How To Race Single-Player in iRacing: AI Racing

iRacing has a complete single-player game mode where you can race against AI opponents in a full race session or a custom single-player championship. Here is everything you need to know.

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iRacing Single-Player AI Racing

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For years, iRacing has become one of the most popular online sim racing platforms around. However, it has been restricted to online only since it launched in 2008. The only time you have been able to race offline was during server maintenance. And even that didn’t include any AI drivers.

However, in late 2019, the developers included a brand new single-player AI racing game mode. This allowed you to race against a field of AI drivers in a single-player-only experience.

At the time of launch, this only included a single car, the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (991), but it gave us a way to practice against AI drivers without worrying about our iRating or safety rating.

What cars and tracks can you race single-player?

Since the launch of AI racing in 2019, the developers have been adding more content to the single-player game mode. Now there are well over 45 cars to choose from, and the track list consists of over 80 tracks.

There are a large number of cars and tracks included in the AI racing single-player game mode in iRacing. However, these mainly consist of road and oval racing. Currently, there is no dirt racing at all including the lack of rallycross.

iRacing dashboard UI

How to set up a single-player iRacing race

To jump into iRacing AI, you can launch your iRacing UI as normal. From there, click AI Racing on the left-hand side. This will launch the AI Racing dashboard.

From there, to set up a single race using the iRacing AI, you can click the “Single Race” button on the right-hand side. This will launch the single race creation menu where you can configure your race, including AI skill, number of opponents, tracks etc.

In this menu, you can choose which events will be in your custom single-player race. You can include all of the event types that you normally would in iRacing, including practice, qualifying, warmup and race. Then you can dictate how long each session is to create a completely custom AI race.

iRacing AI Races

Race setup options

You have a total of nine menus to adjust your custom race. The first is the track you wish to race on, and the second is the weather. You can manually control the weather or let iRacing control this for you.

Next up is race options, where you can choose items such as turning damage on. Then you move on to choosing the car that you wish to race in, followed by the AI cars. You can choose a saved roster of cars which you have pre-configured, or you can manually control the roster for this individual race. You can choose the number of competitors and their skill level.

To change the AI difficulty in AI racing, you can set a skill range. This will set the overall skill of the entire AI field, with some drivers racing at the lower skill level through to the highest. This skill slider is a range between 0-100%. The closer to 100% you go, the faster the AI will be. You can even turn on the “Avoid Me” toggle to tell the AI to avoid making contact with you.

Then you move on to setting the track conditions and time of day. You can leave these to be dynamic to allow for the build-up of grip levels and for time to progress at your desired speed.

From there, simply launch the session and you will jump into your AI race event. All of the controls in an AI session remain the same as they do when racing online. The only addition is that you can choose to skip or restart sessions.


How to set up a single-player championship

iRacing AI Seasons

Setting up a single-player championship in iRacing is much like creating a single race event. Start by clicking the “Create a Season” button in the main UI which will take you through a similar set-up process to creating a single race.

You will be taken through almost the exact same set-up process, but instead of adding just a single track, you can add multiple tracks in an order of your choosing. The sessions for each track can be individually configured if you fancy creating unique events.

The only real difference in the set-up process is that you have an additional option to configure your championship point distribution. This can follow a variety of real-world point systems or you can create your own points system.

Once, all of the tabs have been scrolled through and configured, you can save your AI season. Then when you’re ready to participate in the first race, you can jump in and click the race button!

iRacing AI Season single-player mode

AI hosted sessions

AI hosted sessions in iRacing serve as a hybrid between normal online racing and single-player AI racing. You can create a hosted session much as you would normally, and invite a variety of people to participate. However, AI hosted sessions allow you to add AI drivers to your race session.

This gives you the opportunity to race with friends, but also against a full grid of AI-controlled racers. You can set up larger races, much quicker using AI hosted sessions, allowing for fun multi-car racing while still enjoying iRacing with friends.

To do this, simply set up a normal hosted session. Allow for iRacers to register and join your session. And then just before the registration time ends, you can choose to fill the remaining spots with AI drivers. It’s important that all human iRacers join before adding AI drivers, as the AI drivers can fill up spots meant for human participants.


