NASCAR Driver Rage-Quits Esports Event, Loses Real World Sponsor

[theschledy]

Well, yes, but generally speaking, drivers who rage-quit physical races do so because they feel their lives are in genuine danger from other driver's 🤬 driving. Drivers who rage-quit video games are simply throwing a tantrum because they feel their digital avatar isn't being properly respected.


Sponsorship, apparently.


I honestly doubt he was fired by meme. It's very likely they consulted their lawyer, made sure they had the authority in their contract to fire the driver, then contacted the driver and/or the driver's agent and let them know they were fired. We only see the meme after the firing has been done.

So now quitting an exhibition iRacing event is worse than quitting a real race that people paid to go see?

This thread is everything I thought it would be.

 

[Northstar]

You do know those video games you play exist in the real world right? You do know that you're in the real world right? This is a dangerous train of thought to go down.

I'd have accepted your response if you were under 18 or something, but dude. You need to grow up a little bit. Saying something isn't real life is a really bad defensive argument. Saying "it's not real life" speaks volumes about you.

Interesting, to say the least. Lowest common denominator never fails

I hope you realize you have become what you were arguing against.

 

[DesertPenguin]

Sorry, how so? Those two posts are unrelated. One was in response to someone who doesn't take sim racing seriously and the other was my response to seeing how many people watched NASCAR. I'm really bad at picking up things so by all means lemme know. Not mad here or trying to argue anything.

 

[Northstar]

Sorry, how so? Those two posts are unrelated. One was in response to someone who doesn't take sim racing seriously and the other was my response to seeing how many people watched NASCAR. I'm really bad at picking up things so by all means lemme know. Not mad here or trying to argue anything.

You were arguing against people writing something off if it doesn’t fit their criteria.... than proceeded to write something off because it doesn’t fit your criteria.

 

[DesertPenguin]

My bad. I'm trying to express myself but I can't without coming off in a way that says "NASCAR is a simple sport for simple people so since there's more simple minded laymen around it's clear where they flock to" and I don't wanna say that cuz it's rude and implies Formula 1 is a smart man's sport. I don't feel that way and there are people that like both.

 

[Populuxe]

So now quitting an exhibition iRacing event is worse than quitting a real race that people paid to go see?

This thread is everything I thought it would be.

I don't think you're making the argument you think you're making. Yes, throwing a tantrum over a video game in which you are representing a sponsor who is paying you to race is worse than quitting a real race because you believe continuing to race is unacceptably dangerous. As much as a sponsor wants their car to be on the track as long as possible, they do not want to see their driver (or any driver) harmed or killed, so they accept the drivers and/or teams decision about what is and isn't safe racing conditions. Rage-quitting a video game shows a level of immaturity that calls into question his ability to race without throwing a tantrum in the real world.

 

[TS050]

This is currently the thread that keeps on giving

 

[05XR8]

He obviously took it serious enough, to let the crash effect his emotions and rage quit.

Well, he could have taken it another route. He could have posted on Twitter about the incident and said it ruined his results for him, his sponsors and fans watching. Didn't happen and there he is.

Can't be doing that with real dollars(sponsors, potential new fans and fans buying merchandise) on the line. At home(home home, not quarantine home haha), do what you do.

 

[DesertPenguin]

I saw someone on youtube post their reaction and said something I wouldn't have thought about because I don't know NASCAR. He said Bubba should have stayed in the lobby and at least spectated calling out crashes and things. He said Bubba has an entertaining personality and could have made that work, but instead chose to quit and end his stream abruptly.

It's one thing for the other racers but what about everyone watching the stream? That's like having a house party and throwing everyone out because one person grabbed the last of your favorite beer or something. You got mad, now everyone has to leave? That's not very considerate.

 

[Nogoodname]

You do know those video games you play exist in the real world right? You do know that you're in the real world right? This is a dangerous train of thought to go down.

I'd have accepted your response if you were under 18 or something, but dude. You need to grow up a little bit. Saying something isn't real life is a really bad defensive argument. Saying "it's not real life" speaks volumes about you.

