HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. — Every weekend during the NASCAR Cup Series season, drivers strap in and prepare to tackle the high-octane, adrenaline-fueled challenges of the track. But have you ever wondered what it truly takes to master a circuit when competition levels are closer than ever?

Part of the answer lies in the cutting-edge realm of simulation. This sophisticated technology allows drivers to navigate virtual yet hyper-realistic versions of tracks, honing their skills and strategies in a risk-free environment. By immersing themselves in these digital landscapes, teams gain invaluable insights and practice, transforming prior uncertainties into advantages before they even hit the race track. So while the roar of the engines and the thrill of competition unfold on race day, much of the groundwork is laid in the quiet precision behind the curtain of team headquarters. 

23XI Racing recently opened its doors to NASCAR.com to discuss how it best utilizes simulation data and applies it to its Nos. 23 and 45 Toyotas, driven by Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick.

MINDS BEHIND THE SCREENS

Keegan Leahy’s journey began in Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, where he majored in physics and atmospheric science as he eyed a career in meteorology. With a foundation built on unraveling the complexities of weather patterns and physical forces, Leahy now channels his expertise into the virtual racing world, where he dove into iRacing back in 2013.

That endeavor paid dividends in just a few short years, catching the attention of Denny Hamlin as he sought to start an eNASCAR team for the 2020 season. Their relationship strengthened throughout the year during the COVID-19 pandemic. While the sport was on hiatus, NASCAR drivers were paired with iRacers for the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series, with Leahy paired with Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and then budding co-owner of 23XI Racing.

So when Hamlin launched his NASCAR Cup Series team into reality in 2021, he also made sure to put in a good word for Leahy. He was able to convert those iRacing skills into something even more valuable as the team’s simulation driver, joining 23XI in its inaugural season in 2021. In his current role, Leahy has been tasked with turning the digital race track into a canvas for precision and innovation both behind the wheel and behind the screen.

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On the flip side is Marcos Telles, a mastermind in modeling the software for 23XI’s simulation work. A native of Brazil, Telles began his studies in São Paulo in mechanical engineering. Upon graduation, he continued his work in the Porsche Cup Brasil for three years before making a major life change and moving to Germany. Though he shifted continents and time zones, the crux of his work remained the same, focusing on the exact same Porsche Cup cars, only this time battling for the Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland.

“It was a really cool transition because I was actually doing the same championship, same tires, same cars, same everything, same rules even,” Telles said. “But I had to learn how to live alone, how to go to the market, how to wash my clothes, and how to speak German, because I didn’t know the words.”

Telles’ long and winding path through motorsports eventually led him to 23XI Racing in March of 2022. His skills brought him to the United States, knowing very little about the NASCAR scene and its drivers, yet bringing fresh knowledge to the sport, thanks in large part to the Cup Series’ then-new Next Gen vehicle that was similar to the sports cars he was accustomed to. 

“This is a completely different new world that I can learn from,” Telles said. “At the same time, I can bring everything I know from my world to them because they never saw that.”

Leahy and Telles exemplify the fresh outlook 23XI attempts to bring to its execution. Both are internationally-born individuals with no prior real-word experience in NASCAR, yet the team was willing to bring them into its organization to utilize their best attributes to help drive the program forward on-track.

HOW SIMULATION DRIVES 23XI’S PREPARATION

During the weeks leading up to a race, drivers dedicate time to prepare their bodies and minds to chase a win. However, there is limited time to practice on the track. 

This is where the art of simulation becomes critical. 

Tracks within the NASCAR Cup Series schedule have been scanned into the simulation, down to the millimeter of precision. There are millions of different combinations that can be made to the car, from tire models to shocks to aero packages, specializing from short tracks to superspeedways. Through these combinations, both Leahy and Telles work to make sure every model of the simulation is as realistic as possible. 

“The amount of options we have to go through to find the optimum of every single parameter is just huge,” Telles said. “That’s why we use the simulation a lot — that’s one of the reasons. Of course, we cannot test, so basically what we do is everything based off a simulation.”

A portion of the simulation data is pulled from historical material from races and tracks. There are, though, a few cases in which this isn’t entirely possible, like when a track has been repaved or a new circuit has been added to the schedule. In advance of those events, Goodyear tire tests allow each manufacturer to collect data to provide teams an expectation ahead of race weekend. Telles said most anything can be done in simulation, but that comes at a cost.

“We can add stuff on top of what we have,” Telles said. “We can add new ideas and develop things, but the more precise you want to be, the harder it gets.”

On-track testing, while limited, allows 23XI Racing to accumulate the remainder of the data. There are at least a thousand channels per wheel on the test car, each with sensors to track data. Attributes such as brake pressure and car speed are calculated, as well as the speed and temperature of each individual wheel, alongside many other characteristics of the car like surface temperature, bolt temperature, tire pressure and more. 

With such detailed information to pull from, Leahy and Telles then collaborate to create the most realistic simulation for that respective race weekend.

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“I’ll spend a lot of time, very early on in our process, making sure the car drives similarly to how it does in real life,” Leahy said. “That involves taking last race’s data, last race’s car and driving in our simulator and making sure it lines up to real data. Make sure lap times are right, make sure we are running the right lines, make sure I’m using throttle, brake and steering very similarly to how Tyler (Reddick) and Bubba (Wallace) were doing last year. We call that correlation. From there, we can run stuff like setup options and try different stuff out in the sim. By the time we run through a lot of that, the car should be pretty close to what we show up with to the race track.”

TEAMWORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK  

Such devoted efforts into simulation data are necessary for the team to help adequately prepare the drivers, creating a mutually beneficial relationship between Bubba Wallace, Tyler Reddick and the simulation team.

While Leahy test pilots the simulation, both 23XI drivers confirm his feedback, hopping into the simulator themselves to dial in the feel each competitor is searching for.  

“Once the grunt work is done, Tyler and Bubba can jump in, and the car should be pretty close to what we show up with at the race track,” Leahy said. “They can drive it, get their feedback about how the car drives, potential setup changes and also get a bunch of laps in for practice.”

A few other members of the Nos. 45 and 23 car teams work closely with the simulation. Telles runs hand-in-hand weekly with crew chiefs and engineers to ensure the best solutions are being created within the simulation, as well as providing the best version possible to the teams. 

With many intelligent minds in a room, discussions regarding modeling of a car and its setups can be difficult. Telles said there are many different points of view between himself and the race engineers, which can provide a level of disagreement. But at the end of the day, everyone is fighting for the same goal.

“We’re not arguing to be right; we’re arguing to go faster,” Leahy said. 

Those spirited debates only drive the team forward, evidenced in results. Heading into Sunday’s race at Richmond Raceway (6 p.m. ET, USA Network, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App), Reddick sits third in the regular-season points standings with Wallace just seven points out from a playoff spot.

23XI Racing utilizes simulations in a way that can prepare them for the weekends to come. As the playoffs lurk around the corner, the team will capitalize on both Leahy’s and Telles’ skills to guide them to success through their simulation work.