Circuit of The Americas, the circuit that hosts two of the biggest sports in the motor sporting world. The track situated at Austin holds both F1 and NASCAR races. Since it is a road course for Stock Car Racing, the thrill of watching a race at COTA is unmatchable. But the event of this past Sunday was even more special. In the recent NASCAR Cup Series race at the Circuit, we even saw two Formula 1 drivers showcase their racing prowess.

Being former F1 racers, Jenson Button and Kimi Raikkonen must not have been bothered by the g-forces in the stock car. But, unfortunately for them, NASCAR drivers might just have a different level of resistance when it comes to enduring extreme heat. This was seen when Button struggled a lot during the race. Since it wasn’t a usual race at an oval, the Cup Series event was quite an adrenaline rush for the fans.

Former F1 driver encountered a lot of struggles in the COTA race

This year, F1 drivers, Kimi Raikkonen, and Jenson Button participated in the NASCAR Cup Series race at COTA. The race was indeed a unique one as it had multiple overtimes because of several cautions. And this led the race to be quite exhausting for the former F1 driver, probably more than he imagined.

Motorsports journalist, Chris Medland took to Twitter to give an insight into Button’s situation. As per Medland, Button said, “It was an emotional rollercoaster… At first, it was terrible… The first stint was really bad. It was embarrassing for me… Finished 18th after almost stopping because I had heat exhaustion.”

“I was so close to getting out of the car because I thought I was going to faint. I must’ve drank eight-nine bottles of water during the race.”

The initial stages of the race proved to be terrible for Button as he struggled to find the rhythm through the wide corners, which let other drivers overtake him. Plus, the heat inside Jenson’s #15 car was unbearable for him. Also, Button got a massive whack from Raikkonen, after which his car’s rear wasn’t at its best, adding to his ongoing misery.

Read More: NASCAR Newbie Jenson Button Issues Scary Warning to Bubba Wallace & Co. Ahead of Debut at COTA

The debut Cup Series race was not smooth sailing for Button. For someone who’s not used to getting bumped, it must have been frustrating. However, this time also, the race kept the fans on the edge of their seats. In fact, this race had much more to it.

NASCAR at COTA was a surge of adrenaline

Circuit of The Americas has always given out thrilling races, thanks to the complexity of the track. However, the recent race was completely different from what NASCAR fans are accustomed to. The race was a blend of cautions, wrecks, and good sportsman moments.

Owing to cautions during the closing laps of the race, the race went into triple overtime, which could have proven to be a complete turnaround of the expected outcome.

Button’s debut experience didn’t go well, but the race was as thrilling as it could be. With the inclusion of F1 drivers in NASCAR, the race got a good amount of attention from Formula 1 fans as well.

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