Month: March 2023

●  Event:  EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix (Round 6 of 36)

●  Time/Date:  3:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday, March 26

●  Location:  Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas

●  Layout:  3.426-mile, 20-turn road course

●  Laps/Miles:  68 laps/231.88 miles

●  Stage Lengths:  Stage 1: 15 laps / Stage 2: 15 laps / Final Stage: 38 laps

●  TV/Radio:  FOX / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

SHR FAST FACTS:

Kevin Harvick:

Harvick has four road-course wins outside of the NASCAR Cup Series. Two came in the NASCAR Xfinity Series – Montreal’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in 2007 and Watkins Glen in 2007 – and two were in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West – Sonoma in 1998 and Sonoma in 2017. Harvick’s K&N Pro Series win at Sonoma in 1998 was three years before his Cup Series debut on Feb. 26, 2001 at North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham.

Aric Almirola:

Almirola’s best road-course outing in the Cup Series came at Sonoma Raceway in 2018, where he finished eighth. He made it back-to-back top-10 finishes at the track when he returned for a ninth-place result in 2019.

Chase Briscoe:

Chase Briscoe will make his third start at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas, this Sunday in the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix. Briscoe earned his first NASCAR Cup Series top-10 with his sixth-place in the inaugural race there in 2021. It was his first of three top-10 finishes earned in his Rookie of the Year season, all on road courses. Though the introduction of the NextGen car leveled the playing field on road courses during the 2022 season, Briscoe’s team showed speed on road courses. He’s focused this year on finding the areas where he can gain advantages over his competitors through intense prep work during the offseason.

Ryan Preece:

Preece’s road-course racing background is not extensive. In his Cup Series career, he’s made 12 road-course starts. His best road-course outing was in 2021 at the Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway road course, where he started sixth and finished ninth.

OUR WEEKLY WRAPS:

Livin’ for these liveries : @StewartHaasRacing. /YuKy2rcjyU

— Stewart Haas Racing(@StewartHaasRcng) March 22, 2023

WHAT OUR DRIVERS ARE SAYING:

Kevin Harvick Driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang:

This year, while the road course races still have stages, the race will remain green with no yellow-flag breaks at the end of each stage, which is something you’ve lobbied for. Why did you want to see it happen?

“The strategy is back. You had two strategies before – win or collect stage points. Now, with the rolling stages, it opens up more options for what you can do.”

Aric Almirola Driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang:

How much does road-course racing put what happens back in the driver’s hands?

“It puts a lot back into the driver’s hands, but you still have to have a good-handling car to compete up front, and strategy is going to play a huge role into the weekend now that the stage breaks have been eliminated. While a lot is in the driver’s hands, you still have to have everything go right in order to come out on top.” 

Chase Briscoe Driver of the No.14 Mahindra Tractors Ford Mustang:

In 2021, all of your top-10 finishes came on road courses. With the introduction of the NextGen car, we saw more parity. Is it more difficult to find those areas on track where you can gain an advantage over other teams?

“I think the whole field has elevated their ability on road courses, between the teams putting in work to figure out what to do with the new car and the driver getting more comfortable. So, it’s going to be hard to have a big advantage where you would typically find it, in a braking zone or with straightaway speed, but the lower downforce will hopefully help some and allow us to find something we can work with to gain that advantage.”

Ryan Preece Driver of the No. 41 HaasTooling.com:

The number of road-course races on the schedule has doubled in recent years. How does that change the way you condition, and your mental preparation?

“There are a lot of similarities when it comes to road racing and short-track racing. The racing discipline of it is definitely still the same. But, there are a lot of other road-course ringers, or whatever you’d like to call them, that have the upper hand on a lot of things. For instance, when it comes to braking, there are a lot of differences. From a preparation standpoint, though, we’ve been given all the tools we need to be as prepared as possible and, at this point, I just want to show up and go do it.”

“Superspeedway racing is always really aggressive and intense. I think that with this new car, we’re going to see a lot of bump drafting and teams and manufacturers working together to stay up front. That’s what we’ve been seeing at the superspeedways last season and this season. I can only really go off of what I’ve seen from last year and learned from watching and being on the simulator. But, I’m hopeful that we unload with a lot of speed, qualify really well and can stay up front in clean air to be there at the end.”

