Beyond the Flag
Fansided

NASCAR invites Fernando Alonso to race in 2019 Daytona 500

By Asher Fair

MONTREAL, QC - JUNE 10: Fernando Alonso of Spain and McLaren F1 waves to the crowd on the drivers parade before the Canadian Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on June 10, 2018 in Montreal, Canada. (Photo by Charles Coates/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC - JUNE 10: Fernando Alonso of Spain and McLaren F1 waves to the crowd on the drivers parade before the Canadian Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on June 10, 2018 in Montreal, Canada. (Photo by Charles Coates/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

After two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso announced his retirement from Formula 1, NASCAR did not waste any time before inviting him to race in the 2019 Daytona 500.

Shortly after two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso announced that the 2018 Formula 1 season would be his last season driving in the sport, NASCAR invited him to compete in the main event of the Cup Series season.

Alonso, the 37-year-old Spaniard who skipped last season’s Monaco Grand Prix to race in the Indianapolis 500 in what was the first IndyCar race of his career, has been invited to compete in the Daytona 500 at the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Daytona International Speedway oval in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Here is what NASCAR wrote to him on Twitter in response to his retirement announcement.

In his retirement announcement, Alonso stated that “new exciting challenges are around the corner” and that he needs to “go on exploring new adventures”, according to the BBC. As you can see from the tweet above, NASCAR has an idea about being a part of those “challenges” and adventures”.

While many fans have speculated for quite some time — in fact, pretty much ever since last year’s Indy 500 — that Alonso would not only return to the Indy 500 one day but perhaps compete full-time in IndyCar, NASCAR, which Alonso has never competed in, never really surfaced as a possibility for him.

While the odds of Alonso competing in next year’s (or any year’s) Daytona 500, which would be his first career Cup Series race and first career NASCAR race in general, aren’t that high, he now has an open invitation from the sport itself to do so.

More from NASCAR Cup Series

Alonso, whose career Formula 1 victory and podium totals of 32 and 97, respectively, are tied for sixth place on their respective all-time lists, has had success throughout his entire career in pretty much every series that he has driven in, so he may very well take advantage of this opportunity and accept this invitation if he has any aspirations whatsoever of competing in the Daytona 500.

In his first Indy 500, Alonso qualified in fifth place and led 27 laps of the 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Speedway, Indiana, but with 21 laps remaining, his engine failed. Otherwise, he likely would have been in the mix to win the race.

Alonso is currently in his first season driving in the FIA World Endurance Championship, and he has won both of the races in which he has competed so far, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

In fact, as a result of Alonso’s victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, he is one Indy 500 win away from becoming just the second driver to win all three races of the Triple Crown of Motorsport at least once, as he is also a two-time Monaco Grand Prix winner. The only driver who has won all three races at least once is the late Graham Hill.

While the Daytona 500 is not included in the Triple Crown of Motorsport, a win in it would certainly look good on Alonso’s racing résumé.

dark. Next. Top 10 Daytona drivers of all-time

Will Fernando Alonso ever compete in the “Great American Race”, the Daytona 500, at Daytona International Speedway? If so, when would he do it, and how would he perform behind the wheel of a stock car for the first time in his professional racing career?

Home/NASCAR Cup Series