One of sports car’s finest returns to a NASCAR Cup Series car next weekend at Texas’ Circuit of The Americas.
Former Formula 1 and current FIA World Endurance Championship driver Kamui Kobayashi will have his second opportunity aboard a stock car after one start with 23XI Racing last year at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course.
Kobayashi will pilot a third 23XI Racing entry alongside full-time drivers Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick.
“I’m definitely excited for next weekend at COTA,” Kobayashi said. “My first race last year at Indy, I think I was a little bit surprised, but I think the race went quite smooth. I think I dropped back in the early stage, and I didn’t get any caution. It was quite difficult in the back end of the field, but I had great fun.
After starting 28th, the 37-year-old finished 33rd in the event.
While it was a lackluster race for the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans overall winner, he feels more preparation and familiarity with COTA will be beneficial entering the weekend.
“We’ve had more preparation. I’ve raced COTA five times already in Formula 1 and WEC,” Kobayashi said. “I think Indy — it was my first time ever racing there, but next week I have more experience, so definitely looking forward to the race.”
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We can’t think of a better way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Mobil 1 than running the 50 car (courtesy of @tmtracing50) three times with three drivers🤩
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With one race under his belt in NASCAR’s Next Gen car and countless hours of simulator work, Kobayashi feels he has a better grip on what to expect from his race car.
“I think I learned quite a lot about how you handle the car and how the race goes, and how the race weekend goes,” Kobayashi said. “I think the second time I can manage myself better, and I’m putting in the preparation now. I’ve spent quite a lot of time in the simulator. We will see.”
He’ll have his first opportunity to put this knowledge to the test in his No. 50 Toyota Camry on Saturday.
Kobayashi’s only start at the 3.41-mile permanent road course in F-1 came in 2012 where he finished 14th. Kobayashi also boasts two third-place finishes in WEC competition at COTA.
Kobayashi’s experience in a wide array of race cars begs the question: What’s the closest car he can compare to a Cup Series car?
“I think the closest race car for me is Supercar in Australia,” Kobayashi admitted. “I think that is the closest one, which I’ve never driven. I’ve driven GT3 for example, it’s way different compared to that car. We have ABS and traction control.
“With the Cup car, you really don’t have any sensors taking the data. I would say the techniques that I’ve learned are way different. When you look throughout different motorsports, you have BOP and it’s easier for the driver to perform at everything, but in NASCAR, I think you have more of a demand.
“That’s why I’m happy to be here and challenging myself.”