Kimi Räikkönen is 27th in challenging Nationwide debut

"The Iceman" made his debut in Saturday's Nationwide Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, and things got hot all over for Kimi Räikkönen (FSY).

The 2007 Formula One champion battled extreme heat in the cockpit that scalded his feet, a pit miscue that resulted in being handed an empty water bottle and an ill-handling Toyota that had the Finn cursing like an American sailor.

Coupled with a speeding penalty exiting the pits on a green-flag stop and the impact of a chunk of another driver's splitter, Raikkonen's 27th-place finish (four laps down) in his Nationwide Series debut could be regarded as inauspicious.

But considering it was his second start in a NASCAR national series and his first — ever — in a stock car on an oval, crew chief Rick Ren took another view of his driver's performance.

"Kimi did a great job," said Ren, who had set a goal of lead-lap finishes for Raikkonen's first two NASCAR races (he achieved it last week with a 15th in the Camping World Truck Series). "Everyone needs to understand that Charlotte is a very difficult racetrack. There are really good, famous race car drivers that have never won at Charlotte.

"For him to finish on the lead lap in the truck, qualify good in the Nationwide cars, run great in the second practice.. .. He's got good feedback for having never driven these types of vehicles. Enough feedback to help me realize what it's doing. I call it a success. The results don't really show how good he really did. If you look at the finishing order, guys in 10th-12th we ran ahead of them a good lick of the day. I think it was all positive. No negatives out of it."

No one is positive, though, of Raikkonen's next move. The enigmatic driver, who notched 18 victories and 62 podiums in F1 while racing for Sauber, McLaren and Ferrari from 2001-09 and now races in the World Rally Championship, was being typically coy after Saturday's race would be his last in NASCAR.

"I don't know that," said Raikkonen, who departed Charlotte immediately for a WRC event in Greece. "For now, I go back to Europe and to some rallies and see what happens."

There are no races scheduled beyond Charlotte for Raikkonen, but Kyle Busch (FSY) Motorsports would be willing to work with him again after supplying a car and truck the past two weeks.

"It's up to him to decide if he wants to come do this again," said Ren, the general manager for KBM. "Hopefully, we did our part, and it was a pleasant experience for him."

Raikkonen, who thanked the team after the race despite filling his radio channel with vulgarities for much of 300 miles, has said he would like to race Sprint Cup and is interested in the June 26 race at Sonoma, Calif. Infineon Raceway is a road course that would suit his background in F1 (which races exclusively on road and street circuits).

But Ren cautioned that Sonoma would be another very hot race, and that KBM (which runs primarily in the truck series) wouldn't be able to secure a Cup car from a front-running team (a Camry was obtained from NEMCO Motorsports for Saturday's Nationwide race).

"We'd have to do (Sonoma) with a Cup team," Ren said. "The Cup teams that could go do that are very, very limited. I have something that maybe could develop if he wanted to do that, but it's cutting it close to go to Sonoma. Engine builders plan engines six to eight weeks out, so it'd be really tough."

Raikkonen tested a car this past week on the Virginia International Raceway road course for Robby Gordon (FSY) Motorsports, which would seem an obvious choice for supplying a Toyota for Cup.

He'll have a lot to mull after a race that didn't go nearly as smoothly as his NASCAR debut a week earlier. Raikkonen qualified 22nd and was satisfied with the handling of his car for the first half of the 200-lap event.

But it began growing uncomfortable quickly. During the first yellow on Lap 26, Raikkonen radioed his feet were "burning" from heat emanating from the floorboards. After joking he might hang his feet out the window, he declined an offer from Ren to stop to put heat shields on his heels — though he demanded more water.

Shifting the position of his feet, though Raikkonen still radioed late in the race that "everything is just burning up, my legs and my (butt)." He seemed to be in no pain walking through the garage in street clothes about 20 minutes after the checkered flag.

"It was hurting on the heels but didn't really do anything," he said. "Just try to keep my foot off the floor and hold them up."

He also was fighting through more discomfort. With Raikkonen demanding water on each stop to manage the heat, Ren said a jack man handed him a mostly empty bottle during a stop under a Lap 74 yellow.

But the car came to life on a Lap 78 restart, picking up three spots in five laps under green, and he was in 15th for a Lap 91 restart. He smacked the Turn 4 wall on Lap 100. As the handling on his car faded, the team held him out longer during a green-flag pit stop sequence. He sped exiting the pits and then ran over a bright orange chunk of a splitter that came off another driver's car. He had to pit again for damage and fell three laps down, losing another later under green.

"That just took us out of the day," Ren said. "Now it damaged the front of the car, took the downforce out, and now it really won't turn. It pretty much ended our day."

Raikkonen said he still managed to have fun until the car went away and seemed to show improvement on restarts.

"It was nice in the beginning," he said. "I could overtake on the restarts, and it felt really good when it turned. But it turned out to be really bad, the handling. It felt I had to stop in the corner, just pushing all the time. But it's the same thing happened in the first and second practice. We could improve it in the second practice, but somehow it came back for me. Anyhow, it's a shame because at some points, it felt quite good.

"Once it got difficult, it's because you cannot race, and it's just trying to survive through the corners, and it's not so much fun. Until that point, it was good."

