000s virtual racing scene, on the Grand Prix Legends video game.
Norbert took part in various online championships and his success drew the attention of a racing team owner, who gave Norbert a test in his racing car - from then on, Norbert has raced in WTCC and WTCR, and is frequently among the front runners in the championship (including being 2019 & 2024 champion).
Both of these drivers are direct proof that a video gamer, using the sim to practise and refine their skills, which were then able to naturally transfer these skills into real life driving, now both competing in WRC and WTCR respectively, the most competitive rally & touring car championships in the world.
No other gaming & sports genres have such transferrable skills and synergy between esports and reality - being a great FIFA player doesn't mean you are a good footballer in real life; being a great Call of Duty player doesn't mean you are a precision sniper in real life - but being a great sim racer does mean that you're more than likely a skilled driver in real life, and we think this makes sim racing an extremely valuable tool for any driver, whether you go karting a few times a year for fun or are a regular trackday participant / motorsport driver.
Whether it be challenging the ghost time of a real life 'VIP' driver on RaceRoom, or finding yourself in the same session on iRacing as Max Verstappen or Lando Norris, nowadays, sim racing is allowing gamers to race against their real life idols and see how fast they are in comparison, something truly unique. This is why drivers and gamers alike have embraced sim racing.
