Since its creation at the hands of Jerome and Anne Galpin, the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series keeps growing at an impressive pace and attracts drivers from around the world to join NASCAR. The first Greek driver to enter NWES from was 18-year-old Thomas Krasonis, who made his NASCAR debut in the opening round of the 2019 season in Valencia, Spain driving the #1 Alex Caffi Motorsport Mustang.
Piloting a 400hp V8 beast with no electronic aids for the first time in his young career, the Athens-native had taken into account a learning period and at the end of the regular season he sits 15th in the ELITE 2 Division standings.
In his first eight NASCAR races, Krasonis grabbed one top-10 finish – the sixth place in ELITE 2 Round 5 at Brands Hatch – but also went close to the top-10 in the season opener at Valencia, where he was eleventh in his second ever NWES start.
“The regular season was really challenging for me,” said the 18-year old. “I didn’t have much practice time in the car, which is completely new to me. I managed to adapt quickly to the championship and I became really competitive in a very short period of time. I’m happy with my results so far, especially with my sixth place at Brands Hatch, but I’m sure I can do better than that”.
Krasonis is enthusiastic about the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series, which is offering young talents from around the world an opportunity to grow and build themselves a professional racing career in NASCAR. “I really love Euro NASCAR because it’s a challenging and tough championship with very strong drivers fighting for the win. It’s a great way to improve my driving skills and learn how to compete against talented and experienced drivers,” the Greek said.
Krasonis wants to attack in the 2019 playoffs, when double points will be awarded for each of the four races. “In the playoffs I want to collect as many points as possible to grab a top-10 spot in the points standings. I want to be part of the Euro NASCAR family in the future as well and I will try everything to make my dream come true.”
Krasonis will be back in action with his Alex Caffi Motorsport Mustang on September 21-22 at the iconic Hockenheimring in Germany. The German Semi Finals are the first leg of the 2019 playoffs. The Finals will take place two weeks later on October 5-6 at the legendary Circuit Zolder in Belgium.