That might have been hard to discern from Raikkonen's radio, which often was littered with the same vulgarities used by NASCAR champions having rough days. But Ren didn't think the frustration necessarily impacted Raikkonen's performance or his ability to tune on the car.

"Someone else is passing you, or you drive in corner and it won't turn, there's nothing more frustrating," Ren said. "It's easy for a guy to get upset. Especially a guy who's won grand prix events and is an F1 champion and runs rally cars and is a very experienced race car driver.

"But he's not any different from Kyle (Busch), Carl (Edwards), Jimmie (Johnson) or Kevin Harvick (FSY). If they have a bad day, they get upset. We listen and try to cheerlead and do the best we can with cards we've been dealt."

Though Raikkonen radioed repeatedly that something was "wrong" with the car, Ren said it's just a matter of learning to adapt to a car that weighs twice as much as an F1 car and has much skinnier tires.

"The front-running guys are saying the exact same thing (about handling)," Ren said. "These things just do not handle very well. You'll hear drivers say the tires feel like they're basketballs. It's just a new feel to him. I'm sure he's never raced cars with that much air pressure in the tires. It feels abnormal, but it's part of how these cars react."

So how will Raikkonen react after his second NASCAR start and what will it mean for his future? Like much of his racing career, it's a mystery.

"I don't personally know what his expectations were when he came to the United States," Ren said. "I have no idea what his real goals are. We just tried to prepare the best vehicle we could and put him in good, quality equipment and try to have a really good day.

"We had a really good day going. I still look at it as positive: 43 started, he still finished 27th. It wasn't a disastrous day. There was no doubt he was a top 15 guy again."

Source: USA Today

Räikkönen hopeful for Sprint Cup start at Infineon

Kimi Räikkönen's relationship with Kyle Busch Motorsports may be over, but the former Formula One champion may continue his NASCAR adventure in a Sprint Cup car at Infineon Raceway.

Räikkönen, who makes his Nationwide Series debut Saturday at Charlotte Motor Speedway, tested Robby Gordon's Sprint Cup car one day earlier this week at Virginia International Raceway, and said he'd like to attempt the June 26 event in Sonoma, Calif.

"It would be nice to go and do it, but I don't know if it's going to happen or not," said Räikkönen, who also competes on the World Rally circuit. "We'll see what happens really after this weekend. I have to go and do my rally stuff, so we'll see if I come back."

Any effort at Infineon isn't likely to be backed by Kyle Busch Motorsports, which fielded a Camping World Truck entry last weekend for the Räikkönen, who placed 15th in his NASCAR debut. Busch's team is also overseeing Räikkönen's Nationwide effort this weekend, although the Finn is racing a No. 87 car technically supplied and owned by the organization owned by Joe Nemechek.

"As far as the Sonoma race, we've had no discussions about Cup stuff at all," Busch said. "As far as I know, this weekend is the last hoorah with Kimi unless he wants to come back to do further races in NASCAR."

That's something of a change from the original plan, which was slated to be three to five races with KBM. The reason? "What's changed is the payment schedule," Busch said. "The contract states we're supposed to receive so much, and we have not. We've only received enough for these two races ... It's either up to Kimi or to the financial people that run Kimi's business side of things and decide they need to find the sponsorship funds in order to carry the experience for him further."

That doesn't rule out the possibility that Raikkonen could run the Sonoma race for Gordon, whose No. 7 car he tested at VIR. "Obviously it's what our goal was, to have a good test and see how it went," Gordon said. "Unfortunately, the test went bad. That doesn't mean we wouldn't do it still."

Any Robby Gordon Motorsports entry for Raikkonen at Sonoma would be a second car, although Gordon isn't sure whether it would be the No. 7 he usually drives -- which is locked into the top 35 in owners' points -- or a No. 77, which would have to make the race on speed. Although Gordon said he believes Räikkönen has sponsorship for a Sonoma effort, he added the car suffered damage in the test and would require about two weeks' worth of repair work.

"So we'd be two weeks out," Gordon said. "That was the car that finished second last year at Sonoma. So that was our primary. We've got our work cut out for us."

Räikkönen held his own in Nationwide practice, posting the 18th-fastest lap Thursday in the final session before Saturday's 300-mile race at Charlotte. He even caught the attention of Carl Edwards, who at one point radioed his race team and asked, "Who is that in the 87?"

"He is loose," Edwards said. "He was driving the wheels off it. I was just surprised. I didn't know who was in that car. Had no clue. Then I saw [sponsor] Perky Jerky on it. He definitely has some car control for sure. That's not lip service."

Source: Nascar.com

Kimi Räikkönen NASCAR's Venture Turns To Nationwide Series At Charlotte

Former Formula One champion Kimi Räikkönen said he will indeed race in Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Charlotte Motor Speedway – and left the door open for a Sprint Cup start at Sonoma next month.

Räikkönen, the "Ice Man" whose cool demeanor matches his nickname, said he's still undecided on his NASCAR future after making one Truck Series start last week and the impending Nationwide start for NEMCO Motorsports on Saturday.

Wearing a backwards Red Bull hat, a black Perky Jerky T-shirt and shorts, Räikkönen acknowledged he's thinking about running a road-course race in the Cup Series – but hasn't decided for sure.

