Congratulations to NASCAR on its new and improved Fantasy Live game for the 2018 season. Similar to the popular Fantasy Football games, NASCAR’s Fantasy Live game lets fans create a team and compete for prizes. This a step in the right direction to improve the fan experience while at the track, at home watching on TV, or traveling with mobile devices.
Two of the NASCAR fantasy racing game upgrades include adding the ability to change your roster during the race and making fantasy points the same as the driver points system used during the race.
As we have argued, younger fans—and some of the older fans too—do not just want to watch a race; they want to experience the race and share that experience live with others. It would appear that this new version of NASCAR fantasy racing will appeal to these race fans, and who knows, may even reach some casual “gamers” that will become diehard NASCAR fans as a result!
Here are some of the important features of the new NASCAR fantasy league setup, as outlined at NASCAR.com/fantasy:
NASCAR Fantasy Live players will pick five drivers to start prior to each Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race. In addition, a sixth “garage” driver on the roster can be swapped in-race for any active driver before the final stage begins. The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series regular season begins with the Daytona 500 on February 18, 2018 and culminates with the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on September 9, 2018. The overall points leader after the final race will be crowned 2018 champion and win $10,000.
“In NASCAR, every lap matters,” said Tim Clark, managing director, NASCAR Digital Media. “The new NASCAR Fantasy Live game reflects the lap-by-lap intensity of modern NASCAR racing by giving fans the opportunity to strategize and adjust their driver lineups in real-time during races.”
“As our sport continues to evolve, it only made sense for our fantasy game to follow suit,” said Clark. “The new NASCAR Fantasy Live will engage fans more deeply than ever before, and we’re excited about that.”
We have to agree with Mr. Clark’s views of NASCAR fantasy and look forward to further changes as the evolution of “spectator sports,” like NASCAR, continues. Congratulations, NASCAR!