Formula one vs NASCAR with jenson button and ryan preece:

Before he takes the track for his first career NASCAR Cup Series start, Jenson Button discusses the differences between driving a Formula One car and a NASCAR Cup Series car. From feeling to mechanics, the duo discusses all of the intricacies of the two top-level race cars.

4Ever Defining: A LEGACY

In unimaginable circumstances, Kevin Harvick stepped into NASCAR Cup Series racing and the No. 29 race car in 2001. But the young 25-year-old racer climbed in gracefully and became a fearless racer. In just his third Cup race, Harvick won at Atlanta. It was a healing moment for our sport and a win that helped cement Harvick’s legacy 4EVER. In Episode 2 of 4EVER Defining, we unpack how Harvick’s legacy started with that win in Atlanta through the eyes of Richard Childress, Dale Jr., DeLana Harvick, Mike Dillon, Jeff Gordon and Mike Joy.

 Stewart-Haas Racing To Honor Kevin Harvick’s NASCAR Legacy by Changing his Car Number to 29 for NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. (March 16, 2023) – In a race designed to stir the senses at a track where decades-old memories are becoming new realities, Kevin Harvick will add another dose of nostalgia to NASCAR’s return to North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway on May 21 for the 39th running of the NASCAR All-Star Race.

For just the All-Star Race, Harvick will eschew his traditional No. 4 and bring back the No. 29. His Busch Light Ford Mustang from Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) will sport a throwback paint scheme to the design Harvick used when he won in just his third career NASCAR Cup Series start on March 11, 2001 at Atlanta Motor Speedway when he drove for Richard Childress Racing (RCR).

Harvick wasn’t just driving any racecar when he won at Atlanta. He was driving the racecar that less than a month earlier had been piloted by the sport’s titan, Dale Earnhardt. The seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion died on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. Team owner Richard Childress tabbed Harvick, who was racing for him in the NASCAR Busch Series (known today as the Xfinity Series) to pull double-duty and take over Earnhardt’s Cup ride. The No. 3, made iconic by Earnhardt, was changed to the No. 29 and Harvick made his Cup Series debut Feb. 25 at North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham. Harvick started 36th that Sunday at Rockingham, but rain washed over the track just 51 laps into the 393-lap race. The race resumed at 11 a.m. ET on Monday, whereupon Harvick drove to a solid 14th-place finish. He then traveled to Las Vegas on Tuesday, married his wife, DeLana, on Wednesday, and was back in a racecar on Friday, competing in both the Xfinity Series and Cup Series races at Las Vegas. After finishing eighth on Sunday to score his first career top-10 in the Cup Series, Harvick headed to Atlanta where the first of his 60 career Cup Series wins was secured.

“When I sat in the 29 for the first time, it really wasn’t by choice, but I definitely wouldn’t have done it any differently,” Harvick said. “Dale’s passing changed our sport forever, and it changed my life forever and the direction it took.

“Looking back on it now, I realize the importance of getting in the Cup car, and then I wound up winning my first race at Atlanta in the 29 car after Dale’s death. The significance and the importance of keeping that car on the racetrack and winning that race early at Atlanta – knowing now what it meant to the sport, and just that moment in general of being able to carry on – was so important.

“I had a great 13 years at RCR and really learned a lot through the process because of being thrown into Dale’s car, where my first press conference as a Cup Series driver was the biggest press conference I would ever have in my career, where my first moments were my biggest moments.

“With this being my last year as a Cup Series driver, we wanted to highlight a lot of these moments, and many were made at RCR in that 29 car. So, with the All-Star Race going to North Wilkesboro – a place with a ton of history – we thought it made sense in a year full of milestones and moments to highlight where it all started.”

Harvick’s Ford Mustang for the All-Star Race will be white and feature the red stylized No. 29 that he drove throughout 2001 when he finished ninth in the championship standings, thanks to his win at Atlanta and a second victory July 15 at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois. Busch Light, the primary partner for Harvick in the All-Star Race, will bring back its logos from that era, completing the early aughts look of Harvick’s ride in the All-Star Race.

“As a proud sponsor, Busch Light has been along for the ride throughout Kevin Harvick’s celebrated career in NASCAR,” said Krystyn Stowe, Head of Marketing for Busch Family Brands at Anheuser-Busch. “Kevin’s final All-Star Race is the perfect time for us to revisit a bit of history and bring back the iconic No. 29 paint scheme with our 2001 logo as the ultimate ‘cheers’ to one of Kevin’s most memorable wins. We’re looking forward to seeing some nostalgia on the track come raceday.”

