Kostecki expects heel-and-toe to be an advantage in NASCAR

Brodie Kostecki believes that an ability to heel-and-toe a Supercar will be an advantage when he makes his NASCAR Cup Series debut on the Indianapolis road course this weekend.

Shane van Gisbergen quipped that his team-mates and rivals had developed a “foot fetish” over how he braked in his Trackhouse Racing Camaro when he made his Cup Series debut last month in Chicago.

NASCAR drivers typically do not use the clutch, and instead left-foot brake, whereas the right-foot, heel-and-toe technique is the overwhelming norm in Supercars.

Asked by Speedcafe if that lends an advantage to Supercars drivers on road courses, Kostecki replied, “Yeah, probably.

“It’s something that, if you don’t do it in a Supercar, you’re not going to make a career in Supercars.

“Those cars are kind of similar in a few ways to those NASCAR Next Gen cars.

“Obviously, the last guy to do it was Marcos Ambrose, and with Shane going back over there and doing it again, it was quite interesting seeing how the commentators were talking about and whatnot.

“It’s something that’s pretty normal here, so hopefully it’s an advantage.”

Van Gisbergen’s team-mate, Ross Chastain, was one who was shocked by the dance which the Kiwi performed on the pedals in Chicago.

Despite being a winner in NASCAR at the Circuit of The Americas, the venue of the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix, Chastain says he is applying lessons which he has learned from observing SVG in the Windy City.

Van Gisbergen, however, is in a somewhat similar state of mind as he faces the challenge of his oval debut in the next 24 hours when the Trucks race at Indianapolis Raceway Park.

He is digesting the advice of fellow multi-time Supercars champion Marcos Ambrose, who spent a year in Trucks when he switched to NASCAR in 2006.

Practice at IRP gets underway on Friday at 15:30 local time/Saturday at 05:30 AEST, with the Race at 21:00 local time/11:00 AEST.

Kostecki and van Gisbergen will then be in action at nearby Indianapolis Motor Speedway from Saturday (Sunday morning AEST).