“Not a weak test”: Kvyat made his debut in NASCAR Xfinity and showed the second result in the history of his team

Daniil Kvyat is struggling to gain a foothold in the American NASCAR racing series.

In general, this season he planned to take part in the World Endurance Championship (WEC).

However, two weeks before the start of the tournament, the Russian team G-Drive Racing had to withdraw from it due to FIA requirements to sign a special document in connection with the situation in Ukraine.

The pilots considered some points "unacceptable" and refused to perform.

After that, Daniil turned his attention to NASCAR, which did not infringe on the Russian participants and make any special demands on them.

The driver, who spent most of his career in Formula 1, received the appropriate license and first sat behind the wheel of a stock car in the middle of summer, when he entered into an agreement with the tournament's newcomer Team Hezeberg.

Kvyat's debut race took place in Indianapolis at the end of July, and he became the first Russian in history to compete in NASCAR, and immediately in the top division.

However, Daniil failed to achieve high results right away - he left the race.

And in the second race he arrived last, ahead of only Kimi Raikonnen in the general classification, who did not reach the finish line at all.

It is obvious that the athlete lacks competitive experience, since his team does not take part in all stages of the series, but only in those that take place on the ring tracks.

Therefore, the Russian decided to go for an unusual experiment - to combine performance in two divisions.

He made a deal with Team Sam Hunt from NASCAR's second-best division, the Xfinity Series, allowing him to race two races in Charlotte in one weekend.

In the new team, Daniil drives Toyota at number 26, under which he once participated in Formula 1.

The same numbers are on his Team Hezeberg car.

Kvyat's announcement of an eventful weekend ahead sparked speculation about the possibility of such a performance on two fronts.

According to American journalist Bob Pokrass, who specializes in covering NASCAR, this should not be a problem for a driver.

He also noted that Sam Hunt can give the Russian even more than a team from a higher division.

“His NASCAR Cup team is on a part-time basis and continues to find his way.

As for Kvyat and his future in NASCAR, it is too early to say whether he can succeed in these championships, ”the Championship expert quotes.

Kvyat himself was excited to try his hand at two tournaments in Charlotte.

“The track, in my opinion, is very interesting and very difficult.

It has a bit of everything: winding sections, intense braking, treacherous chicanes, bumps in places - it turns out to be a very interesting race.

The driver is waiting for a strong test, and this is also great for racing, ”the athlete shared his opinion.

In connection with the performance in two divisions, the Russian had a very busy Saturday.

In one day, he spent two training and qualifying races on different cars, as well as a full race in Xfinity.

Daniil started in it according to the qualification results in 24th place, but punctured a tire, which caused him to waste time at the pit stop.

Returning to the track, the rider exceeded the speed limit and received a penalty in the form of driving through the pit lane.

Everything together threw him to the 35th position, but later Kvyat turned out to be a “lucky dog” - that is, the first of the lagging behind in the circle.

According to the rules of the race, such a pilot in the yellow flag mode is allowed to overtake the pace car and stand at the tail of the peloton, thus winning back the backlog.

With nine laps to go, the Russian took 12th place, but ended up finishing 15th.

At the end of the race, the pilot wrote on social networks that he was very happy with such a result of the race, and, first of all, with the fact that he managed to win back 20 positions behind.

As it turned out, Kvyat showed the second result in the history of Sam Hunt on the ring tracks.

The team, although they called the race performed by the Russian "roller coaster", were very pleased with his performance and made it clear that their cooperation would continue.

“We are extremely proud of Daniil and Team 26. The hard work paid off and this season has shown how resilient this group can be.

Next Vegas!

— said in the message Sam Hunt in the social network.

In Charlotte, Kvyat will have one more race - as part of the NASCAR Cup Series.

He finished 33rd in qualifying ahead of his Hezeberg teammate Loris Hezemans, who was 36th.