Article Author:
Associated Press
Jenna Fryer
CHARLOTTE, NC (AP) — Kimi Raikkonen has spent the past eight months happily ever after retiring to Switzerland at the end of last year's Formula One season. I was. his young family.
Did he miss the horse race?
"Not really," he said of the 2007 F1 champion.
But here he is, he's been retired for less than a year. Raikkonen will race again.
Raikkonen will race Sunday at Watkins in upstate New York at his Glenn International. This is not a typo, but a NASCAR event. The driver, known for his unintentional antics as "The Iceman", was persuaded to get behind the wheel by TrackHouse Racing and their ambitious and purpose-driven Project91 programme.
Project91 brings NASCAR's global prominence to other official names by Justin Marks, 41-year-old former driver and co-owner of NASCAR's hot new winning team. Created to elevate at the top of his driver. He was prepared to personally finance his race debut at Watkins Glen, a road his course should be contested by the track house.
Topping Marks' list of prospects was Räikkönen, who one weekend in 2011 raced Charlotte at his speedway in both the Xfinity and Truck Series. 19 years of his F1 career. While some were puzzled by Raikkonen's mere presence in his NASCAR hotbed, the most memorable part of his short NASCAR career was that he sponsored his Perky Jerky.
Still, Raikkonen showed interest when first presented with this NASCAR offer of his. Marks then visited Raikkonen's home in Switzerland in February to pitch in person to the Finnish driver to seal the deal.
"I had to find someone who was justified and interested in doing it right away, and for me it was you right away." "The birth of Project91 was my wish as a race fan to see cool things happen in racing. F1 drivers can come to NASCAR and be competitive at the cup level." It's a great thing, and if we're going to launch this, obviously we need someone with global relevance to complement it." It did not disclose the cost of hiring. He once joked that a trip to Switzerland was "expensive" and said last week that Raikkonen was on a $1 million salary before claiming he was joking.
In any case, No. 91 Chevy, a pair of tech companies, he hired two sponsors to pay for part of his Project91 at Recogni and iLOQ. Earned.
In an interview with the Associated Press, Raikkonen, 42, admitted that he casually follows NASCAR and has been interested in the stock car series for over a decade. He had hoped to also host a series race, but that didn't happen, so he returned to Formula 1, taking 21 wins over the next ten years, the last three.
Raikkonen was intrigued by both NASCAR and its new next generation car. Debuting this year, the garage up-and-comer has leveled the competition among elite top teams, including TrackHouse Racings. TrackHouse has achieved his three Cup wins in its second season, with both Ross Chastain and Daniel Suarez qualifying for the playoffs.
"I think it's always good to have an even chance of winning a series. Raikkonen told the Associated Press, "This is still a learning stage for all teams with new machines." Although it was announced in May, long before it was announced, Raikkonen said during the meeting that he was convinced by Marks. Marks entrance into the Räikkönen home was through a close mutual friend of his.
In his decade since his two-race NASCAR foray, while traveling the world for the F1 schedule, Räikkönen has always had an eye on the series. So when we met Marks, he knew there was going to be a new car. Marks said he was "very honest" about his intentions for the program and the Trackhouse feature.
"He's a very honest and outspoken person and I don't think he promises anyone big things," Raikkonen said. "The only thing we can do is try our best and get a good result. Whatever category you choose, whatever race you choose, anything can happen. And I trust him. , they get along pretty well.In NASCAR, it happens easily.”
Räikkönen said he had several race offers over the past eight months, but said, "So far By the way, Marks was the only one who said yes."
One of the reasons he's so enthusiastic is that he's doing something completely new and spending his retirement with his wife and two young children. Because we can experience it together. He said that ultimately having a conventional schedule gave him more family time and allowed him to spend the summer vacationing in Europe.
He brought "The Ice Cubes" to the United States after spending his three days in a truck house. shop, Chevrolet he simulator, and his NASCAR-sanctioned test at Virginia International Raceway. The family will meet in New York City and travel upstate this weekend to prepare for Sunday's race.
His 7-year-old son now races in both go-karts and motocross. But he said his five-year-old daughter isn't really into sports. Neither he was sure what he knew about NASCAR.
"I haven't asked them. They will work it out," Raikkonen said.
Project91 hopes to give the international driver the chance to run his race in a designated cup, with his seven nations represented on Sunday in a NASCAR record. He agreed with his Project91 concept to provide an opportunity for international drivers interested in the top US motorsport series.
"I'm sure Justin may get a call already," Raikkonen said of interested drivers. In fact, Marks said he wants to race at the Daytona 500 next year, a four-time Indianapolis 500 winner and avid Helio he spoke early with Castroneves. Marks said Project91 needs to complete its debut race before it can fully discuss future events.
"I think it's a great opportunity for European drivers because it's not easy to come and race in the US from Europe," said Räikkönen. "People can take the challenge and come here and maybe have a long future because it's good sport. I think it's great what Justin is doing."
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