Crossover drivers?

[turbokid]

I know it's a fantasy but I would love to see Dixon and Hamilton switch cars. Not just on a Thursday practice before the race but for the actual race. Hamilton obviously would do very well but I think Dixon would as well. It certainly would be entertaining.

[Nigel Red5]

Even though that's true - that's not the point. The point is what Jimmie Johnson said he said he wants more crossover between F1, Indycar, and other drivers from other series. There's been NASCAR drivers that have done events like the 24 Hours of Daytona and the Indy 500 in the past. Even things such as the Baja 1000 which Rossi did was beyond the end of the NASCAR season. Yes, I understand there are contracts and other things but if Indycar guys and other drivers can do it - why not other drivers?

So this idea that NASCAR drivers don't have the time has credit but only up to a point. I don't think Jimmie is asking to do what Alonso is doing and try to get the triple crown he's just asking for people to get out of their comfort zones when given the chance. I'm just guessing but maybe Jimmie is talking from a point of regret. That he didn't take some of those chances when he could have when he was younger.

Plus do you think Jimmie Johnson would be saying this if he thought there wasn't enough time for it?

1) who has the time if they are a full time NASCAR driver? Jimmy's got a close eye on retirement.
2)Alonso- see retirement. His Indy 500 drive was an absolute fluke of an opportunity and no one is part-time in F1, you are either a current driver, or a former driver. Any cross over during the season is going to be a huge contractual hurdle as it is in most racing. With budgets going crazy and funding only covering partial seasons for a lot of drivers, Crossover is more a means to an end trying to feed oneself, but an aspiring driver climbing the ranks really has to concentrate their efforts towards the series thy aspire to. I'd love to see more drivers participating in other series Marquee events, but the reality is, contracts and to an extent inter-series competition squashes a good bit of that opportunity, and seat availability pretty much takes care of the rest. endurance racing in sports cars are the main crossover point by the nature of having multiple seats per car.

[Hitokiri]

1) who has the time if they are a full time NASCAR driver? Jimmy's got a close eye on retirement.

As I said and as Jimmie has suggested - there are races that NASCAR drivers could take part in without interfering with the schedule. The Chili Bowl, Indy, and as many have said the 24 Hour of Daytona are three examples that could work for NASCAR drivers.

I'm not sure how the IMSA and NASCAR schedules coincide with one another but I remember Tony Stewart racing some Grand Am races during the early 2000's when NASCAR and Grand Am ran on the same weekends or when there was time. So it's not impossible.

2)Alonso- see retirement. His Indy 500 drive was an absolute fluke of an opportunity and no one is part-time in F1, you are either a current driver, or a former driver. Any cross over during the season is going to be a huge contractual hurdle as it is in most racing. With budgets going crazy and funding only covering partial seasons for a lot of drivers, Crossover is more a means to an end trying to feed oneself, but an aspiring driver climbing the ranks really has to concentrate their efforts towards the series thy aspire to. I'd love to see more drivers participating in other series Marquee events, but the reality is, contracts and to an extent inter-series competition squashes a good bit of that opportunity, and seat availability pretty much takes care of the rest. endurance racing in sports cars are the main crossover point by the nature of having multiple seats per car.

Guys like Alonso, Kurt Busch, and even Jamie McMurray have shown that when there's a connection there's a way. I agree that it's not as easy as before but it's not impossible. I'm sure if a big name NASCAR driver wanted to do more races outside his regular series they could. Heck even Ganassi said Larson could run the Indy 500 if he wanted but only if Chip could find enough resources to set things up properly.

So you are right Nigel Red but it's not impossible even with NASCAR's hectic schedule.

[Big G 94]

Was the crossing over back in the old days ... which were great but I understand they ain't coming back ... all about trying to make some cash or could it at least partly be because the drivers enjoyed the challenge and enjoyed trying something different?

I sat in on an interview with Foyt at Talladega back in the '70s ... I used to cover NASCAR racing a good bit ... who obviously didn't need the money, and he said he raced stock cars for relaxation and fun, compared to the pressure-packed atmosphere of the Indy circuit, especially in the month of May. (Although he damn sure was trying to be competitive in the stockers, too.)

[Nigel Red5]

yeah, back then they cherry-picked races to stay busy and raced for the cash. No one is racing for purses anymore. Racing dirt during the regular seasons is probably the most likely because of the weekday and Saturday night races.

[flatlander_48]

You are corrrct. I should have said, you can forget about F1 for to many reasons to list.

No, the way it is structured now, you just can’t do a one-off. Teams have to run 2 cars. You can’t run 1 of 3 as you could in the old days. Getting up to speed with an F-1 steering wheel is not the work of a minute. If a team needs someone to fill in, like Paul Di Resta did for Williams, you have test and reserve drivers on the team. There just are not opportunities these days in F-1 like it was when Jim Hall, Bobby Rahal, Roger Penske, Bobby Unser, et al, did one-offs. You get 4 hours total for practice before you have to qualify. A new guy would almost need to be a magician...