We’ve already shared how the Austin NASCAR race ended for Jenson Button and Kimi Raikkonen. American experts analyzed the events of the hectic race, which was repeatedly interrupted by yellow flags and the appearance of a safety car, and unanimously noted that the Finn drove with more confidence than in August last year, and the experience gained then at Watkins Glen had been gained was clearly useful to him.
But it cannot be said that Kimi was lucky on the COTA circuit in Texas: at one point he rose to 4th position, but closer to the finish of the race, which consisted of 68 laps, the tires on his Chevrolet Camaro of the Trackhouse Racing team were already exhausted, especially at the end, the restarts followed one another. Because of this, he finished 27th on the track, but was fined and landed on the 29th line of the protocol.
“I guess it didn’t go that bad,” Kimi commented. “We were unlucky because of all these incidents that happened towards the end. Unfortunately this also happens. Besides, we have no ties. They gradually wore out, but the restart followed the restart, so I think after my car flipped, the tires were already just gone.
Too bad because we were fighting at the front, but on the restart we were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Although I tried to avoid problems every time in the first corners. At first it seemed that everything was fine with me, but after three corners someone turned around and this car was in my way. There was confusion on the track and I was out of luck.
The race was long and hot, and at half the distance in the overalls the special cooling system stopped. So it was very hot in the car. And while it was fun breaking through the pack, all that turmoil on the restart took its toll on us.
When Raikkonen was asked about his future plans with NASCAR, he replied: “I don’t know – in the sense that no one knows yet. It’s a pity that everything turned out this way in the end, but I think we did the right thing. Let’s see, the future will tell, but so far I have no idea.”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
