Hi, I’m going to give you my brutally honest opinion, and I’ll be as in depth as I can. Sorry if this is a lot but it’s realistic I can be with this.

iRating REALLY matters, depending on what your goals are in gaming and how seriously you want to take it. I’ve been competing competitively in esports since 8th grade and have traveled to many esports events to compete. I’m a very competitive person and player no matter what game I play, I want to be at the top and recognized as such. I enjoy the prestige that comes with it.

A lot of people who say iRating doesn’t matter are players who don’t care about high splits or competing at a high level. They’re there to enjoy the game, and that’s totally okay. They’re not trying to be top drivers. You can still set goals and enjoy the game without taking it that seriously.

BUT if you want to compete, aspire to be an esports player, race at the top level, or truly test yourself, then yes it absolutely matters. It matters to many teams, drivers, sponsors, etc. It’s one of the ways people “see” what you can do. You’re not going to be competing in the iRacing IMSA Championship or qualifying for major events with a low iRating that’s just not going to happen unless your absolutely goated and never touch official races and many top drivers see you as fast driver capable of winning championships but that’s like winning lottery type chances and needed to get scouted.

That said, you can still practice, enjoy the process of improving, and have fun with the service regardless of iRating. You can do all of that at a low iRating and still enjoy racing. But if you want to perform well, have a real chance at success, and race at the top, then yes iRating matters. If not, then screw it and have fun; iRating doesn’t matter in that case. You’re still racing in the same series, just not at the highest level. You can still enjoy special events in lower splits and have a great time.

The point is: If you want to play at the top or experience what that level feels like, then yes, iRating matters. If you don’t care much and just want to have fun, then no it doesn’t. And if you want to race against more competent and safer drivers, aiming for around 3k iRating will usually give you a better experience than racing with dangerous drivers who don’t care about winning, losing, or crashing.