British driver Jenson Button will contest three NASCAR Cup races this season, the 2009 Formula 1 world champion confirmed on Friday. He will make his debut at the Circuit of the Americas and then race at the Chicago street circuit and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Button will drive the #15 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang for Rick Ware Racing, with Stewart-Haas Racing providing marketing and promotional support. The Englishman is also one of three lead drivers who will drive NASCAR’s Garage 56, alongside Jimmie Johnson and Mike Rockenfeller, at the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Button, who will have Mobil 1 as a sponsor, scored 15 victories during his 17 seasons in Formula 1, from which he retired in 2016, and captured the 2009 championship in a season in which he won six races.
«Racing a NASCAR car is very different to what I’m used to. It’s a lot heavier with a lot less power and basically no downforce. It has a sequential gearbox where you have to step on the throttle, so there are a lot of things to learn in a very short time,» he said.
Despite everything, he was «excited» about the «new challenge». «When I throw myself into something, I’m 100 percent. I don’t do it just for fun; I want to be competitive, and I know that to be competitive, it will take a little bit of time. That’s why running these three races is good this season,» he continued.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