Harvick has competed in every All-Star Race since joining the Cup Series in 2001. In the 38 previous editions of the event, Harvick has been on the starting grid for 22 of them, winning twice (2007 and 2018). This year’s All-Star Race returns to North Wilkesboro – a track that first appeared on the Cup Series schedule in 1949 but has been largely dormant since Cup Series cars last thundered around the .625-mile oval on Sept. 29, 1996 when Jeff Gordon took the victory over Dale Earnhardt. It was the track’s 93rd Cup Series race.

“I don’t know the last time the All-Star Race was the most anticipated event of the season,” Harvick said. “Fans are going to show up in droves. North Wilkesboro is a great short track, the asphalt’s worn out, and I think it’s going to be a fantastic event.”

Fans wanting to get their throwback No. 29 gear in advance of the All-Star Race can visit SHR’s online store at store.stewarthaasracing.com for a full offering of merchandise, including diecast replicas of the No. 29 Busch Light Ford Mustang, along with T-shirts, hats and variety of hard goods such as flags, coozies and decals.

About Stewart-Haas Racing:
Stewart-Haas Racing is the title-winning NASCAR team co-owned by three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart and Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation – the largest CNC machine tool builder in North America. The Kannapolis, North Carolina-based organization has won two NASCAR Cup Series titles, one NASCAR Xfinity Series championship and more than 90 NASCAR races, including such crown-jewel events as the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400 and Southern 500. For more information, please visit us online at StewartHaasRacing.com and on social at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn.

NASCAR Cup Series Overview

●  Event:  Ambetter Health 400 (Round 5 of 36)

●  Time/Date:  3 p.m. EDT on Sunday, March 19

●  Location:  Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia

●  Layout:  1.54-mile oval

●  Laps/Miles:  260 laps/400 miles

●  Stage Lengths:  Stage 1: 60 laps / Stage 2: 100 laps / Final Stage: 100 laps

●  TV/Radio:  FOX / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

SHR FAST FACTS:

Kevin Harvick:

Harvick’s first NASCAR Cup Series win at Atlanta was the first of his career, and it came 22 years ago on March 11, 2001. The Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500 was just Harvick’s third race in a Cup Series car. He started fifth in the 325-lap contest and led twice for 18 laps, including the final six. But Harvick had to earn the win on the final lap and hold off a then three-time champion in Jeff Gordon. Harvick succeeded, outdueling the eventual 2001 series champion to take the win by a scant .006 of a second margin of victory – the seventh-closest finish in NASCAR history.

Aric Almirola:

Overcoming adversity is a staple of Almirola’s career.While the start to the 2023 season has not been what the No. 10 Smithfield Ford team is capable of due largely to bad luck and mechanical issues, Almirola has always seemed to find his way back on top. In 2021, The No. 10 team was in the same points position through four races as this year, but Almirola still made the playoffs for his fourth consecutive year at Stewart-Haas Racing. He strives in the underdog position.

Chase Briscoe:

Briscoe started on the pole for the first race on the newly reconfigured Atlanta in March 2022 after qualifying was rained out. He drove to a 15th-place finish. He returned in July to finish 16th. Briscoe’s best finish of 15th in his two Cup Series outings on Atlanta’s original configuration came in July 2021.

Ryan Preece:

New look! Ryan Preece and the No. 41 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) Ford welcome Autodesk as a co-primary partner for the first time this season during Sunday’s Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The No. 41 will sport a new white, black and red paint scheme when the NASCAR Cup Series takes to the high-banked, 1.5-mile Georgia oval.

OUR WEEKLY WRAPS:

Peach Keen Scheme for Atlanta: @StewartHaasRacing. /YuKy2rcjyU

— Stewart Haas Racing(@StewartHaasRcng) March 15, 2023

WHAT OUR DRIVERS ARE SAYING:

Kevin Harvick Driver of the No. 4 Busch Light Ford Mustang:

How did that first win at Atlanta change your career?

