I really shouldn't have to wait for 1h+ just to earn 2-3 arena tickets and a few points of rank. I'm not here to start a rant. I just think it needs to be fixed.
Agree and after about 15 minutes of waiting, I move on to other activities. That is probably what is happening to your would be opponents, get tired of waiting and have started something else.
I would try to race more often if I got to race more often. :?
I recently waited several minutes for a ranked match that never started. A window popped up stating that I was waiting for a player to confirm, but since players only have 90 seconds to confirm, why am I still waiting after 2 minutes?
Rewards are way too low. In ranked PVP matches, the winner usually gets 10 tickets. At most, a total of 6 tickets are distributed to ALL of the derby participants. I mean, seriously? There is no reason not to experiment with different rewards. Start with doubling (6/4/2 tickets, ~100 gold). If servers begin to bog with too many people racing, reduce to 5/3/1.
I can't imagine crowns players racing, with waits so long. Maybe if it were free for ranked races, with half rewards and a 10 minute cool down, but subscribers have no cool down.
Actually, I have had the same problem with my Ancient Firezilla pet, but not with my Adult Fierce Hound pet. This is because most people race their pets at Teen or Adult. Once they hit Ancient, people work on leveling them up to Epic, instead of racing them. William Crowthistle Legendary Pyromancer 8)