Racing games exist for one of two purposes.
They either attempt to recreate high speed driving without the actual risk of life and limb, or they suck eggs. I personally love a good racing game to spice up the day. When the guys at Nintendo decided to spend some energy on building a cool arcade racing game, they didn't mess around. USA made a big splash as a coin-op, despite the high price of play. Much of the game's popularity can be attributed to a powerful graphics engine and incredibly smooth handling and control.