“Well, everybody kind of already knew your name at that particular point, and I always tell people that things happened backward in my career. They all knew my name first, and then you had to figure out how to earn who you were from that point forward, and then you had to walk everything back in order to be yourself. Everybody knew your name because of Dale’s passing and getting in his car, and then winning the race – that was kind of the moment that solidified the fact that you could do it. And at that point, you did it on the biggest stage because outside of Dale Jr., you had the biggest spotlight shining on you driving that particular car. It was a lot to deal with. Definitely wasn’t ready for all that. Obviously, it solidified the fact that you could drive the car, but dealing with all the things that came after that were difficult because I was 25 and we were just married, and driving home with people standing in your yard, cars parked on your street and everybody knowing where you live, and having to deal with all that was something that we weren’t really ready for.”

Aric Almirola Driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang:

Is Atlanta just as much of a wild-card race as Daytona and Talladega, now?

“I would say so. It definitely races like a superspeedway, more than I thought it would. It’s definitely a wild-card race. You have guys up front that aren’t normally up front, but you still have to have a fast car and good handling to have a shot at it.” 

Chase Briscoe Driver of the No. 14 High Point Ford Mustang:

What did you learn about the new Atlanta configuration during last year’s two Cup Series visits there?

“There were plenty of unknowns going into Atlanta last year, and we learned it definitely races similar to Daytona and has that superspeedway feel. Two races don’t give you a whole lot of experience to fall back on, but I think that would be more of an issue if it were a typical 1.5-mile track. In this case, we at least know what this car is going to do on superspeedways and can look back to what we did at Daytona and last year’s races. You’ll have the same ‘anything can happen’ type of race and it’ll be interesting to see how it plays out.”

Ryan Preece Driver of the No. 41 Autodesk/Haas Tooling Ford Mustang:

Everyone is talking about how Atlanta races like a superspeedway with high-speed pack racing. How do you feel about that style of racing?

“Superspeedway racing is always really aggressive and intense. I think that with this new car, we’re going to see a lot of bump drafting and teams and manufacturers working together to stay up front. That’s what we’ve been seeing at the superspeedways last season and this season. I can only really go off of what I’ve seen from last year and learned from watching and being on the simulator. But, I’m hopeful that we unload with a lot of speed, qualify really well and can stay up front in clean air to be there at the end.”

Kevin Harvick on ATLANTA:

Kevin Harvick scored his first career win at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 2001. Hear how the triumph forever changed his career and life.

4Ever Defining The Cactus King

Known as the most successful driver at Phoenix Raceway in track history, Kevin Harvick has earned the moniker of cactus king. Hear from The Closer himself on what has made him so successful on the 1.5 mile circuit

Date:  March 12, 2023

Event:  United Rentals Work United 500k (Round 4 of 36)

Series:  NASCAR Cup Series

Location:  Phoenix Raceway (1-mile oval)

Format:  312 laps, broken into three stages (60 laps/125 laps/127 laps)

Note:  Race extended five laps past its scheduled 312-lap distance due to a green-white-checkered finish.

Race Winner:  William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports

Stage 1 Winner:  William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports

Stage 2 Winner:  Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports

SHR Race Finish:            

●  Kevin Harvick (Started 15th, Finished 5th / Running, completed 317 of 317 laps)

●  Chase Briscoe (Started 24th, Finished 7th / Running, completed 317 of 317 laps)

●  Ryan Preece (Started 25th, Finished 12th / Running, completed 317 of 317 laps)

●  Aric Almirola (Started 31st, Finished 33rd / Running, completed 313 of 317 laps)

SHR Points:

●  Kevin Harvick (2nd with 151 points, 3 out of first)

●  Chase Briscoe (25th with 59 points, 95 out of first)

●  Aric Almirola (26th with 56 points, 98 out of first)

●  Ryan Preece (27th with 54 points, 100 out of first)

SHR Notes:        

●  Harvick earned his second top-five and third top-10 of the season. It was also his 20th top-five and 30th top-10 in 41 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Phoenix, all of which are the most among all NASCAR drivers, past and present.

●  This was Harvick’s third straight top-10. He finished fifth Feb. 26 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California and ninth last Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He has not finished outside of the top-12 this season.

●  This was Harvick’s 20th straight top-10 at Phoenix – a streak that began on Nov. 10, 2013 – and it extended his record for most consecutive top-10s at a single track. Next best are NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, each of whom earned 18 straight top-10s at North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway.

