Could a NASCAR driver win a Formula 1 race? NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. certainly believes he could…

… But there’s a catch: That Formula 1 race would have to be on an oval!

Dale Earnhardt Jr. makes bold Formula 1 win claim

Formula 1 and the NASCAR Cup Series are both the top-level forms of motorsport in their respective disciplines, but that’s just about where their similarities come to an end.

F1 is a global championship contested with open-wheel race cars, while NASCAR is largely confined to the United States (though it will be making its Mexican debut later this year). And yes, NASCAR machines are hefty stock cars that largely compete on oval tracks.

You’ll find drivers from both series making arguments about why their particular discipline is the best, but could a NASCAR driver win in Formula 1?

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is confident that he could — as long as that F1 race is on an oval!

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“If F1 raced on ovals, I could have won an F1 race, absolutely!” Earnhardt told Hard Rock Bet.

“I grew up racing on ovals, that’s really like a completely different, unique discipline.

“The way you drive an oval vs the way you drive a road course is so different. So, I think if they ever ran them on ovals I’d have a shot, for sure.”

But Earnhardt’s self-confidence doesn’t just center on his belief that NASCAR drivers are better than everyone else. He’s equally confident that a Formula 1 driver could take an easy NASCAR win given the right circumstances.

“F1 drivers could absolutely come into NASCAR and be competitive, but mainly on the road courses,” he explained.

“I think that they’d have a hard time learning the discipline of racing on our ovals with the kind of cars we have.

“It would be as difficult as any of our oval guys trying to go over there and be great in F1.

“But if they came and ran a road course race, you’d have to say that they had a shot to win.”

While cross-discipline swaps were more common in the past — drivers like Mario Andretti and Dan Gurney both tried their hand at both NASCAR and F1, and they were able to take wins in both categories — there are still a handful of modern drivers who have made the F1 to NASCAR swap.

Jenson Button, Daniil Kvyat, Kimi Raikkonen, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Jacques Villeneuve have all tried their hand at NASCAR — often on a part-time schedule.

Earnhardt himself has recently gotten his first taste of F1, albeit not behind the wheel. He was invited to the Miami Grand Prix as a guest of Red Bull Racing and Hard Rock Bet.

“The amenities are awesome,” Earnhardt said on his podcast, Dale Jr. Download. “They had this swimming pool bungalow.”

“The swimming pool had mermaids in it!” his wife Amy chimed in. “It was like a scene; it was really cool.”

“I’ll say this — and I’m being completely honest,” Earnhardt continued.

“I’m a NASCAR fanboy. NASCAR to me will always be the greatest thing in the whole wide world. It always will be. Of course it is; I grew up around it.

“I’m more entertained by the NASCAR product — but I was a bit surprised by how entertained I was by the F1 product, especially when Max [Verstappen] was trying to defend.”

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