Does AI racing in iRacing affect your safety rating?

Racing in any of the AI single-player game modes doesn’t affect your safety rating or your iRating. You can use this to your advantage by practising with certain cars and on tracks that you are due to race on in your online series. There are no consequences to going off track or making contact with other AI drivers.


Is iRacing single-player free?

To access the single-player iRacing AI racing you will need an active iRacing subscription. Single-player in iRacing isn’t free. You will also still be required to purchase the cars and tracks that you want to drive.

You can, however, set the AI to control cars that you don’t own. This makes racing a series such as GT3 more interesting. You can drive the car that you own and create a roster of AI cars that are a mixture of different cars.

View our guide on how to start iRacing on a budget.


Can you race iRacing offline?

The good part of the relatively new AI racing mode in iRacing is that you can race it offline. Even when the iRacing servers are down for maintenance, you can access the single-player game mode from the iRacing dashboard.

This allows you to practice your favourite track, or continue your AI season even while you can’t race online. If you want to test new content that you don’t currently own, you can make use of the iRacing test drive servers during server maintenance. Read our guide on how to test drive cars in iRacing.


Does iRacing have a career mode?

iRacing doesn’t have a single-player career mode, however, you can create custom championships. The AI championships in iRacing let you configure a championship to your exact requirements. You can dictate how many races there are, the length of sessions and the quality and number of your AI opponents.

This lets you simulate a real championship, giving you real stakes to race for.


Complete AI car and track list

In iRacing’s single-player AI game modes, not all content is available. Certain cars and racing disciplines such as Rallycross aren’t currently in single-player iRacing.

Below is a complete list of every car you can race and every car that can be controlled by the AI in single-player.

Cars

  • Aston Martin Vantage GT4
  • Audi R8 LMS
  • Audi RS3 LMS TCR
  • BMW M4 GT3
  • BMW M4 GT4
  • Dallara F3
  • Dallara IR18
  • Dallara P217
  • [Legacy] Ferrari 488 GT3
  • Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo
  • Ford GT GT3
  • Formula Vee
  • Global Mazda MX-5 Cup
  • Honda Civic Type R
  • Hyundai Elantra CN7
  • Hyundai Veloster N
  • Indy Pro 2000 PM-18
  • Kia Optima
  • Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO
  • Mercedes-AMG GT3
  • Mercedes-AMG F1 W12 E Performance
  • McLaren MP4-12C GT3
  • McLaren 570s GT4
  • NASCAR Cup Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
  • NASCAR Cup Ford Mustang
  • NASCAR Cup Toyota Camry
  • NASCAR Gander Outdoors Chevrolet Silverado
  • NASCAR Gander Outdoors Ford F150
  • NASCAR Gander Outdoors Toyota Tundra
  • NASCAR Xfinity Chevrolet Camaro
  • NASCAR Xfinity Ford Mustang
  • NASCAR Xfinity Toyota Supra
  • Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR
  • [Legacy] Porsche 911 GT3 Cup 991
  • Porsche 911 GT3 Cup 992
  • Porsche 911 GT3 R
  • SCCA Spec Racer Ford
  • Skip Barber Formula 2000
  • Street Stock
  • Super Late Model
  • Supercars Ford Mustang GT
  • Supercars Holden ZB Commodore
  • USF 2000
  • VW Jetta TDI Cup

Tracks

Below is a list of all tracks that can be raced in single-player iRacing.

