Young and upcoming drivers like Keelan Harvick, 12, and Owen Larson, 10, are often in the news for the achievements they unlock on their way to potentially becoming full-time NASCAR drivers. They have plenty of experience on different track types, particularly ovals, for their age and they use it all to their benefit when they transition to the bigger playgrounds.
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But this isn’t the case everywhere in the world. A kid who is of Keelan’s age in South America just doesn’t get the chance to practice racing on oval tracks. Road courses are available to them aplenty but it isn’t until they are at least 17 years old that they get to race on and understand how ovals work. Daniel Suárez spoke to Dale Earnhardt Jr. about this inequality on Dale Jr. Download.
He said that with road courses being given priority in markets like Mexico, children interested in racing initially look up Formula 1, IndyCar, and the like as their preferred destinations. It is only after growing up do they realize that NASCAR is a viable venue to aim for as well. But, by then, they lack the required skill and experience to tackle ovals.
“When you start to realize all these things, you start to learn that you don’t know anything about ovals, which was my experience. I didn’t do my first oval race until I was maybe 17 years old. If you think about it, a kid here in the United States that is 17 years old already has 10 years of experience in all those. So, it’s just way different,” Suárez said.
