Former Formula One World Champion Kimi Raikkonen will drive his first elite series NASCAR race on Sunday after retiring from F1 in 2021.
Kimi Raikkonen is set to embark on a new journey in the NASCAR world. The 2007 World champion is considered one of the legends in Formula 1 world.
He drove for the likes of Ferrari, McLaren, Sauber, and Lotus throughout his F1 journey and won 21 races. The Iceman still remains an important figure in the motorsports world.
He retired from Formula One in 2021 after completing a full circle with Sauber Alfa Romeo. Moreover, he will make his NASCAR debut at the Watkins Glen this Sunday.
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The Iceman’s previous experience in driving NASCAR
Kimi Raikkonen had previously driven in NASCAR on two separate occasions. First at the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and the latter in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
With that experience, it was rather easy for Raikkonen to prepare for the race. He added: “I think we’ve prepared as well as we could for the limited amount of anything, obviously with how the rules are.”
The Iceman will drive the new NASCAR team known as PROJECT91. As per the team co-owner Justin Marks, the team can run for further 6-8 races.
Hear from Kimi Raikkonen after his first laps in a @NASCAR Cup Series session.
He’s gearing up for his debut Sunday on @USA_Network. pic.twitter.com/CrWNcQhDQ3
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 20, 2022
Kimi Raikkonen is driving in NASCAR with no pressure in mind
Talking about the potential failure in his new NASCAR career, Raikonnen stated: “I don’t see any risk. Why not? What do I have to lose? That I‘ve done bad in a NASCAR race or bad in any race?”
He further added: “I don’t care. I do it for myself. Good or bad result, it could happen even if I did 20 races. They all could be bad for many different races.”
The 2007 World Champion thanked the team co-owner Justin Marks for onboarding a European driver in the American sport. Moreover, he wishes to see more Europeans in NASCAR in the near future.
#NASCAR … I asked Kimi Raikkonen why does a former world champion take the risk of running a Cup race when he has such limited testing time and limited practice time. Said Kimi: “What do I have to lose?“ pic.twitter.com/Da15U7V9u8
— Dustin Long (@dustinlong) August 20, 2022
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