●  Harvick finished eighth in Stage 1 to earn three bonus points and third in Stage 2 to earn eight more bonus points.

●  Harvick led once for 36 laps to increase his laps-led total at Phoenix to a series-best 1,699.

●  Harvick has now led 11,528 laps since joining SHR in 2014. He has led 15,943 laps in his entire NASCAR Cup Series career.

●  Briscoe earned his first top-10 of the season and his third top-10 in five career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Phoenix.

●  This was Briscoe’s third straight top-10 at Phoenix. He won this race last year and finished fourth in the series’ return to the track in November.

●  Briscoe finished 10th in Stage 2 to earn a bonus point.

●  Preece’s 12th-place finish bettered his previous best result at Phoenix – 18th, earned in March 2020.

●  Almirola suffered a broken right-front wheel on lap 139 that sent him into the frontstretch wall. While he was able to continue in the race, the repairs to fix the damage put him four laps down.

Race Notes:       

●  William Byron won the United Rentals Work United 500k to score his sixth career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his second of the season and his first at Phoenix. His margin over second-place Ryan Blaney was .330 of a second.

●  There were five caution periods for a total of 35 laps.

●  Twenty-four of the 36 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.

●  Alex Bowman leaves Phoenix as the championship leader with a three-point advantage over second-place Harvick.

Sound Bites:

“It’s what I would have done (taking four tires). I’d always rather be on offense. I just didn’t get a couple cars when that first caution came out. Kind of lost our chance. Still thought I had a chance there at the end. Those cars were quite a bit slower. They get all jammed up. That’s the way it goes. Just smoked ‘em up until the caution. They did a great job with our Hunter Brothers Pizza Ford Mustang. Didn’t need the caution at the end.” – Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford Mustang

“I think we, overall, had a pretty strong and solid day. Starting that far back in the pack, it just takes forever to get up there. I thought my car was good enough – if you would’ve put it in the lead, I would’ve been fine staying there – but it was just a matter of getting up there. It takes a long time. It’s like every green flag run you pick up three or four (positions), every pit stop you maybe get one and the restart you get one. It just takes forever to get up there when you start 24th. I thought we ran it pretty good as a complete race. On that second-to-last restart, I think we could’ve done a better job and been in a little bit better position. Overall, we really needed that type of run. We were fast all day and not scratching our heads. Hopefully, we can build on this.” – Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Ford Mustang

“From how we were in practice to how we raced today, that was pretty much like a win for us. We now have something we can build on. I feel like where we were all day today was just a few adjustments away from where I need to be and where I’m happy with the car. We had a top-10 car, we just needed some adjustments that I don’t think we were going to be able to do on a pit stop. Thank you to United Rentals for the support this weekend and I’m looking forward to getting to Atlanta and keeping things moving in the right direction.” – Ryan Preece, driver of the No. 41 United Rentals Ford Mustang

“We were honestly a top-six car today. I wish we were up there at the end running for the lead because that’s where we were meant to be. We had lap times similar to the leaders all day and were making our way up there fast. The adjustments we made overnight were exactly what we needed, so that’s a positive out of another unlucky day. I never felt the wheel loose or anything. It just took off on me and sent me into the wall. There’s a lot of racing left to do before we come back here. I’m actually really proud of the improvements that we’re making from last year. Our finishes just don’t show it yet. We know we can compete up there and we will soon.” – Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 10 Go Bowling Ford Mustang

Next Up:

The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Ambetter Health 400 on Sunday, March 19 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The race begins at 3 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. (March 9, 2023) – Jenson Button, the 2009 Formula One world champion whose versatility as a racecar driver extends well beyond his nearly two-decade F1 career, will continue to diversify his racing resume by running three NASCAR Cup Series races in 2023.

With support from Mobil 1, the world’s leading brand of synthetic motor oil, Button will make his Cup Series debut March 26 at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas. He will then compete in the inaugural Chicago Street Race on July 2 before culminating his three-race Cup Series slate Aug. 13 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course.

Rick Ware Racing (RWR) will field the No. 15 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang that Button will drive in each Cup Series race. Marketing and promotional support is being facilitated by Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), Mobil 1’s longtime NASCAR team partner. RWR and SHR collaborated in similar fashion last year for multiple races with a handful of drivers.

