Kimi Raikkonen and co-driver in car at Rally Spain
The just-ended silly season talk was all about former F1 world champ and current WRC driver Kimi Raikkonen going back into F1, but today the tide has turned in a most surprising direction: NASCAR. Multiple reports are citing a Finnish newspaper interview with Raikkonen, who states he'll be joining the NASCAR Truck series before graduating to Nationwide and eventually Sprint Cup racing.
If the move takes place, the Finn could join the oval-track field as early as this summer, according to the Turun Sanomat. Raikkonen is to team with Foster Gillett to form a new team called ICE1 Racing, borrowing from Raikkonen's "Ice Man" nickname.
According to the Finnish paper, Raikkonen is "really looking forward" to joining NASCAR's ranks, and he "just love[s] the American spirit of racing." Despite his excitement for NASCAR, Raikkonen is expected to continue to run WRC events for the remainder of the season.
Will Raikkonen have better luck with NASCAR than he has with WRC thus far? Or even more importantly, will he see more success than other former F1 drivers have in the roundy-round sport? It will be an interesting summer.
[Turun Sanomat via Autosport]