  • Atlanta Motor Speedway – Oval
  • Auto Club Speedway – Oval
  • Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari – Grand Prix
  • Autódromo José Carlos Pace – Grand Prix
  • Autodromo Nazionale Monza – Grand Prix
  • Barber Motorsports Park- Full Course
  • Brands Hatch Circuit- Grand Prix
  • Bristol Motor Speedway – Dual Pit Roads
  • Bristol Motor Speedway – Single Pit Road
  • Charlotte Motor Speedway – Legends RC Long – 2018
  • Charlotte Motor Speedway – Legends RC Medium – 2018
  • Charlotte Motor Speedway – Legends RC Short – 2018
  • Charlotte Motor Speedway Oval- 2018
  • Charlotte Motor Speedway – Roval
  • Charlotte Motor Speedway – Roval – 2018
  • Charlotte Motor Speedway – Roval Long – 2018
  • Chicagoland Speedway
  • Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya- Grand Prix
  • Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps – ALL Configs
  • Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
  • Circuit of the Americas – Grand Prix
  • Concord Speedway
  • Daytona International Speedway – Oval, Road Course
  • [Legacy] Daytona International Speedway- Oval, Road Course
  • Donington Park Racing Circuit -Grand Prix
  • Dover International Speedway
  • Five Flags Speedway
  • Hickory Motor Speedway
  • Hockenheimring Baden-Württemberg – ALL Configs
  • Homestead Miami Speedway – IndyCar Oval
  • Homestead Miami Speedway – Oval
  • Hungaroring Circuit
  • Indianapolis Motor Speedway – IndyCar Oval
  • Indianapolis Motor Speedway – Oval
  • Iowa Speedway – Oval
  • iRacing Superspeedway
  • Kansas Speedway
  • Kentucky Speedway – Oval
  • Knockhill Racing Circuit – International
  • Knockhill Racing Circuit – International Reverse
  • Knockhill Racing Circuit – National
  • Knockhill Racing Circuit – National Reverse
  • [Legacy] Kentucky Speedway- Oval
  • Langley Speedway
  • Lanier National Speedway -Asphalt
  • Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Oval
  • Lime Rock Park – ALL Configs
  • Long Beach Street Circuit
  • Lucas Oil Raceway – Oval
  • Martinsville Speedway
  • Michigan International Speedway
  • Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course – Full Course
  • Mount Panorama Circuit
  • Myrtle Beach Speedway
  • Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway – Oval
  • New Hampshire Motor Speedway – Oval, Road Course with South Oval
  • North Wilkesboro Speedway
  • Nurburgring Grand-Prix-Strecke – Grand Prix
  • Nürburgring Combined – Gesamtstrecke Long
  • Okayama International Circuit- ALL Configs
  • Oran Park – Grand Prix, Moto, North, North A, South
  • Oulton Park Circuit – ALL Configs
  • Phillip Island Circuit
  • Phoenix Raceway – Oval
  • Phoenix Raceway – Oval w/open Dogleg
  • Red Bull Ring – ALL Configs
  • Richmond Raceway
  • Road America -Full Course
  • Road Atlanta -Full Course
  • Rockingham Speedway – Oval
  • Sebring International Raceway – International, Club
  • Silverstone Circuit – Grand Prix
  • Southern National Motorsports Park
  • South Boston Speedway
  • Summit Point Raceway – Summit Point Raceway, Jefferson Circuit, Jefferson Reverse, Short
  • Suzuka International Racing Course – Grand Prix
  • Talladega Superspeedway
  • The Bullring
  • Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park
  • Tsukuba Circuit – ALL Configs
  • USA International Speedway -Asphalt
  • Watkins Glen International – ALL Configs
  • WeatherTech Raceway at Laguna Seca – Full
  • Winton Motor Raceway – ALL Configs

Are there any iRacing promo codes for new members?

iRacing often runs promotional codes giving reduced price memberships. These normally apply to new members only, but sometimes you can pick up a renewal code, so it’s always worth checking.

Read our iRacing promo code guide for a full list of working 2023 iRacing codes.


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Article written by Rich

Founder of SimRacingSetups.com

Rich is the founder, F1 car setup creator and content writer for SimRacingSetups. With over a decade of experience as a graphic designer, marketing director, competitive sim racer and avid motorsport fan, Rich founded SimRacingSetup.com to share his passion and knowledge of sim racing and Formula 1 with other sim racers. Regularly writes for sim racing website SimRaceReviews.com

Disclaimer: Some of the links on this page may be affiliate links. We may earn commission from any sale after clicking a link. Read our affiliate policy.
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