After announcing plans to attend this year’s last grand prix, NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson says he’d be open for a run in Formula One’s post-season test in Abu Dhabi.
Larson, 29, of California, said he’s never seen an F1 car run in the flesh on a grand prix weekend while speaking exclusively on Motorsport.tv’s This Week with Will Buxton show. Larson, who won the Cup title for the Hendrick Motorsports team at Phoenix last weekend, said he’s never seen an F1 car run in the flesh on a grand prix weekend.
“I’m really excited, I’ve never been to an F1 race before,” said Larson. “But my wife and I are going to go to Abu Dhabi, so I’m really excited about that, go check it out, see what it’s all about.”
When Buxton asked if he was informed of the post-event test, Larson replied: “I’m down, I had no idea there was a rookie test. Hey, if I’m there then I might as well get into a car.
“If there’s a team that will let me, I would pack my helmet bag right now. Head there, go get some laps. Let me know!”
Larson’s first NASCAR championship came after he was fired from Chip Ganassi Racing and was suspended from the sport in April 2020 for using a racial slur during a sim racing event that was streamed on Twitch when he thought he’d lost his connection.
He won ten Cup races, as well as the one-time, million-dollar All-Star race in Texas. Five of his victories came in the playoffs, tying Tony Stewart for the most in a single season.
Larson crammed in as many dirt oval races as he could during his NASCAR hiatus in 2020, winning 46. He cut it back this year, although he still won some significant competitions in that sphere.
Larson said he wasn’t finished racing in 2021 yet when asked what was next on his schedule: “[I’m] staying pretty busy, taking this weekend off to enjoy [the championship], then heading to California to do some races out there. Then [after his Abu Dhabi trip] some more dirt races in January and February and that rolls right into NASCAR.”
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