"It would be nice to go and do (Sonoma), but I don't know if it's going to happen or not," he said. "We'll see what happens this weekend. I have to go back and do my Rally (car) stuff and we'll see."

Räikkönen said he's yet to drive a Nationwide car – today is the first time – but feels somewhat confident because "at least I know the circuit and how the weekend goes."

In talking with other drivers, he said, he was told there was "not an awful difference" between Trucks and Nationwide cars.

He does have 20 laps of experience in a Cup car – but not on an oval.

Räikkönen said his test last week – driving a Robby Gordon Motorsports car at the Virginia International Raceway road course – wasn't all that helpful. Before he got a chance to run many laps, he took one turn too wide and tried to run through the grass.

"I went out and just ran a bit wide and I decided to go in the grass, but unfortunately there was a big hole in the grass and it destroyed the front a bit," he said.

Still, that wasn't enough to dissuade him from driving in Nationwide this weekend after reports said he was unsure about it earlier in the week.

"The Nationwide, we are here, so what's the most easiest thing to get more experience?" he said. "It was the easiest thing for me to do."

Source: SBNation
Courtesy: Sleenster

Kimi Räikkönen at Nascar Charlotte in pictures

Photos of Kimi Räikkönen at Nascar Camping World Truck Series Charlotte 2011












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Rally more difficult to learn for Räikkönen than Nascar

Kimi Räikkönen is an inborn track-racer. That was once again proved to the whole motorsporting world when the F1-champion drove without practising his Nascar-debut in an oval race from start to finish without spinning even once during the battle.

Räikkönen will continue this new adventure next Saturday on this same Charlotte oval, but this time he will drive in Nascar's 2nd highest class Nationwide, where the powers and the drivability of the cars are something completely different than the truck-cars.

The feelings on Friday in Charlotte's track-area spoke for themself over how much the success meant for Räikkönen.

Usually you don't get Nascar-spurs in a jiffy, therefore Räikkönen's performance got the American experts to research the statistics to see how other rookies have started from truck-level.

Rookie-Räikkönen was the best of the three former F1-drivers after Nelson Piquet junior spun in the end and Max Papis crashed at an early stage.

The mechanics who took care of Räikkönen's Toyota Tundra got only speedy thanks from the driver. Räikkönen hit the wall twice but he avoided the spins, which are very common in the race.

– Kimi already left - and he was really happy, mechanics told me when searching for him.

Räikkönen was surrounded by the American media but when it was over he rushed with his trusteés to the pits where the tv was on showing San Jose's and Vancouver's hockey game.

Not normal track-racing

Räikkönen's body language spoke for itself. The man had fully enjoyed racing which ended after many phases in 15th position out of 36 drivers. At his best Räikkönen was 5th and at his lowest he was 34th.

Did the passion for track-racing come back?

– I have to say that it was really fun again. Of course this is different than what is understood by tracks. Here we drive much more closer than I'm used to. In F1 you rarely see several cars side by side, Räikkönen said.

A year ago in January Kimi Räikkönen drove rally in a WRC-car for the first time – and hit a tree during Tunturi-rally's second stage. The first race with a heavily steered Nascar-car was predicted to be as tough but still he drove without a care in the world all the 134 laps to the finish.

– It's much more difficult to start rally, Räikkönen reminded.

The safety car was sent to the track ten times all and all. It messed up all the drivers driving rhythm.

– The car started to work better the longer the stints were. It was just unfortunate that there were so many SC-incidents. After them it always took a while before the car worked as it was supposed to work. Had I got to make longer stints then the result would also have been better - and you always want to finish closer to the top.

Same brake every time

Räikkönen lost most oftenly his position especially in re-starts.

– The same car was ahead of me every single time. In re-starts it first accelerated and then braked. I couldn't get anywhere. I drove many times flat-out right into it so that it would go somewhere else, Räikkönen said.

– In the end a spin was close when I tried to overtake it and couldn't get past. I dared to go faster and faster all the time. It depends a lot on which side of the track you are - outside or inside. If you are on the inside and another one comes beside you then it can take off the air and you spin really easily.

How fast did you learn the game rules of a Nascar-race?

– It didn't take a long time. Of course it's easier the second time when you already know the rules beforehand.

New car, familiar track

Charlotte's organizers were shining out of happiness when it started to become certain that Räikkönen would drive again on Saturday on the same track in a Nationwide-race.

– A Nationwide-car has more powers and as far as I know it's better to drive. On this track it doesn't matter where you are when driving with another car.

– Of course it helps when you know the track although the car is different. It gives an advantage when you now know how you can make the re-starts in a better way. We had a good pace now too as long as I could drive a little longer, Räikkönen thanked.

Useless to try, Busch will win (in Finnish it rhimes: Turha koittaa, Busch voittaa)

Räikkönen's ICE1 Racing -team leased a Truck-car from Kyle Busch Motorsports and the same will happen with the Nationwide-car. Conveniently Busch had got himself an extra car just for Kimi's sake.

Kyle Busch won his third truck-race in a row. On top of that he starts from pole on Saturday night to hunt for the one million dollars jackpot in the all stars -race of Sprint Cup cars.

