Because I noticed a developer say there's no rubber banding (the really generous slipstreaming feels like roundabout rubber banding even if that's all it is anyway especially since the CPU is capable of doing it constantly, without fail), I did some tests.
For five races I drove about as slowly as I could, often barely hitting checkpoints with a fraction of a second to spare, not really affecting the race. Here are the fastest CPU times for those five races:
| Race | Time |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1:51:555 |
| 2 | 1:52:171 |
| 3 | 1:47:671 |
| 4 | 1:52:235 |
| 5 | 1:48:695 |
And now five more where I raced to win:
| Race | Time |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1:37:058 |
| 2 | 1:41:701 |
| 3 | 1:39:805 |
| 4 | 1:40:413 |
| 5 | 1:43:218 |
Comparison:
| Type | Mean | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Racing | ~1:40 | 1:40:413 |
| Slow | ~1:50 | 1:51:555 |
Even the CPU start appears to be based on the player's start. I did five starts boosting, five starts failing, and five doing nothing. It was the same each time.
When I boosted, 7/7 CPUs also boosted. When I failed, 5/7 CPUs failed while 2/7 CPUs started normally. When I did nothing, 5/7 CPUs did nothing while 2/7 CPUs boosted.
Also, it's weird to me when people point out that it's common for arcade racers. I think most of us know that. But there are levels to it. Some rubber banding keeps it fun. Too much makes it annoying.