DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 12: Jimmie Johnson 84 Legacy Motor Club Carvana Toyota talks with his crew during qualifying for the NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Cup Series Daytona 500 on February 12, 2025 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, FL. Photo by Jeff Robinson/Icon Sportswire AUTO: FEB 12 NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon2502125782500
DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 12: Jimmie Johnson 84 Legacy Motor Club Carvana Toyota talks with his crew during qualifying for the NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Cup Series Daytona 500 on February 12, 2025 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, FL. Photo by Jeff Robinson/Icon Sportswire AUTO: FEB 12 NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon2502125782500
Jun 27, 2026, 4:22 AM CUT
Former F1 driver interested in running for Jimmie Johnson's NASCAR team in future
After Kevin Magnussen's NASCAR debut with Trackhouse in San Diego last weekend, we might have another F1 x NASCAR crossover on our hands. A former Red Bull F1 driver has shown interest in pursuing the same path with another team: Jimmie Johnson's Legacy Motor Club.
The driver in focus is Nyck de Vries. The 31-year-old Dutch driver, who won the 2026 24 Hours of Le Mans with Toyota Racing on June 14, the biggest triumph of his career so far, recently addressed a potential NASCAR appearance.
In conversation with analysts Kevin Harvick and Will Buxton on the "Speed" podcast, de Vries said:
"Jimmie Johnson is close to Toyota, and we've had some chats in Austin last year, and I'd love to see his facilities and maybe get a test run on a dirt track or something."
Jun 18, 2023; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; AlphaTauri driver Nyck De Vries (NED) parades and salutes the crowd before the Canadian Grand Prix at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 18, 2023; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; AlphaTauri driver Nyck De Vries (NED) parades and salutes the crowd before the Canadian Grand Prix at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports
The 31-year-old also mentioned that he's already absorbed the spirit of NASCAR through the Netflix docuseries "NASCAR: Full Speed."
"I've obviously watched all the Netflix series on NASCAR racing. I think they're really cool," de Vries added.
Nyck de Vries made his F1 debut with Williams in 2022. An impressive points finish on that one-off appearance earned him a seat with Red Bull's junior team, Alphatauri (now Racing Bulls), for 2023.
Unfortunately, he was unable to score a single point in the first 10 races of the season, and the team axed him after the British GP, replacing him with Daniel Ricciardo. After that, he returned to the World Endurance Championship with Toyota, and his efforts culminated in the Le Mans victory this month.
But that isn't the only endurance racing experience he's interested in.
Nyck de Vries eyeing another US series debut besides NASCAR
Nyck de Vries has mostly raced in the European circuit in his professional racing career. However, in 2021, he got a chance to participate in an IndyCar test with Meyer Shank Racing at Sebring, where he set the fastest time among four rookies.
However, he didn't pursue that path as his F1 journey was still on. While it is unclear if the Dutchman is still interested in IndyCar, he revealed that IMSA and the Rolex 24 at Daytona are on his radar. On the aforementioned podcast, de Vries said:
"I definitely wanna do IMSA and Daytona at some point in my career. So yeah, I hope to see you guys at some point in the US."
de Vries has built an impressive resume, showing his versatility across categories like Hypercar and Formula E. Considering how adept he is on road courses, the former F1 driver could excel in a potential NASCAR appearance as well.
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