“We are thrilled to celebrate Jenson Button as he makes his debut in the NASCAR Cup Series and support him on his journey to making one of his racing dreams a reality,” said Rob Shearer, Director of Global Lubricants Marketing Services, on behalf of Mobil 1. “We’re driven by the love of driving and committed to helping more people get behind the wheel – wherever they may be. Through our partnership, we hope to continue to inspire and serve drivers everywhere – encouraging them to get more out of their drive and reconnect with the adventure of the open road.”

Button won 15 grands prix, including a dominant six-win campaign in 2009 that netted him the F1 title. Upon retiring from F1 in 2017, the British driver has taken on a variety of challenges. It began with sports cars in the Japanese Super GT Series’ GT500 class, where he won the 2018 championship. He then ran a five-race stint in the 2018-2019 FIA World Endurance Championship, a drive that included the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Button has even competed in off-road endurance racing, running the Mint 400 and the Baja 1000 in 2019.

Mobil 1 has been there for nearly all of it, with Button’s NASCAR endeavor another chapter in a partnership that began 20 years ago.

“I won the world championship with Mobil 1, and 14 of my 15 wins in Formula One were with Mobil 1, as well as winning the Super GT championship with them. We’ve had a really close relationship over the years and I can’t think of a better partner,” Button said.

“Mobil 1 has been a big part of making these NASCAR races happen for me, so I’m very thankful to them for giving me this opportunity. I look forward to working alongside the brand to get the best out of every race weekend.”

Through their shared love of driving and deep history in motorsports, Mobil 1 and Button will connect with the racing community in new and exciting ways – with a focus on delivering exclusive content and uniting driving enthusiasts through activations and experiences.

“Our love for racing at Mobil 1 runs deep, and we’re proud to compete and play a role in so many different series,” said Jei Gort, Global Motorsports and Sponsorships Manager, on behalf of Mobil 1. “This partnership with Jenson intersects two of racing’s most prominent series – NASCAR and F1 – and we’re very excited to be a part of his pursuit for success in NASCAR’s premier division. Through our collaboration, we aim to further celebrate the love of driving and elevate the passion for motorsports.”

Button is one of F1’s most tenured drivers with 306 career starts. His final F1 start was the 2017 Monaco Grand Prix when he subbed for Fernando Alonso, who skipped Monaco to compete in the Indianapolis 500. Button’s last fulltime F1 season was 2016.

“The reason I was able to stay in Formula One for so long was because I always felt I was learning. There was always something new in terms of technologies, or I could still improve my driving or engineering skills within Formula One. When I got to my 17th year in F1, I felt like I lost that hunger a little bit because it wasn’t new anymore. There wasn’t something new to learn,” Button said.

“Stepping away from F1 gave me the opportunity to try different series that excited me. I raced Super GT in Japan. I raced at Le Mans. I raced off-road because it was another skill to learn. You put yourself in a slightly vulnerable position because it’s not your complete skill set, and there’s still more to learn to be as good as the best. I love that challenge of driving new things. It’s slightly out of my comfort zone, and I found that out with off-road trucks.

“Obviously, racing a Cup car is very different than what I’m used to. It’s a lot heavier with a lot less power and, basically, no downforce. It’s got a sequential gearbox where you need to blip the throttle, so there’s lots of stuff to learn in a very short space of time.

“But I just get excited about that new challenge, and when I throw myself into something, I am 100 percent in. I’m not just doing it for fun in some one-off. I want to be competitive, and I know that to be competitive, it’s going to take a bit of time. That’s why doing these three races works very well this season.”

Button isn’t totally unfamiliar with a NASCAR Cup Series stock car. He is part of the Garage 56 driver lineup, which is taking a slightly modified Cup Series car to this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans June 10-11 at Circuit de la Sarthe.

“The first time I jumped into the Garage 56 car, it was like, ‘What have I done? This is so different,’ and that lasted about four laps. Then it was like, ‘Hang on, it’s still a racecar. It’s got four tires that touch the road. It’s a mechanical racecar, which is even better for learning.’ I’ve really enjoyed the challenge,” said Button, who has now tested the Garage 56 car at Sebring (Fla.) International Raceway, Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway and earlier this week at COTA.

“A Cup car has a lot less downforce and is a lot heavier, but the Garage 56 car has given me an idea of what it will be like along with a direction, which is really useful. I know in my first race I’m not expected to be qualifying right at the front and I’m not expected to be fighting for a victory. I have a lot of respect for the drivers racing in the Cup Series. There’s so much talent there, whether it’s on ovals or road courses.