Because a video game is not real life means I'm mentally mature? Huh.

 

[DesertPenguin]

The fact that you can't grasp that playing something in a game still takes place in the real world and is therefore real. It's still real dude.

Maybe you need to reword your thoughts. "What happens in games is not real life. The games themselves exist in real life." That would make sense.

 

[Nogoodname]

The fact that you can't grasp that playing something in a game still takes place in the real world and is therefore real. It's still real dude.

If video games are not part of real life, what are they then?

Well yeah a video game is something happening in real life but it's not at the point where we can just say OH IT'S SO REAL IT'S LIKE REAL LIFE...It just isn't

 

[DesertPenguin]

Well yeah a video game is something happening in real life but it's not at the point where we can just say OH IT'S SO REAL IT'S LIKE REAL LIFE...It just isn't

No one was talking about the level of realism in gaming. We're talking about the fact that the game is real and being taken seriously like any other real racing because it is real racing, just not on actual pavement.

 

[Nogoodname]

No one was talking about the level of realism in gaming. We're talking about the fact that the game is real and being taken seriously like any other real racing because it is real racing, just not on actual pavement.

I see your point we just haven't gotten to that level yet it's not that advanced yet. I'm not going to carry on this argument because it will just go back and forth forever.

 

[DesertPenguin]

Fair enough. I respectfully disagree and believe it's advanced enough for this. It can always improve further, I won't say it can't.

 

[Nogoodname]

Fair enough. I respectfully disagree and believe it's advanced enough for this. It can always improve further, I won't say it can't.

Things will always improve slowly or fast

 

[Sage Ages]

So does this mean that we're in the matrix or what...

 

[DesertPenguin]

So does this mean that we're in the matrix or what...

Considering it can improve I'd say probably one of the first six versions of it, yes.

 

[matrix_gt1]

Turns out that emu oil itself is just melted emu fat. Which sounds... grim.

Blue-Emu has just become an entitlement sponsor (for the Virginia 500), as well as a series partner for NASCAR and it has been sponsoring RPM (and latterly just the RPM cars) for at least six years as far as I can tell.

emu’s have this gland on their back, and that’s where the oil comes from

 

[Famine]

emu’s have this gland on their back, and that’s where the oil comes from

 

[RichiPuppy]

Under the current situation this is this driver’s job. How many of you would still have their job if something went wrong and you just walked out?

 

[Jezza819]

Bubba wrecked out, through no fault of his own, because Bowyer got up into him. A common complaint amongst fans during the weekend was the fact that Bowyer caused a couple wrecks and seemingly did not care, as well as the high number of wrecks in general. Clint even blamed Bubba for his wreck. In a real event, that kind of wreck would've sent Bubba to the garage at minimum, effectively ending his race before it even really got going.

So, Clint can cause a couple wrecks and nobody cares, yet when Bubba (understandably) gets frustrated and peaces out, he's the bad guy? It kinda seems like Bubba's being held to a different standard than his fellow drivers imo.

Bowyer said that started earlier when he got "Bubba'ed" so then he proceeds to take Bubba out after, again quoting Bowyer, "his give a damn broke" which was a funny line. Another funny line was when Larry McReynolds told Bowyer to pull into pitlane and find the pace car and go hit it because that's the only thing he hadn't hit in the race.

I don't follow NASCAR enough to know a lot about some of the drivers but I've heard Bubba doesn't exactly have a lot of respect from the other drivers. Blue Emu is footing the bill so I guess they are within their rights to drop him. Another of their drivers in the race Landon Cassell has made his setup almost like a real Blue Emu race car with logos plastered all over the place and a fake window netting to his left.

 

[theschledy]

This is the same fan base that was crying over lug nuts a month ago . Nascar fans get triggered by everything.

The notion that Bubba Wallace is more obligated to take part in an exhibition iRacing event, where there's no championship and virtually nothing to complete for is just funny. Suddenly there's no higher crime in motorsport than rage quit what some Nascar fans call a "simulation".