Turun Sanomat, Charlotte

HEIKKI KULTA

Courtesy: Nicole

Räikkönen's debut Truck livery unveiled

Perky Jerky have unveiled the livery that will adorn the side of Kimi Räikkönen's NASCAR Truck for his series début on Friday, which will be shown live on satellite in the UK

The livery for Kimi Räikkönen's ride in his début appearance in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race in Charlotte, North Carolina had been unveiled by his sponsor, snack food manufacturer Perky Jerky.

The black and orange flame-themed design also sports decals from two dozen subsidiary sponsors, as is usually the case on NASCAR vehicles. The original press release announcing the deal noted that "Perky Jerky joins the likes of Tag Heuer, Oakley and Alpine Stars as a sponsor of Raikkonen's quest for dominance in yet another motorsport, as he heads across the pond to test the waters of NASCAR."

It's not known how much money Perky Jerky are paying Raikkonen's team - Kyle Busch Motorsports - for their first foray into NASCAR, but any company expecting to put their name and brand onto the vehicle and firesuit of a former F1 world champion can't expect it to come cheap. However, it should be worth the money for the international exposure that Raikkonen's début is expected to get - provided he makes it in to the race via qualifying.

Last week's American TV viewing figures topped one million viewers, up 26% year-on-year and the highest-rated Trucks race from the Monster Mile since 2006. Interest was driven by the feud between Sprint Cup drivers Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick, both of whom were appearing in the Truck race which threatened a resumption of hostilities.

That boost in ratings provides excellent momentum for this week's coverage of the Charlotte Motor Speedway race and Raikkonen's début in the world of US stock car racing, and coverage will also be available in the UK.

Irish satellite broadcaster Premier Sports TV announced Wednesday that they were going to be broadcasting the Truck Series event live and free-to-air on Sky channel 433 from 1am early on Saturday morning, in a one-off deal that's believed to be the first major coverage of the Trucks Series in the UK.

"We had a lot of request from fans asking for this race and it made sense to come to an agreement with NASCAR," said channel spokesman Richard Webb. Premier already air the weekly Sprint Cup races on a subscription pay-for basis and recently confirmed that the deal had been extended to the end of 2012.

Premier Sports TV is presently only available on the Sky platform, and cannot currently be received on Virgin Media, BT Vision or Freeview/Freesat services.

However, fans may be left disappointed if Raikkonen doesn't actually appear, which is possible because he first has to qualify for the race itself. With 45 entries for the race and Truck races limited to 36 starting grid positions, it won't be an easy matter or foregone conclusion for him to get through in his first time at a NASCAR event. NASCAR 'pre-qualifies' some entrants based on owner points, but Raikkonen's truck is not among those guaranteed to start the race.

Despite the involvement of Perky Jerky, it's still believed that Raikkonen is a "pay driver" for these initial races and may even be paying up to $100,000 of his own money to fund his first steps into NASCAR as well as bringing in those high value personal sponsors to the Kyle Busch Motorsport team.

Entering NASCAR as Raikkonen's primary sponsor, Perky Jerky is a producer of "the new high-protein, ultra-premium, functional food for active lifestyles taking the nation by storm", according to their website; or, strips of beef marinaded in sports drink before being dried/smoked to be eaten, a particularly American line of snack food that is still only a niche product in the UK.

Source: Crash.net

Papis recommends elbow tactics to Räikkönen

On Friday the motorsport people's eyes are turned to the east coast in USA, when Kimi Räikkönen starts his Nascar-career which has surprised many quarters.

Even in Barcelona's F1-paddock they are glancing at what the web says in USA. Starting from WDC Sebastian Vettel.

At least Räikkönen doesn't stress too much. He will arrive to the place on Thursday afternoon.

The town Charlotte in North Carolina, USA, is NASCAR-serie's real home ground since so many teams have their head quarter there.

Räikkönen will make history on Charlotte's Motor Speedway -oval by being the first Finn racing in NASCAR-serie. His car is a truck and his racing class is the 3rd highest class, World Camping Truck Series.

Based upon what the 31-years old F1-champion feels it will be decided if he will drive more in USA or if Friday will remain as his only experience in these circles. The intention is to continue straight away upwards to the bigger classes.

Former Italian F1-driver Max Papis is one of Räikkönen's competitors on Friday.

Papis says to the Italian media that Räikkönen chose an ideal place for his Nascar-debut. According to the original plan the Finn was thinking of a debut in the earlier truck race on Dover's mini-oval.

– Dover is a very tough track and the race is very demanding if you want to get everything to fall in place. Charlotte again favors a rookie because there they have the foot on the pedal all the time, Papis estimated.

– This kind of circuit could benefit Kimi, especially in qualification. It's easier for a rookie to get going when knowing straight away that you have to drive with your foot on the pedal all the time. Kimi could even get into the top 10.

– The race again will be a different case. There you have to drive like experienced Nascar-foxes in a slightly nasty way. You have to learn how to use the brakes, pump the gas and try to find the right places on the track where the grip is best. On top of that you have to know how to utilize the track's inclinations, Papis tells.

