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Once Again, Open-Wheelers Eye NASCAR

An Opinion



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April 3, 2011

By Kim Roberson

Kim Roberson
























Remember the days when NASCAR was the red-headed stepchild of auto racing?

Our fans were rednecks, and what the drivers did wasn’t “real racing” in the eyes of the other four-wheel racing series. One F1 fan even commented last year “It will be an insult for them (F1 drivers) to be associated with NASCAR as a career change!”

If F1 drivers left the sport, they would often gravitate to IndyCar or CART before even considering lowering themselves to drive in NASCAR. Nigel Mansell, Emerson Fittipaldi, Christian Fittipaldi, Teo Fabi, Raul Boesel and Stefan Johansson all moved over to the CART series after ending their careers in F1, with Mansell and Emerson Fittipaldi moving on to win CART Championships before the series went away.

But move to NASCAR? No way.

My, how times have changed.

This week, it was announced that Former Formula 1 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen would be coming to NASCAR. Not just a former F1 driver, but a former F1 CHAMPION.

In recent years, it seems that drivers from what has been seen as the gold standard in racing have been looking at our little “redneck” sport with more and more interest. Juan Pablo Montoya was the first former F1 driver to join NASCAR ranks when he took the wheel of the No. 42 for then Chip Ganassi Racing (now Earnhardt-Ganassi racing) back in 2007.

Since then, Nelson Piquet, Jr., Jacques Villeneuve, Narain Karthikeyan, Max Papis, and Scott Speed have come over to NASCAR, admittedly with very mixed results.

When Villeneuve took the wheel of a NASCAR Truck for the first time back in 2007, he told the media "It's a new challenge, something fun -- everyone here is so open and warm, and it's always better racing when you have a roof over your head."

F1 fans seem to be scratching their head at the recent run of F1 drivers on the move across the pond to race in circles.

“I’ve always wondered why some open wheelers have felt attracted by NASCAR,” commented one fan named Mario Balza on an F1 blog this week. “Ok, fantastic cars, beautiful cars, but races are so bored (soooo bored), crashes all the time, yellow flags all the time (if an ant crosses the track: YELLOW FLAG).

"If it’s more difficult to win there than in Formulas, maybe; many more cars on ovals, turning, turning, turning and turning. Fine, different degrees for corners in different ovals, but turning aaall the time. I don’t know, but I would’ve preferred to see Kimi stay in F1 and not trying in any other category without success. (CAUTION: this is just my point of view). Whatever they say about Formula One in USA, the F1 is the highest level in motorsport.”

Another F1 fan asked “It’s not just when is an open wheel driver going to be a front runner in NASCAR, but when is a NASCAR driver even going to win (or even make it to the grid) in open wheel racing? The two disciplines are very different. It could happen but I wouldn’t suggest holding your breath.”

Apparently this fan, named David, hasn’t heard of Tony Stewart or A.J. Foyt.

Yes, drivers who have raced open wheel in America have been coming over to NASCAR since the 70’s, also with mixed results. Former IndyCar Champions Foyt and Stewart, along with Mario Andretti, have had huge results in NASCAR, with Stewart taking home two NASCAR Cup Championships since he joined the ranks in 1999. Montoya won Rookie of the Year and a championship in the CART series before coming to NASCAR, where he has two wins in four full seasons. Robby Gordon, Max Papis, Dario Franchitti, Sam Hornish, Jr., Sarah Fisher, John Andretti, and most recently, Danica Patrick have come over from IndyCar with less success.

And let’s not forget team owners Chip Ganassi and Roger Penske. Both men own successful teams in NASCAR and IndyCar, with Ganassi sweeping what many feel were the major races in both series last season: Daytona 500, Indy 500, and Brickyard 400.

So, will a former F1 Champion succeed where others have struggled in NASCAR?

Raikkonen has joined one of the strongest NASCAR Camping World Truck Series teams in Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM) and is scheduled to make his NASCAR debut in the N.C. Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 20.

In F1, the 31-year old Finnish driver won 18 races, and had 62 podium (top three) finishes in nine years in the series.

But as we have seen, just because you have won in open wheel doesn’t mean you will win in NASCAR.

We’ll have to wait and see if an F1 Champion can succeed in our little “redneck” sport.

Follow Kim on Twitter: @ksrgatorfn




You can contact Kim at.. Insider Racing News
You Can Read Other Articles By Kim


The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.

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