Meanwhile, Blue Emu can't even be on time for Radio Interviews. I don't follow Nascar, but it says a lot about where they're at when relying on sponsors like this.

 

[killerjimbag]

My bad. I'm trying to express myself but I can't without coming off in a way that says "NASCAR is a simple sport for simple people so since there's more simple minded laymen around it's clear where they flock to" and I don't wanna say that cuz it's rude and implies Formula 1 is a smart man's sport. I don't feel that way and there are people that like both.

Put the keyboard away for awhile. Take a break and go play some serious video games.

 

[DesertPenguin]

Put the keyboard away for awhile. Take a break and go play some serious video games.

I did actually. Spent the rest of the day playing Dark Souls 3

 

[davidt33]

C'mon now. Firing or unsponsoring him because of that e-racing incident? Is that meme even serious? Steups.

 

[RustyCitroen]

I think my grin widened about fifty meters when I saw this thread had 85 comments.
I love this site... this issue was hotly debated everywhere I looked, glad to see it's the same here.

My two cents? While BE was a little silly to pull sponsorship over iRacing, we all know how serious sim-racing can be, and it seems as if incidents involving Wallace have occurred in the past. Both are in the wrong, but at the end of the day it was Bubba's job to keep BE happy, which he clearly didn't do.

 

[Joey D]

Things I didn't know existed until I read this story: Emu oil. Apparently you can ingest it as well as coat your aching body with it which just seems...odd.

As for rage quitting a game? It's pretty childish to do that and I completely understand why the sponsor dumped him over it. Most companies don't want someone who throws a tantrum to represent their products since it's a bad look. My guess is Blue Emu was just doing a bit of CYA and didn't want any fallout. Plus Bubba (the most NASCAR sounding name ever) was probably in breach of contract after quitting. I have to imagine those contracts are insanely complex.

 

[ribloGT]

I dont exactly know what happened and i dont watch these "esports" races to fill the gap cause of the suspended real races..

But, i can completely understand rage quitting. I sim raced for many many years, way before it was popular. I started with a 80bucks plastic toy wheel and went up all the way to DD wheels. From early "F1 Challenge" games to the recent ones. I stopped 2 years ago because its impossible to have good races in the longt term. You will have 1-2 nice races every now and then but generally speaking its hilarious. And tbh, one of the worst platforms (at least for me) was iRacing. Its absolutely hilarious how bad ppl are although they are paying for it every month. I dont get it seriously.

I sold all of my equipment and stopped doing my hobby just because of the majority of the people.

@Russ Petersen
Exactly not. This "idea" makes and made motorsports a not so much hardcore sport. When i look to the current online or even real life motorsports scene, when i look what commentators hype, what the "mass" hypes, i alwys have a "wtf" face on me.
The hardcore motorsports fans, atleast the F1 ones from 20 years ago, we laughed about everything which is hyped today. Its not about racing anymore exactly like you described but thats not a positive thing, thats actually hurting the sport in general.

You expressed my same thoughts
This is an utter garbage cause we are gving to esports much more importance than what they deserve...
Cmon the main platforms for esports are GTS that is an bad arcade game and iRacing that is a money draining web based game with graphics like a PS2 title just only because max "i push you out the track" verstappen is playing that game too?
And sponsors cutting a sponsorship to a real driver playing on esports only because he left a race? and all the times a racer that leaves a real race cause the car is not working weall? Then in real life we should have cars without sponsors in one year or two...
OMG this story is freaking crazy...

 

[RustyCitroen]

You expressed my same thoughts
This is an utter garbage cause we are gving to esports much more importance than what they deserve...
Cmon the main platforms for esports are GTS that is an bad arcade game and iRacing that is a money draining web based game with graphics like a PS2 title just only because max "i push you out the track" verstappen is playing that game too?
And sponsors cutting a sponsorship to a real driver playing on esports only because he left a race? and all the times a racer that leaves a real race cause the car is not working weall? Then in real life we should have cars without sponsors in one year or two...
OMG this story is freaking crazy...

That's some very archaic thinking.