CONCORD, NC – The NASCAR Cup Series will add some European flair to select Cup Series events with the 2022 Hezeberg squad next season.
Organizers pulled the covers of Ford’s New Generation #27 – dressed in orange to reflect the team’s Dutch roots – at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Saturday morning. The part-time effort is a joint venture between former sports car driver Twain Heismans and Dutch businessman Ernst Berg and Rum Brothers Racing, which will run operations out of Mooresville, North Carolina, the department store.
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NASCAR European Series champion Willen and points leader Loris Heismans will serve as the starting driver, aiming to compete in the six road events in the 2022 schedule. The 24-year-old Dutchman will compete in the fourth Xfinity Series race of his career on Saturday at the Drive for the Cure 250 (hour 3 PM ET, NBC/NBC Sports app, PRN, SiriusXM Radio (NASCAR) in Charlotte Roval.
Heismans said he got his first glimpse of a next-generation prototype during a trip to the US to celebrate the 2019 Euro Series at the NASCAR Awards. Heismans said seeing the new Cup Series model in person and noticing similarities to its current ride in Europe had sowed a seed.
“We were interested in seeing what could be achieved,” Giezmanns said. “It is unbelievable to finally be here, and yesterday I finally saw the car for the first time. I don’t even have words to describe it – it is a very exciting moment.”
The new team will take part in a regulatory test on the 2.32-mile Charlotte track on Monday and Tuesday, as Heisman splits time with racing veteran Jacques Villeneuve in the two-day session. Villeneuve, winner of the 1995 Indianapolis 500, has played parts of the last two seasons of the Willen European Series and has appeared in four Cup Series games – most recently in 2013.
Hezeberg’s representatives have left the door open for additional events to be added to the team’s race schedule, and Villeneuve will likely share driving duties next year as well.
Team owner Josh Reum said Saturday that his group will host Operation Hezeberg in addition to the two teams’ current efforts in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He said his Reaume Brothers Racing group had not yet reached an agreement on their plans for 2022 at Camping World Trucks, but was optimistic about the new partnership.
“Anyone who finds out we’ve come across a cup will say, ‘Get ready, it’s a lot of work,'” said Ryom. “It’s a big schedule. We’re obviously starting small and growing. I think that’s dynamic at the moment. There are a lot of factors for us at Reaume Brothers Racing that are still in the air. We haven’t signed anyone yet” This is a great opportunity for us to grow Learning and expanding our business.”
It’s also an opportunity for the top division of NASCAR to find new talent and expand their reach in the sanctioning body’s international circuits. The Whelen Euro Series – along with Canada-based Pinty’s Series and NASCAR Peak Mexico Series – should not be viewed as a traditional round of development for NASCAR’s three national series. Chad Siegler, NASCAR’s vice president of international affairs, said he hopes Saturday’s announcement will be a step to change that perception.
“I think obviously, it’s definitely getting people to open their eyes, and it’s going to get our partners in Canada and our partners in Mexico to start looking and say there’s a way,” said Siegler, NASCAR’s vice president for international business. “The most important thing for us is to show the drivers a path. Like I said, we talk a lot about the path of Daniel Suarez (from the Mexico series to the Cup), but so that the driver can compete in the European Championship and say there is a path ahead of us to get to the States, I think that is the The biggest focus for us right now.”
