There was as soon as a time in F1 historical past the place NASCAR famous person Jeff Gordon was in consideration for a seat among the many “finest drivers on the planet.” And this week, lead commentator for IndyCar on FOX and skilled Formulation 1 journalist Will Buxton spoke with NASCAR legend Kevin Harvick on his podcast, Kevin Harvick’s Pleased Hour, about Gordon’s potential forays into open-wheel racing, in each IndyCar and Formulation 1.
“Jeff was going to come back over to Group Cool Inexperienced in IndyCar and a run a season or two in IndyCar, and Dario [Franchitti, three-time Indy 500 winner] was going to go over to BAR [British American Racing] in Formulation 1,” defined Buxton. “And the long-term plan was that the lineup for BAR in Formulation 1 was going to be Jeff and Dario. And he was going to do a pair seasons in IndyCar to coach himself up.
“Now that will have been field workplace, and that will have damaged F1 in America 20, 30 years earlier than it lastly broke by means of with Drive to Survive. You get Jeff Gordon racing in Formulation 1 alongside Dario Franchitti — these two nice all-time champions out of American open-wheel and inventory automotive racing. And so they’re racing as teammates in Formulation 1? Increase. Job finished. It will have been large.”
Gavin Ward, Competitors Director, Arrow McLaren, Kyle Larson and Jeff Gordon, Vice Chairman of Hendrick Motorsports
Picture by: Michael L. Levitt / Motorsport Photos
This deal supposedly was going to happen round 1999, proper after Gordon had received three of the final 4 Cup Sequence titles. BAR competed in F1 from 1999 by means of 2005, by no means profitable a Grand Prix however accumulating 15 podiums with drivers that included Jenson Button and Takuma Sato.
Gordon by no means had the chance to really race in F1, however he did participate in a experience swap with Juan Pablo Montoya (who later left F1 for NASCAR), driving a Williams FW25 in 2003 on the Indianapolis Highway Course, impressing the engineers together with his tempo.
Larson’s potential
On the present, additionally they touched on present NASCAR famous person Kyle Larson, who as soon as known as himself a “higher all-around driver” than four-time F1 World Champion Max Verstappen as a result of numerous completely different disciplines he competes in. Larson additionally ran robust as a rookie within the 2024 Indianapolis 500 earlier than a late-race dashing penalty derailed his day. McLaren F1 staff boss Zak Brown has even talked about desirous to get him in a automotive for an F1 check or a easy experience swap.
“I might like to see the perfect that NASCAR have attempt to make the leap to Formulation 1,” commented Buxton. “I might like to see somebody like a Kyle Larson not simply attend the Indy 500, however go and try the Monaco Grand Prix or no matter. I might like to see children from IndyCar transition over to Formulation 1 or from endurance racing or from Formulation E — no matter it is perhaps. I hate the truth that we’ve such a restrictive licensing system in place. It stops the potential for transitioning.”
He added that there is no excuse that an F3 title is value extra on the tremendous license scale than being a NASCAR Cup Sequence champion or being top-three within the IndyCar standings. The system prevented American IndyCar star Colton Herta from a attainable F1 swap resulting from not having sufficient factors to qualify for a brilliant license.
Learn Additionally:
On this article
Nick DeGroot
NASCAR Cup
Jeff Gordon
Kyle Larson
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