Reputation has to be re-built

Räikkönen has tested Kyle Busch Motorsports -team's Toyota on Gersham's and Rockingham's ovals. Tests on actual race tracks aren't allowed.

Papis praises the Nascar-style by telling that they aren't boasting immensly beforehand about the famous rookie.

– Everybody knows Kimi's business card. He is a F1-champion who has undoubted merits as a race driver but the respect from Americans will come only after the driver shows what he is made of in Nascar-driving.

– That's the best part of this serie. You have to show who you are. In USA you have to re-build your reputation, Papis says.

– If one really wants to go into Nascar, then he has to create a reputation of a fair guy without whistles, yet still not too politely.

Experts see two actual hinders that Räikkönen has to overcome.

On the technical department he has to learn how to set up the car according to the unsymmetrical oval-inclinations. On the sporting department he has to build up a reputation as a fair driver who still can use elbow tactics when needed.

The most difficult will probably be to learn all the unwritten rules meaning how fast you have to drive and battle in order to gain respect from your fellow competitors.

Team mate is the best measure

Räikkönen's comparison in this case will at least be the best possible, since his team mate Kyle Busch, 26, has won the two last Truck-races in Nashville and Dover. At the same time it will give confidence that the machinery is on a winning level.

Busch already offered the seat to Brazilian Tony Kanaan who didn't take the challenge. This way Räikkönen got a chance to try Nascar in a top team right from the start.

When Juan Pablo Montoya made his debut in Nascar he started from the lowest ARCA-class. After two races Montoya moved up to the second highest Nationwide-class and ended the season with his first Sprint Cup -race in Miami.

Räikkönen's target will most definitely be the Sprint Cup -level as fast as possible.

Turun Sanomat, Charlotte

HEIKKI KULTA

Courtesy: Nicole

Kimi Räikkönen to Make NASCAR Debut in N.C. Education Lottery 200

Kimi Räikkönen and the No. 15 Perky Jerky Toyota Tundra
N.C. Education Lottery 200 Race Preview

RACE: N.C. Education Lottery 200
TRACK: Charlotte Motor Speedway
PRIMARY SPONSOR: Perky Jerky
ASSOCIATE SPONSORS: DVS Shoe Company, Flexco, M&M's,
PRIMARY CHASSIS: KBM-3
BACKUP CHASSIS: KBM-2
MANUFACTURER: Toyota
MOTORS: Triad Racing Technologies
BROADCAST: Friday, May 20 - 8:00 p.m. ET SPEED/MRN/Sirius NASCAR 90

Kimi Räikkönen to Make NASCAR Debut in N.C. Education Lottery 200
Former Formula 1 champion Kimi Räikkönen will make his NASCAR debut in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series NC Education Lottery 200 Friday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Räikkönen will pilot his first laps around a NASCAR oval as a teammate to team owner Kyle Busch, from behind the wheel of the No. 15 Perky Jerky Toyota Tundra.

"I'm excited to do my first-ever NASCAR race; it will be fun to compete against other drivers on the track again,"said Räikkönen, referring to only racing against the clock in World Rally Cars. "This is a new experience for me - - let's see what happens."

Räikkönen is scheduled to address the media following the conclusion of final practice, Friday at 12:15 p.m. ET, in the media center at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The Finnish driver comes to NASCAR with a resume that includes the 2007 Formula 1 World Drivers' Championship. Over his nine year career in Formula 1, he registered 18 wins and 62 podium finishes. The 31-year old is currently competing for a World Rally Car Championship for his own team, ICE1RACING.

Source: Kylebuschmotorsport.com
Courtesy: miezicat

Räikkönen prepping for Trucks debut

CHARLOTTE

Kimi Räikkönen has not been sitting idle since it was announced on April 2 that he would compete in the No. 15 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota Tundra in Friday’s N.C. Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

After the 31-year-old former Formula One champion performed a two-day test last month at Gresham Motorsports Park followed by a half-day test Rockingham, KBM officials felt confident that Räikkönen would be ready to compete in the Camping World Truck Series.

“He did a tremendous job,” said crew chief Eric Phillips. “It took him an hour or two at Gresham to get up to speed but when we got to Rockingham, after four laps he was faster than when we’d been there testing with Brian (Ickler) or Taylor (Malsam) last year. So me and Rick (KBM General Manager) were really impressed.”

During last month’s tests, the team worked with chassis adjustments, various shock packages and air pressure changes as the driver acclimated to the truck first on the half-mile track and then at the 1.017-mile speedway at the Rock.

“It was a lot of fun, I really had no expectations or anything to compare it to beforehand but at the end of the day, I am really looking forward to the first race,” said Räikkönen in a team release. “It seems like KBM is a top team and I am excited to work with them.”

KBM also sent Räikkönen additional materials, including videos of earlier races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, to expedite his learning curve in a truck.

“I believe we also sent him a few in-car cameras so he can watch and get used to listening how throttle control was, how much you’re on the gas, how to race people and sometimes what happens when you’re side by side with guys,” Kyle Busch said. “I think I won the truck race there last year and the year before (Ron) Hornaday and I battled it out and we ended up spinning or something. He’ll get a good view of what to expect ... with some in-car camera stuff.

