Casey Kirwan wins eNASCAR Throwback night at Darlington

For the second time in the 2023 season, XSET’s Casey Kirwan is an eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series winner.

After an early scuffle with the virtual Lady in Black which saw his 2011 Tony Stewart throwback Chevrolet sustain damage to the right side, the 2022 series champion managed his tires and pulled some strategy to take the lead in the middle of the race. After a pair of restarts with drivers on differing tire strategies, Kirwan was able to separate himself from the pack and hold off a late charge from William Byron eSports’ Nick Ottinger in the closing laps.

The win is the fifth of Kirwan’s career, which has now hit 100 total starts since his debut in the series back in 2018. He ties both JR Motorsports’ Michael Conti and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Bobby Zalenski at two wins on the season after eight races. Tucker Minter with Team Dillon eSports and Steven Wilson with Stewart-Haas Racing are the other two winners this year, both sitting with one apiece.

Throwback night started with Charlotte Phoenix driver Graham Bowlin on the pole position, but after three laps, William Byron eSports’ Matt Bussa was able to take the early control. On Lap 7, Kirwan was involved in a crash with the other Charlotte Phoenix driver, Femi Olatunbosun, as well as Joe Gibbs Racing’s Daniel Faulkingham.

Kirwan elected not to pit and fix the damage. Post-race, Kirwan said he was more worried that he slid the tires, but that turned out to be a non-issue when he fought his way into the top five before green flag pit stops.

Before pit stops, Ottinger had taken control from his teammate Bussa, but after, Kirwan and Bowlin managed to leap frog into the top spots around Ottinger, Conti and Bussa. On a differing strategy was Jim Beaver eSports’ Malik Ray, who opted to pit late, with just about 40 laps remaining, in hopes to catch a caution at the right time.

When he emerged from the pits, he took his lap back, but then went into a super save mode, where the leader Kirwan was trapped, in a sense, on lesser tires. That allowed Bowlin, Ottinger, and the rest of the front runners to accordion back in.

A second caution a few laps later laid the groundwork for Ray to attempt his strategy. He and his Jim Beaver eSports teammate Garrett Lowe started on the front row on their older tires, while the row behind had Zalenski and eRacr’s Collin Bowden on only two fresh tires. Bowlin and Kirwan were back in the third row on four new tires.

Right before a quick third and final caution, Ray had taken the lead, Zalenski moved into second, and Bowlin and Kirwan had moved up a row. On that final restart, Ray could not hold off Kirwan. Ottinger struggled to get by Ray on the bottom, but eventually did as the field sorted itself behind. Ottinger was able to close in, but ran out of time as Kirwan took the checkers.

With another multi-time winner on the season, those currently looking to get into the eNASCAR Playoffs on points can breathe a little easier. Only six races remain in the 2023 regular season, but if there is a new winner in every remaining week, those without a win could find themselves on the outside looking in.

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series results from Darlington Raceway were as follows:

Fin.

St.

No.

Name

Team

Laps

Interval

Led

Best

Pts

11495Casey KirwanXSET1200.0003229.11140
2625Nick OttingerWilliam Byron eSports120-0.3331829.02235
3108Michael ContiJR Motorsports120-1.674129.11434
4148Graham A. BowlinCharlotte Phoenix120-3.108329.15933
5287Malik RayJim Beaver eSports120-4.4011729.38032
62612Garrett ManesfgrAccel120-4.471029.22931
7497Matt BussaWilliam Byron eSports120-5.0683629.30030
82118Bobby ZalenskiJoe Gibbs Racing120-5.507029.28829
92933Tucker MinterTeam Dillon eSports120-5.557029.29928
10113Jordy LopezTeam Dillon eSports120-5.612529.32027
11210Steven WilsonStewart-Haas Racing120-5.813029.27926
12811Parker WhiteTony Kanaan Esports120-5.959029.29725
131569Collin BowdeneRacr120-6.449029.19024
142334Allen BoesFront Row Motorsports120-7.201029.16023
153946Jimmy MullisRise eSports120-7.250029.28722
161938Michael Cosey JrFront Row Motorsports120-7.291029.36121
171317Kaden HoneycuttRFK Racing120-7.618029.29320
182040Dylan AultLETARTE eSports120-8.134029.24019
19527Cody ByusElliott Sadler eSports120-8.184029.39718
203345Michael Guest23XI120-9.732029.20317
21241Darik BourdeauElliott Sadler eSports120-10.085029.15216
222236Brandon McKissicLETARTE eSports120-10.703029.42215
231220Wyatt TinsleyKansas City Pioneers120-11.371029.47114
243175Zack NovakRise eSports120-11.747029.60913
253623Keegan Leahy23XI120-11.871029.41212
263277Ryan DoucettePittsburgh Knights120-11.895029.36811
271643Femi OlatunbosunCharlotte Phoenix120-13.105029.51610
283731Derek JustisKansas City Pioneers120-13.314029.4319
29352Corey VincentPittsburgh Knights120-14.668029.4298
301866Tyler GareyTony Kanaan Esports120-15.324029.3247
31384Ryan LuzaXSET120-15.397529.4256
323015Garrett LoweJim Beaver eSports120-15.971329.4645
332588Kevin KingJR Motorsports120-16.671029.3234
343442Kollin KeistereRacr120-22.473029.1563
351751Donovan StraussWilliams eSports120-23.330029.2952
36276Timmy HolmesRFK Racing120-23.932029.3571
37941Dylan DuvalStewart-Haas Racing120-27.225029.3031
38354Daniel FaulkinghamJoe Gibbs Racing119-1L029.5221
39755Vicente SalasWilliams eSports101-19L029.5671

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series points through eight rounds are as follows:

  1. Michael Conti, 244, 2 wins
  2. Nick Ottinger, 230
  3. Casey Kirwan, 216, 2 wins
  4. Graham Bowlin, 211
  5. Tucker Minter, 207, 1 win
  6. Jordy Lopez Jr., 206
  7. Malik Ray, 199
  8. Michael Cosey Jr., 199
  9. Bobby Zalenski, 189, 2 wins
  10. Keegan Leahy, 172
  11. Garrett Manes, 166
  12. Steven Wilson, 157, 1 win

In two weeks, the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series returns with a Memorial Day weekend classic at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Race coverage will start on Tuesday, May 30 at 9 p.m. ET at eNASCAR.com/live. The Countdown to Green, now presented by Wendy’s, will kick things off at 8:30 p.m. ET.

For more information on the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, visit www.enascar.com or www.iracing.com/enascar. For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit www.iracing.com.