Video game development is rarely about one man, but if it was, then Terence Groening should certainly get a mention for his contributions to the genre as the man responsible for the physics of Sportscar GT, EA’s PC F1 and NASCAR games of the early 2000’s, rFactor, rFactor 2 and every title and rFpro simulator that spawned from ISI’s engine.
This interview with RSC details his early life and career, through to him joining iRacing in 2021.
As a direct ancestor of iRacing, the ‘Grand Prix Legends engine’ had multiple stock car racing false starts, before eventually releasing as NASCAR Racing 4. The original NASCAR 3, cancelled and replaced by one that used NASCAR 2’s engine, is barely remembered.
The class of the field during the 1989 season, the Penske PC-18 won Indy and the championship with Emerson Fittipaldi for Patrick Racing (operated by Chip Ganassi), ahead of Rick Mears in the yellow Pennzoil car of Penske.
The PC18 was powered that year by a Chevrolet 265A V8t by both teams. The car was much less competitive in 1990, but still took a handful of points finishes, and a first podium finish for Chip Ganassi Racing.
First seen in sim racing with Indy 500 (1989). The manual for that title states that their Penske chassis is a Penske-Chevrolet, but instead of replacing existing teams on behalf of the player the software creates a fictional Penske team that replaces the March-Cosworth of Rich Vogler, who started 33rd and finished 8th in 1989.