“When he gets back to the States, he’ll go over the NASCAR R&D Center and sit down with those guys and get an explanation of the drivers’ meeting -- the long version of the drivers meeting, the one that tells you all about double file, passing the pace on the wave around, the long version so he can get an idea of how everything works. That’s pretty much it.”

While it was the hope that Räikkönen would visit the NASCAR R&D Center, his schedule might not permit it. NASCAR senior director of communications for competition Kerry Tharp said the sanctioning body was simply extending an invitation and there was nothing required of the driver before the race.

Although there are 43 entries for the truck race and only 36 positions, Busch said driving the truck “is pretty simple, like anything else.” Busch should know. He won the race from the pole last year in his own equipment. It was Busch’s third win and third pole in a truck at Charlotte.

“As far as the truck goes, it’s like any of the other trucks that we have,” Busch said. “We had one in the stable and we’ve been working on it for two months now, probably, ever since we’ve known. We’ve been fine-tuning on it and getting ready along with my truck for Charlotte.”

Source: FoxSports
Courtesy: Kriss

Auton takes Räikkönen's adjustment personally

Series director knows his role is to make sure rookie is comfortable at Charlotte

There may be only a handful of active drivers in the world with a resume as impressive as 2007 Formula One champion Kimi Räikkönen. But when Räikkönen walks into the garage area at Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend, it's as a Camping World Truck Series rookie.

And for series director Wayne Auton, that means making Räikkönen feel at home.

"We're fortunate enough to have such a great series that we have a competitor like Kimi Räikkönen want to come and compete in Trucks," Auton said. "The one thing we will do for him, just like any other driver, is bring him in, set him down, talk to him, explain to him some NASCAR ways, and mostly make him feel comfortable. Most rookies who come in here don't set the world on fire right off the bat. As the series director, that's part of my job [to explain things].

"And then we go into things like, 'Here's how this race track races compares to other race tracks that you've raced at. You may have been here before, but this turn's a little different. You want to run high here, you want to run low here.' It's our job to make sure they feel comfortable, No. 1."

And that's as much about what's going on off the track as much as it is getting strapped in and making laps, Auton said.

"We bring them in and say, 'Here's when the meetings are. Here's the papers you've got to sign. Here's where the drivers meeting location is and by the way, you've got to go to the rookie meeting or you miss practice. You've got to be at the drivers meeting or you go to the rear. You've got to be at driver introductions in uniform, ready to go,' " he said.

Räikkönen, who won 18 F1 races over eight seasons, was impressive enough during testing sessions to land a ride with Kyle Busch's Truck team this season, beginning with Friday's 200-miler at Charlotte. Even though he's run more than a dozen World Rally Championship races, Auton said stock cars should present a different challenge to Raikkonen.

"I think the biggest thing he's going to have to get used to is he's used to open-wheel, open-cockpit (cars)," Auton said. "Now he's going to have a roof over his head and windows around him. And oh, by the way, there's going to be 35 other competitors -- and no disrespect to any other racing series, but these guys are usually side by side for 200 miles, 250 miles, whatever we race."

Auton said all rookies go through a learning curve, particularly when it comes to knowing the changes in downforce when another truck is racing close to your right rear bumper at high speeds.

"I think that's going to be his hardest adjustment: What does it feel like, especially for somebody in the Truck Series, when somebody's on that right side," Auton said. "Because if you don't know what it feels like, it will pull you around. And I don't care how great a driver you are.

"We've seen it happen to our two-time champion, Todd Bodine, at Kansas Speedway last year. A truck came up on the right side and off he went. And you can't sit here and tell anybody that. They've got to get that feel for it on the race track.

"Kimi Räikkönen is used to having someone on that right side, but it's not pulling that vehicle and tugging on it. Ricky Carmichael, when he came in, he had that experience but when he got here, he'll tell you it was the hardest thing he ever did, especially when you get to these faster race tracks."

The majority of Räikkönen's racing experience has come in high horsepower-to-weight ratio, high downforce vehicles. Because of that, Auton said his decision to try the Truck Series first was a smart move.

"The good thing about Kimi coming to trucks is -- of all of our NASCAR national series -- the Truck Series has the most downforce, but it's also the draggiest," Auton said. "So it sort of offsets.

"How does it plant when you go in? Where do you let off to actually make the truck turn itself without fighting it? Do I get on the brakes here? For him coming from a vehicle with the tons of downforce that they have, it's probably going to be a lot less than he's used to but it's a lot more than what it would be if he was in a Nationwide or a Cup car."

Auton said Charlotte should certainly provide an adequate challenge for the driver nicknamed "the Iceman." Even though Räikkönen is a world-class driver, it'll be his first time on a track that has befuddled the best, so having a mentor is a huge assist.

"I'll get another driver to go over and watch them on the race track and then while they're out there is run maybe behind them for a little bit," Auton said. "The first thing we'll tell Kimi to do when he comes into Charlotte is get out there and follow somebody for a little bit and learn the line of the race track, No. 1.

"Learning the line is probably the hardest thing that a rookie can do. Kimi's coming into a race track that's so track sensitive that one lap, it'll be this and the next lap, it's something totally different."

