Art imitates life... for NASCAR drivers?

[Nick]

A long, long time ago, I read about some F1 driver called Hill or something, who claimed that playing Geoff Crammond's classic F1 game on the Amiga helped him get a seat testing the real thing...

Now it seems that NASCAR drivers are doing the same.

A growing number of drivers - including Dale Earnhardt Jr., Ryan Newman and the rest of NASCAR's MTV generation - use video games to help them hone their skills at various tracks. It has become an integral part of their race preparation.

I can just picture it now, all crowded round a Gamecube giving it hell for leather on Mario Kart.

"There are some flaws, but for the most part the tracks are real similar," said Kyle Busch, one of two rookies in Sunday's Daytona 500.

Well, personally I'd be happy and take the flaws over smashing into a wall at 200mph and having my legs pureed.

Check out the full story here.

[Stoo]

Yup, and quite a few of the F1 drivers used the PS2 F1 titles to "practise" on new tracks