Indycar oval success has lead to a curiosity for stock car racing on an oval
Indycar drivers are hit and miss on oval racing. A lot of times, those open wheel drivers lack any oval experience before electing on the Indycar route.
Some have adapted more than others. Usually, a win or two will convert them to fans of circle racing.
Indy 500 winner Will Power has a name that’s marketable for days. He’s also one of those open wheel drivers that have interest in some fenders. Last week, a check for $2,525,454 was presented to the winner at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Now, he’s expressing interest in another form of oval racing… NASCAR.
“Yes, just absolutely love them now,” Power told Autosport.
“I just understand them so well. I know exactly what I want, exactly how the car should feel, know how to drive them, know when to take risks. That just took time, like everyone.”
“The time I wasn’t winning oval races, neither was anyone else in my team. It was kind of spread across the field. People would win only one or two ovals. The only guy I can think was winning ovals was Ryan Hunter-Reay. He won like two in a row or three in a row or something like that.”
“But, yeah, now I would race them every week if I could.”
Several drivers has expressed interest in NASCAR over the years. The series champion Josef Newgarden wants to do a one-off. Conor Daly recently expressed interest in stock car racing as well. He’s going to get his shot with Roush-Fenway Racing.
“I’d love to race an oval in NASCAR. That would be fun,” Power said.
Will Power drives for Team Penske in the Verizon Indycar Series. Ryan Blaney, Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano all pilot Team Penske Ford’s in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The team would be allowed a 4th car if that’s a direction they want to go for a one-off event.
The team boss, Roger Penske has a few NASCAR race cars in his stable already. The opportunity is likely there, if he really wants it. Penske also fields multiple cars in the NASCRA Xfinity Series. Several of those seats are shared between multiple drivers.
However, Power doesn’t exactly expect to jump in and win a race. He gets it.
“I see how long it takes to get good at your craft. … Those guys are absolutely top-notch, and it would be tough to turn up and be competitive,” Power concluded.
Typically, when an open wheel racer expresses interest in NASCAR they state that they’d like to give it a go on an oval. This is one of the rare cases where a Verizon Indycar Series driver wants to give NASCAR a try on an oval.
More
Related: 2018 Indy 500 Results
Related: How much did the Indy 500 field make?
Related: Conor Daly is set to make his NASCAR debut
Related: Conor Daly expresses interest in NASCAR
Related: 2017 Indycar champion, Josef Newgarden has interest in NASCAR
Links
Will Power | Team Penske | Indycar | NASCAR