Source: Nascar.com
Courtesy: miezicat

Keep working at it, Montoya tells Kimi Räikkönen

Just days before Kimi Räikkönen makes his NASCAR debut in the Camping World Truck Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Friday, Juan Montoya offers some words of advice

The news of Kimi Räikkönen's try-out in NASCAR in the Camping World Truck Series first broke almost two months ago: and even after all this time, it still sounds like a bit of a huge April Fool's Day joke.

But on Friday, May 20 it becomes a reality as 2007 F1 world champion Kimi Räikkönen heads out onto Charlotte Motor Speedway to make his NASCAR series debut with the Kyle Busch Motorsports team.

The one current NASCAR Sprint Cup driver who has any idea of what's in store for Räikkönen is the driver who made a similar transition from the glamorous world of F1 to the more down-to-earth scene of American stock car racing - his former McLaren team mate Juan Pablo Montoya.

So what advice can the Colombian offer the new arrival from Finland?

"Keep working at it and listen to the advice people give you," says Montoya. "Ask questions and spend as much time behind the wheel, getting seat time, as you can."

Montoya knows what he's talking about: NASCAR hasn't come easy for him since he arrived in the series in 2007 after becoming disenchanted with the world of F1. He won the Sonoma road race in his rookie year and has since had three top-five and six top-10 finishes, and even become the first non-American to make it into the Chase at the end of the 2009 regular season. But oval victories and a Sprint Cup title still seem very far off for him.

"It'll be a tough transition but if he dedicates his time to [NASCAR], he should be okay," said Montoya. "He'll adjust after some time ... It's a big transition all around and just one of those things he'll need to get used to.

"He's a great race car driver but he'll need to learn to take care of his equipment in NASCAR. I know he likes to drive his cars hard and you can't do that over here."

Despite the fact that Montoya and Räikkönen entered F1 in the same year - 2001 - they came from very different backgrounds even then. Montoya had battled his way up through the US racing scene and won the Indy 500 race and the CART series title before moving to F1 as a very proven winner; Räikkönen on the other hand emerged out of nowhere, a karting star with unproven senior formula experience who needed special dispensation from the FIA to get a super-license to join Sauber. Within a year he had made a splash on the track and been snapped up by McLaren as "the next big thing", duly going on to win the world title with Ferrari in 2007 - something Montoya himself never did.

So what does Montoya think about Räikkönen's decision to try his hand at NASCAR Trucks?

"I think that it's cool that he's coming over to NASCAR. He's a cool guy and I think he will fit right in," he says, before offering a word of caution. "[But] my first choice wouldn't have been Charlotte [for a debut.] That's a tough track in general. I would've picked Talladega or Daytona before Charlotte."

Räikkönen will be under pressure straight away at Charlotte, with qualification carrying with it the potential for a very embarrassing public failure.

The news about Kimi's switch to NASCAR still leaves experienced motor sports journalists shaking their heads in wonder, not least because the US scene is notorious for the amount of media work required of its drivers who become almost full time corporate spokespeople for their sponsors.

"Both [Montoya and Räikkönen] suffer from lockjaw when it comes to the press, and neither is a fun interview," said Bob Varsha, longtime voice of F1 on the US sports channel SPEED, commenting on his scepticism about Räikkönen's decision to come to NASCAR. "I still find it odd, because he is such a reserved guy and hated dealing with the press in F1. That supposedly was one of his motivations for leaving the sport after winning the world championship.

"If Kimi knows anything about NASCAR, he knows NASCAR drivers are almost compelled to be gregarious, fan-friendly, work with the press and so on, which is completely unlike the Kimi those of us who have been involved with his career in F1 know."

One thing that's perceived to have held Montoya back in NASCAR is his difficulty in "playing nicely with others", as the sport often relies on on- and off-track alliances and partnerships. Montoya's still seen as very much something of a lone wolf, and Raikkonen could find himself in a similar situation.

"He was nicknamed 'Ice Man' when he raced in F1 so if that tells you anything!" laughs Montoya.

"Both are recognised as being incredibly brave and fast, said SPEED's Varsha. "But the key with both men is that neither enjoyed a reputation as either a team player or a technically astute driver ... If the car works as they need it to, they succeed. If it doesn't, working with the engineers to make it better was never something that seemed to interest them."

In the meantime, Kimi has been busy making sure that his "day job" over in the World Rally Championship doesn't feel unloved and unwanted by all the attention buzzing around his NASCAR debut.

"I wouldn't be doing any of the racing if it clashed with anything which I'm doing in the WRC," he emphasised to the WRC series website. "The races have been picked because they fit around the rallies I'm doing. It doesn't matter where I am when I'm not on the rallies."

Räikkönen, who recently finished sixth on Rally Jordan, says he's looking forward to his next WRC appearance, at the Acropolis Rally of Greece from 16-19 June. "The driving has been better and we're pushing harder now. My only target really is to improve in the WRC."

Meanwhile it looks like Räikkönen's NASCAR excursion might be starting a trend. His Finnish compatriot Mika Salo has reportedly told the Turun Sanomat (the same paper that broke the story of Kimi heading Stateside in March) newspaper that he's also set to try his hand at the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

"This year it is finally happening," the 44-year-old former Ferrari and Toyota driver is quoted as having told the Finnish publication, adding that he will make his series debut in July.

