Lowe’s #Sim2Reality Journey Adds EuroNASCAR Adventure

Garrett Lowe (BS+ Competition photo)

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – BS+ Competition’s Garrett Lowe will add some international flair to his ‘sim to reality’ journey when the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series driver begins a full-time campaign in the NASCAR Euro Series PRO Division.

Lowe will drive the No. 99 Chevrolet ‘across the pond’ this season for Bremotion.

The veteran sim racer’s journey started in Legends Cars and has advanced to Late Models and more recently Radical Sr8’s in the Prodigy Racing League in recent years.

The opportunity to compete in NASCAR’s European division started in December. Lowe later tested a EuroNASCAR stock car in January, and on March 20, Lowe’s European escapades were finally unveiled.

“The announcements for the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series have been coming for a long time,” Lowe said. “Since December we've been working through partners, sponsors, logistics, the team, and the series. I mean it's been three months in the making, if not more. It was a big day for sure and to get that out of the way and look forward to getting in the car and going to test and start the first race of the season, it was a big relief but also making sure we celebrate the opportunity.”

The Gastonia, N.C., native is not the first with sim racing connections to compete in EuroNASCAR. Ryan Vargas, a broadcaster for iRacing and part-time NASCAR Canada Series driver, ran the full European schedule last season.

While Vargas – who has also competed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, and ARCA Menards Series – raced in Europe last year, his primary background is on ovals. Like last year, 12 of the 13 events match Lowe’s background, road course racing.

However, it is still a NASCAR stock car that the 23-year-old will be competing in, on racetracks that he has largely never seen, some of which are not on iRacing.

Lowe plans to reach out to Vargas in the future for advice.

“I haven't reached out to Ryan yet; I may, but obviously he has a large oval racing background, and I have a little more road course experience,” Lowe observed. “I think he did when he started, but nevertheless, still somebody that's been a NASCAR stock car that is taking it overseas, so I’ll get in touch with him for some information.”

With a 13-race slate in Europe, Lowe now has to balance four different racing series and a part-time job. Being able to separate the good and bad days in EuroNASCAR, late models, the Prodigy Racing League, and in sim racing is a focus that, so far, he has excelled at.

That mindset is something that Lowe is aware of and fully expects as his racing portfolio expands once again.

“You just have to compartmentalize the good and bad days between sim and reality,” Lowe stated. “I've always done that as far as keeping the focus on the two separate. Occasionally, you do have events where I’m racing on the sim from the location of the actual real-life event I'm racing, so we do have a good bit of crossover, but I try to keep it separate.

“I mean, it's almost a mindset. You just have to be able to switch back and forth between the two. Nights like (last Tuesday) are disappointing, but I know that I have to regroup and reset.”

That mindset of balancing the sim and real-world competition is more challenging in 2025, as Lowe is now also working for 23XI Racing. He’s not the first eNASCAR driver to be hired by the NASCAR Cup Series team, joining former eNASCAR champion Keegan Leahy in that regard.

A part of that balance is working through the schedule weeks and months ahead of time. For the next eNASCAR race at the virtual Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway, Lowe will likely be racing in Munich, Germany.

“It's more challenging because I'm working for a NASCAR Cup Series team, 23XI Racing, (and) having that as a part-time job is not as easy,” Lowe admitted. “I'm able to kind of work through the racing schedule real and virtual to accommodate that, but it is challenging.

“There are going to be a few races this year where I’m probably landing on a Monday night and then will have to go run the eNASCAR race on a Tuesday, so it’ll be pretty tricky. I’ll actually be in Munich for the Rockingham race it looks like right now. Travel and logistics are going to be a big challenge this year, but we’re pretty prepared for it quite a few times.

“I think I have the most different venues I’ve ever run in a professional series compared to just about anybody.”

The first race for Lowe’s European adventure is the NASCAR GP of Spain at Circuit Ricardo Tormo on Saturday, April 12.

Broadcast coverage of the event is scheduled for Saturday, April 12, at 8:30 a.m. ET, streamed live on the EuroNASCAR YouTube channel.