Waters, who has won 12 times in Supercars, will be in his first Cup race at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway on Sunday. He’ll drive the No. 60 Ford for Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing.
Before this, Waters raced in two NASCAR Truck races this season at Martinsville and Kansas with ThorSport Racing.
This Cup race is a big step up for him. But it’s also on a road course, unlike his previous NASCAR starts this year, which were on ovals. Waters, who is 29, might feel a bit more comfortable on a road course.
“For me, it’s a bit of a bucket list (item), to be honest,” Waters said this week at NASCAR’s Production Facility in Concord, N.C. “I get to come over and do a Cup race – it’s pretty awesome.
“To be able to do it, you know, on a road course and in a car that kind of makes a little bit more sense to me is going to be pretty special as well. I think I’ve got no idea how it’s to go, but I just want to enjoy the week.
“The other part was to be able to come over here and do a few oval races. That was kind of the Truck side, and I absolutely had a ball. It appeals just to kind of step out my comfort zone and do a few more races on the side and complement my racing back home.”
In Sunday’s race, Waters won’t be alone in making his Cup debut. Will Brown, the current leader in the Supercars series, will also be racing at Sonoma with Richard Childress Racing.
Shane van Gisbergen, a three-time Supercars champion who now races full-time in NASCAR’s Xfinity Series, will be one of Brown’s spotters in Sunday’s Cup race. Last July, van Gisbergen became the first driver in over 60 years to win a Cup race in his debut at the inaugural Chicago Street Race, driving for Trackhouse Racing.
“To come over here to do a road course and to drive a car, that makes a lot more sense to me. That’s a lot closer to what a race back home is,” Waters said. “You know, it’s a bonus, to be honest.
“But at the same time, stepping up into Cup, the level of competition is going to be way harder as well.”
Waters spent some time this week watching his RFK Racing teammate Chris Buescher in a simulator, hoping to learn how the current Cup drivers navigate their cars. Because Sonoma’s track was recently repaved, Waters will get a 50-minute practice session on Friday, instead of the usual 20 minutes during most Cup weekends.
“The Cup car seems a lot closer to what we race back home, probably closer to our old car, the Gen 2 car than the Gen 3 car but a lot closer to what I raced than the truck,” Waters said. “To come over here and not get any testing and whatnot is hard and something that we get a lot of back home, you know practice and testing. That’s a bit of a challenge.”
