{"id":847976,"date":"2026-08-06T08:32:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-06T08:32:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/847976\/"},"modified":"2026-08-06T08:32:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-06T08:32:11","slug":"nascar-team-owner-confirms-max-verstappen-talks-it-is-definitely-on-his-radar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/847976\/","title":{"rendered":"NASCAR team owner confirms Max Verstappen talks: ‘It is definitely on his radar’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Racing in NASCAR is very much on the radar of four-time F1 world champion Max Verstappen<\/a>, according to Cup Series team owner Justin Marks. <\/p>\n

\nThe 28-year-old Verstappen has already showcased his willingness to try different motorsport series, headlining earlier this year at the iconic Nurburgring 24 Hours race. <\/p>\n

\nThe Dutchman heading Stateside to race in the premier series in the US would be huge news, and according to Trackhouse Racing supremo Marks it is something he is definitely considering. <\/p>\n

Article continues under video<\/p>\n

\nMarks oversees Trackhouse’s Project 91 – which gives top international drivers the chance to break into America\u2019s popular stock car scene. Past drivers taking part have included Kimi R\u00e4ikk\u00f6nen, H\u00e9lio Castroneves and more recently Kevin Magnussen<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\nWhile a deal with the four-time world champion seems challenging for now – given Trackhouse\u2019s exclusive Chevrolet deal and Verstappen\u2019s Ford commitment through Red Bull Powertrains – Marks says talks are ongoing. <\/p>\n

\nF1 HEADLINES: Verstappen NASCAR talks confirmed as Red Bull driver switch mooted<\/a> <\/p>\n

‘We’re dealing with brand clashes’ – Marks on Max blockers<\/p>\n

\nMarks explained that the program was designed to inject fresh faces into the stock car arena: <\/p>\n

\n\u201cProject 91 is our way of introducing new brands to the sport, giving them an opportunity to join NASCAR and be part of something big,\u201d he said on SPEED with Harvick and Buxton<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\nMarks also cited previous success stories from other racing disciplines, such as Magnussen\u2019s recent standout performance in San Diego after a heated and much-publicised battle with Noah Gragson. <\/p>\n

\"KevinKevin Magnussen impressed in his recent NASCAR action.<\/p>\n

\nAsked about the likelihood of getting Verstappen behind the wheel of a stock car, Marks was realistic about the commercial hurdles. Notably that Trackhouse\u2019s Chevrolet partnership directly conflicts with Verstappen’s obligations to Ford. <\/p>\n

\n\u201cThey\u2019d have to replace the current power unit in his F1 car to make it work. We\u2019re dealing with brand clashes and similar issues,\u201d he admitted. <\/p>\n

Future NASCAR appearance IS on Verstappen radar<\/p>\n

\nDespite these challenges, the door remains open for future opportunities with Verstappen often referencing his curiosity about exploring different racing formats. <\/p>\n

\nMarks revealed: \u201cIt\u2019s definitely on his radar. Through the Red Bull network, we\u2019ve had those discussions. He\u2019s eager to try various racing styles. <\/p>\n

\n\u201cIt might be complicated right now, but I wouldn\u2019t rule it out for the future.\u201d <\/p>\n

Verstappen F1 future up in the air<\/p>\n

\nThe talks linking Verstappen to NASCAR come with his immediate F1 future very much up in the air. He has a Red Bull contract which runs through to 2028 – but of course it contains an exit clause. <\/p>\n

\nThat is now in play after the Dutchman went into the summer break outside the top two in the Drivers’ Championship standings. He is currently languishing in sixth<\/a> after a disappointing start to 2026 – 110 points behind leader Kimi Antonelli. <\/p>\n

\nVerstappen, who has hit out at the controversial new 2026 regulations and struggled to find consistency with Red Bull’s latest car, has been strongly linked with both Mercedes<\/a> and McLaren<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\nThe four-time world champion also has mooted the nuclear option of F1 retirement, while a one-year sabbatical in 2027 is thought also to be a potential option. <\/p>\n

\nREAD MORE: Ferrari poach Mercedes star as double signing steps up F1 title bid<\/a> <\/p>\n

\nREAD MORE: Lewis Hamilton strikes it rich with genius deal as $10bn valuation looms<\/a><\/p>\n

Related\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Racing in NASCAR is very much on the radar of four-time F1 world champion Max Verstappen, according to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":847977,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[446],"tags":[49,48,578,25835,1885,634,44,1882,82],"class_list":["post-847976","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nascar","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-f1","tag-graham-shaw","tag-max-verstappen","tag-nascar","tag-news","tag-red-bull","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/847976","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=847976"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/847976\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/847977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=847976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=847976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=847976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}