“Ten years ago, people used to say NASCAR guys can’t drive around a circuit, but I think they’ve proven that they can. Every time an ex-F1 driver gets in a stock car these days, they struggle initially. It takes a while for them to get up to speed, so I don’t expect to be right at the front, straight away. That’s why, for me, doing more than one race is really key so I can get the best out of myself and the best out of the car.”

When it comes to expectations, particularly at COTA where Button made five F1 starts, he has no predictions.

“The most important thing for me is to enjoy it,” Button said. “I want to feel comfortable in the car knowing that I can get as much out of the car in any situation as other people out on track. The result is the result and we’ll see what happens, but I want to get the confidence to brake as late as I’d like, to carry the speed through the high-speed corners, and to be able to race close – wheel-to-wheel with the pack.”

If there is one person who understands the transition Button will face going from open-wheel racecars to stock cars, it is Mobil 1 ambassador Tony Stewart. Before he became a three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, Stewart was the 1997 IndyCar Series champion. Stewart even has a bit of Formula One experience – he drove Lewis Hamilton’s 2008 championship-winning McLaren MP4-23 on June 14, 2011 at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International in a seat swap orchestrated by Mobil 1.

“It’s always a challenge to try a new racing discipline, and the best thing you can bring to a new opportunity like this is an open mind,” Stewart said. “Jenson has been doing that his entire career. Those F1 cars evolve every year, and Jenson always found a way to adapt. And when he got out of F1, he jumped into sports cars and won another championship. He’s even done off-road. There’s very little that he hasn’t experienced in a racecar. He’s new to NASCAR, but he’s not new to racing. This is going to be fun for all of us, and we’re very appreciative of Mobil 1 for making it happen.”

Button’s NASCAR Cup Series debut begins on Saturday, March 25 at COTA with practice and qualifying for the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix. The 68-lap race around the 3.426-mile, 20-turn road course gets underway at 3:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday, March 26 with live coverage provided by FOX and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Date:  March 5, 2023

Event:  Las Vegas 400 (Round 3 of 36)

Series:  NASCAR Cup Series

Location:  Las Vegas Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)

Format:  267 laps, broken into three stages (80 laps/85 laps/102 laps)

Note:  Race extended four laps past its scheduled 267-lap distance due to a green-white-checkered finish

Race Winner:  William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports

Stage 1 Winner:  William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports

Stage 2 Winner:  William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports

SHR Race Finish:            

●  Kevin Harvick (Started 14th, Finished 9th / Running, completed 271 of 271 laps)

●  Aric Almirola (Started 21st, Finished 16th / Running, completed 271 of 271 laps)

●  Ryan Preece (Started 31st, Finished 23rd / Running, completed 270 of 271 laps)

●  Chase Briscoe (Started 20th, Finished 28th / Running, completed 269 of 271 laps)

SHR Points:

●  Kevin Harvick (3rd with 108 points, 21 out of first)

●  Aric Almirola (21st with 52 points, 77 out of first)

●  Ryan Preece (31st with 29 points, 100 out of first)

●  Chase Briscoe (32nd with 28 points, 101 out of first

SHR Notes:        

●  Harvick earned his second top-10 of the season and his 14th top-10 in his series-leading 28th career NASCAR Cup Series start at Las Vegas.

●  This was Harvick’s second straight top-10. He finished fifth last Sunday at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. He has not finished outside of the top-12 this season.

●  This was Harvick’s fourth straight top-15 at Las Vegas. He finished ninth in September 2021 and 12th in the series’ two races at the track last year.

●  Harvick finished 10th in Stage 2 to earn a bonus point.

Race Notes:       

●  William Byron won the Las Vegas 400 to score his fifth career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his first of the season and his first at Las Vegas. His margin over second-place Kyle Larson was .622 of a second.

●  There were four caution periods for a total of 26 laps.

●  Only 18 of the 36 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.

●  Ross Chastain remains the championship leader after Las Vegas with a three-point advantage over second-place Alex Bowman

Next Up:

The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the United Rentals Work United 500k on Sunday, March 12 at Phoenix Raceway. The race begins at 3:30 p.m. EST with live coverage provided by FOX and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.