Another former F1 driver, Nelson Piquet Jr., has also been racing in the Truck Series since 2010 and in the last race took his best result so far with second at Nashville driving with Kevin Harvick Incorporated.

Source: Crash.net

Racing roundup: NASCAR awaits Kimi

WEEKEND HEADLINES:

1. Matt Kenseth off to great NASCAR start

2. Kimi’s NASCAR debut coming Friday

3. Rain stops Indy practice; Canadian results

Kimi Räikkönen to make NASCAR debut

Almost lost in the shuffle of the weekend’s racing, and still only getting a 15-second mention here or a brief mention there, is the fact that Kimi Räikkönen will be making his NASCAR debut this Friday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway in a NASCAR Camping World Series pickup truck race.

That’s right. You did not read that incorrectly.

Kimi Räikkönen, the 2007 World Driving Champion, will race a truck for Kyle Busch’s team at Charlotte on Friday night and, if you’re interested, you can watch him either acquit himself as you would expect an F1 champion to do, or else make a fool of himself.

It could go either way.

Kyle Busch has been quoted as saying that he’s honoured Räikkönen chose his team for his NASCAR debut and that the ex-F1 star was "adamant" about running his first race at Charlotte.

I suppose it makes sense. If you’ve never done this sort of thing before – as was the case with another ex-F1 champ, our own Jacques Villeneuve – then the truck series is a good entry point. The trucks are built for safety and don’t go as fast as the Nationwide or Sprint Cup racing cars.

And since next weekend is the All-Star Weekend in Charlotte,, why shouldn’t a star take centre stage Friday night while all the other stars of NASCAR are also in town for their race Saturday.

I suggest Räikkönen will probably keep a low profile and drive to survive. If he makes it to the finish without crashing – a trick whenever the trucks race – he’ll consider it a success and start plotting a career change.

If he doesn’t finish, and doesn’t enjoy himself (as in, he’s piled up or winds up in one), it’s quite possible he’ll chalk it up to experience and move on back to Europe.

Whichever, it will be fun to watch. The truck race can be seen on SPEED Friday night at 8 o’clock.

Source: Auto Racing Blog
Courtesy: luieluv

25 days to Räikkönen's big bang

Turun Sanomat 25.4 2011

Kimi Räikkönen's 'big bang' in the States and elsewhere in motorsporting world, due to his Nascar-debut will be seen in 25 days in Charlotte, North-Carolina.

Camping World Truck -serie's 7th race along with qualification will be held on Friday 20th May. Charlotte Motor Speedway is a 1,5 mile long so called square oval.

On Saturday they will drive for a million dollar prize in all star Sprint Cup -race, where only the established stars in the serie have been invited to.

Räikkönen's ICE1 Racing -team will lease a car from Kyle Busch Motorsports. Kyle Busch himself won the Truck-season during the weekend in Nashville.

Nelson Piquet junior came in 2nd. It was the Brazilian's first podium on Nascar-level and his all time best result in the three main series.

So far they are still only building up Räikkönen's schedule. On top of Charlotte's races we might see Kimi in at least two Nascar-races on normal racing arenas.

Räikkönen's next WRC-rally is in Greece from where he immediately leaves to California.

Räikkönen spent the weekend with his own motocross-team as a mechanic and supporter in Holland's second race of the season. Kimi participated with enthusiasm in the maintenance of the bikes.

Mark Arnall hasn't yet made any special programs for his driver's Nascar-challenges.

– In tests Kimi drove a couple of hundred laps on an oval per day. They turn into the same direction there all the time and in theory the strain on certain muscles is different than for example in rally. The faster you go, the more harder it is on the neck muscles, Arnall thinks.

– In tests Kimi drove about 20 lap stints. I massaged the muscles in the evening. The neck was a bit stiff but I can't say if it was because of the driving strain or something else.

– Let's just wait for the first races. Then they drive 300-400 laps flat out and we will see if something special is required when it comes to the muscles. I think it's the same as it was when starting the season in a F1-car, the more you drive the better your muscles get used to it.

Arnall can't use any expertise-help since on Nascar-level the drivers don't have a personal trainer to help them.

Kaj Lindström doesn't believe that combining two very different genres would in any way mess up the performance level in either way.

– There's nothing wondrous about that. Kimi has planned his Nascar-job so that it won't interfere with our rallies. It didn't come to me as any surprise. You have to try out everything when you get the chance and they have been asking him there for so many times already, Lindström says.

– We were holding the 5th place and we lost it without the driver's mistake. A success like that rewards in a nice way between the ears and gives more trust into one's own doing in the future, Lindström praised.

Then what does Foster Gillett who lured Räikkönen to Nascar-circles expect from the Finn:

– There is a lot of challenge to come come out of the bushes in the middle of the season. Yet Kimi has so much experience of all kind of racing in all kinds of circumstances that I would believe he would feel good in Nascar-races too. I'm sure he will in a way have an advantage of driving rally after his F1-career, Gillett thinks.

– All decisions about his Nascar-continuance is completely up to Kimi, he reminds.

Turun Sanomat

HEIKKI KULTA

Courtesy: Nicole