“Hawk and I had a bet,” 4 time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves on the lookout for a NASCAR team after an unexpected SRX victory
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Helio Castroneves
Helio Castroneves, the Brazilian Auto-Racing driver who has a long list of achievements to his name, and after winning the season opener of the Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) series in Florida on Saturday and the surprising part is that he wasn’t even on the list of racers who will be taking part and he even went on to win the kick-off race at the Five Flags Speedway and he is now potentially eyeing on a start to his NASCAR career after placing a bet with the SRX CEO, Donald Hawk.
Apparently, Donald Hawk had placed a bet with Helio Castroneves on getting him to race in a NASCAR event after being delighted with his unprecedented victory on Saturday and now it is not confirmed if he actually meant it but the four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Castroneves who also won the two previous 24 Hours of Daytona races along with the IMSA Sportscar Championship in 2020 now has his eyes on NASCAR.
However, Castroneves took everyone by surprise as he showed up at the track asking for a car to race in and he luckily had one and also ended up winning it while he went on to say that he wasn’t supposed to be there at all but he had this urge to race so he booked his tickets and hopped on a plane and rang up the SRX’s Director of Operations, Ashely Butcher to enquire more about the race and she responded that he wasn’t enlisted for it but she helped him get to race in the end.
“I bought my own ticket, I got everything ready to go, and when I was on the plane, I asked Ashely, SRX’s Director of Operations, what time I should be to the track. She’s like, ‘Oh, you’re not supposed to be here,’ So, I was like, ‘I’m already on the plane.’ She’s like, ‘Hold on.’ I landed, and it’s like, ‘I got a car for you and everything else,’” said Helio Castroneves.
Who can Helio Castroneves possibly race for in NASCAR if he is entitled to start a race?
Helio Castroneves thanked everyone behind the SRX races, the founder and defending SRX Champion and NASCAR Hall of Famer, Tony Stewart, and was glad he was given the opportunity for it and he then heard from SRX CEO, Donald Hawk, and the bet happened.
“This is fantastic. What a great — thank you, SRX, everyone here. Just absolutely amazing, Tony, thank you so much. Hawk and I had a bet — winning the race, he would find me one race in NASCAR, right?” said Helio Castroneves.
Now that he has placed the bet, he is possibly looking forward to a NASCAR start and looking at the available options, we have the NASCAR Cup Series team owned by SRX’s founder, Tony Stewart himself who co-owns Stewart-Haas Racing who currently are on the lookout too for full-time drivers and they currently have Ryan Preece as a secondary driver who can make up for the drivers who can’t make it.
Another shot at Castroneves’ NASCAR Cup Series start could possibly happen with Trackhouse Racing, who have started the PROJECT91 for racers from other formats to enter and hop into the Next-Gen car and it has already been revealed that Formula 1 legend and former racer, Kimi Raikonnen will drive the No.91 Chevrolet Camaro at Watkins Glen later this year as an initiative to enhance the popularity of the sport and there definitely are chances where we might see Castroneves run.
Will the IndyCar Series record-maker Helio Castroneves make his Cup Series debut as a result of a bet following his surprising SRX Series win?
Also read: Poised and Composed: How the 2022 season has been so far for the Stewart Haas Racing team in the NASCAR Cup Series
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