Academy / Getting started
You've got an account, the sim installed, and your wheel calibrated. And then up comes the screen that stops every one of us when we start iRacing: dozens of cars, tracks, and time slots, and a question nobody answered for you yet — which race do I even start with?
The good news: the answer is far simpler than that screen makes it look.
The basics of your first races, explained in 60 seconds
You start in Rookie whether you like it or not: your beginner license won't let you race anything else. What you do choose is the series, and we'll focus on the two categories almost everyone starts with: open-wheelers (Formula) and closed cars (Sports Car). They're the most popular and the best place to learn. Oval and dirt are another story.
Three things you need to know right away:
- You start in Rookie, and it's free. Rookie series use cars and tracks already included in your subscription from day one. You buy absolutely nothing for your first race.
- Formula or Sports Car — pick by taste. Open-wheelers if the F1 feel pulls you in; touring cars and GTs if you prefer closed cars. Either one works for learning, and picking the right series matters far less than turning your first lap.
- Your goal isn't to win, it's to finish clean. In your first races you're chasing one thing: crossing the line without messing up. The result doesn't matter; that's how your Safety Rating and iRating get built from the start.
If you stick with that, you've got the idea. If you want to know exactly which series to pick first, in what order, and why some teach you more than others, keep reading.
What to race first (and in what order)
Four steps and you're on your first grid.
1. Pick a category: open-wheelers or closed cars. It's the only choice that really matters, and it comes down to taste:
- Formula (open-wheelers): no bodywork, twitchier and more direct. They reward smoothness and precision. If the feel of F1 or F4 pulls you in, this is your lane.
- Sports Car (closed cars): touring cars and GTs, more stable and forgiving while you learn. If you prefer bodywork and a car that cuts you some slack, start here.
Each category carries its own license and its own iRating, so when you're starting out it pays to focus on just one and not spread yourself thin.
2. Jump into the Rookie series with a free car and a fixed setup. Don't overthink it: each category has a Rookie series built for exactly this.
| Category | Start in | Car | Setup | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sports Car | Global Mazda MX-5 Cup | Mazda MX-5 | Fixed | Free |
| Formula | Formula Vee Series | Formula Vee | Fixed | Free |
In Sports Car, the MX-5 is the most forgiving car there is for learning. If you want something with more punch, the BMW M2 Cup is the alternative (also free, but more powerful and the rear steps out easily). In Formula, the Formula Vee is a light, simple single-seater —around 69 hp—, the first rung on the open-wheel ladder.
Always start in a fixed-setup series (it shows as "Fixed" in the UI).
In a fixed series, every driver runs the exact same setup that iRacing provides. What does that mean for you? That what makes the difference on track is driving, not engineering. It's the best possible place to learn: forget about touching the car until you've got the driving down. The series you'll start in —the MX-5 Cup and the Formula Vee— are fixed; with a Rookie license you'll also see the odd Open (adjustable) series, but at the start, stick to the fixed ones.
3. Practice the track before the race. I go deep on this in the Safety Rating guide, but in short: 30-60 minutes in practice to learn the track on your own. If you don't know it solo, you won't know it with 20 cars around you.
4. Race, finish clean, and repeat until you reach Class D. Your goal in Rookie isn't to win, it's to stack up clean races and raise your Safety Rating. Once you hit 3.00 SR you leave Rookie via Fast Track, or you move up at season's end by meeting the minimum. From Class D the real catalog opens up: GT4 if you came from Sports Car, Formula 4 if you came from open-wheelers — and that's when you start buying content.
The goal in Rookie is to leave Rookie as soon as possible.
Rookie isn't a destination, it's a waiting room. The level is lower, the drivers more unpredictable, and the content limited. The sooner you reach Class D, the sooner you start racing for real: better rivals, better cars, better racing. But "as soon as possible" doesn't mean "recklessly": the only way out is stringing together clean races up to 3.00 SR. You don't move up by driving faster, you move up by not messing up. On track, rushing always costs you.
That's everything you need to be on your first grid this very afternoon. What follows is for choosing with a sharper eye: why, within Rookie, some series suit you better than others.
How to choose a series in detail
A series is a whole season, not a single race
When you sign up for a series you're not signing up for a one-off race: you're joining a season of about 12 weeks, with a different track each week. The series is the championship; the race is just that week's event.
Two practical things follow from that:
- You can jump in whenever. You don't have to start in week 1 or run all 12. Join the week you feel like and race as much as you want.
- The track changes every week. Knowing which tracks rotate lets you anticipate which ones you already know and which need practice. Planning the calendar ahead is half the battle won.
Pick a series with people: grids, time slots, and splits
Not every series has the same activity. Some have races going off around the clock with full grids; others are nearly empty. And that matters more than it seems.
- Time slots: each series has fixed start times that repeat through the day. In a popular series there's always a race about to go; in a dead one you can wait an hour only to end up racing alone.
- Splits: when more people register than fit in one race, iRacing divides drivers into groups by iRating. A series with people puts you in a split against rivals at your level, which means fairer, closer racing. I cover this in depth in the iRating guide.
Before you register, check how many people race the series — and mind the minimum for it to count.
On each series panel, iRacing shows you the registered drivers and participation from previous weeks. And here's the detail almost nobody knows: a race needs a minimum number of drivers to be official —6 by default, though some series require 8—. If fewer show up, it still runs, but it's logged as Unofficial: it counts neither toward your iRating nor toward the MPR you need to leave Rookie. In Rookie it's rarely a problem, because the MX-5 Cup and the Formula Vee are always full; but at dead hours or in thin series you can end up racing for nothing. A lively series, at a time with people, makes sure it counts.
That's why, when you're starting out, the most populated series —the MX-5 Cup and the Formula Vee among them— don't just guarantee you always get a race: they give you better rivals and an iRating that moves meaningfully.
Sprint or endurance: start with sprints
Most weekly series are sprints: short races, around 15 to 30 minutes. It's exactly where you learn to launch, manage the first lap, and run clean without an endless session catching up with you. Endurance series exist, even at Rookie level, but that's not where you learn the basics. Master sprints first; endurance will come.
Mistakes when choosing your first series
The mistakes I see over and over in newcomers:
- Buying content before leaving Rookie. The most expensive and most common mistake. You don't need to spend a cent: everything you need for Rookie is already included. Keep your wallet shut until Class D, then buy only what you'll actually use (I explain how and when in the getting-started guide to iRacing).
- Joining an Open (adjustable) setup series without realizing. Always check the label: Fixed to start, Open for later. An Open series forces you to wrestle with the setup while you're still learning to brake.
- Splitting yourself between Formula and Sports Car at once. Each carries its own license and iRating; racing both in parallel means progressing at half speed in each. Pick one and focus.
- Choosing a dead series. Racing is meant to be fun, so if you love a car, go for it. But make sure it has people: a near-empty series gives you worse racing and, if it doesn't hit the driver minimum, it doesn't even count toward leaving Rookie. Enjoy yourself, but with a grid.
- Trying to win every race. We all love winning, but let's be real: you're just starting. You have to take it step by step and learn to read the race. Your first goal isn't the podium, it's finishing clean and understanding what's happening around you. The wins come on their own once you stop forcing them.
Your first race is the one that weighs heaviest in your head and matters least in reality. Nobody remembers which series they started in; everyone remembers the day they finally went for it. Pick Formula or Sports Car, jump into a Rookie series with people, and race. The rest you learn by driving.
So that's it: stop watching tutorials and go drive. See you on track.