“That race for me is a great way to learn”: Helio Castroneves talks about ARCA Series race after 5th place finish

Legendary IndyCar Series driver, Helio Castroneves, drove for the first time in the ARCA Menards Series on Saturday, February 15, ahead of his NASCAR debut on The Daytona 500 on Sunday, February 16. He finished 5th, despite a troublesome race filled with incidents and yellow flags.

Afterwards, Castroneves said to NASCAR insider Bob Pockrass that the race, although bumpy, was a great way to learn before taking on The Great American Race. He even said that he would have liked to run this before Thursday's Duel Qualifier (DNF), for he believes he would have done a better job at that, probably securing a better stop at the starting grid.

"...the spotters kept helping us and telling me to, 'stay behind, stay behind,' and it was too late, and we lost the push, but man, that race for me was a great way to learn, a great way to understand. I'm so glad I did that. It changed the perspective", Helio Castroneves said to Bob Pockrass

His two major takeaways from this first approach to NASCAR were how to save fuel and to trust his spotter.

"You only see a bumper, just a big bumper, and it's understanding what the spotter is telling you so that you can push or not. Saving fuel was (also) something I learned today, even if it was against a different car with less power. But yeah, I think I'll be a little more calm tomorrow, understanding what I need to do." Helio Castroneves told Bob Pockrass

To top it all off, the IndyCar veteran was hit yet once more after the race had finished. AJ Moyer, who in all likelihood didn't know that the race was over, spun Castroneves into Turn 1.

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Helio Castroneves will be Driver #41

Even though the Brazilian didn't qualify for the main event through speed or finish, Castroneves will be #41 on Sunday at Daytona Beach, Florida. This will be possible thanks to a provision created by NASCAR that will allow a "world-class driver" to participate in all of this year's Cup races.

His participation with Trackhouse Racing will award no points and no prize money. Also, all drivers who finish below him will be moved forward one spot in the final results, and their points, prize money, and stage points adjusted accordingly.

Some drivers, like Denny Hamlin, have been outspoken about disliking the new rule.

“It reeks of desperation... I don’t know how else to say it. I don’t know how nice you can really say it. It just feels like you are really trying to get any kind of headline you can to be relevant, and I don’t love it" Hamlin said before The Clash at Bowman Gray.

Helio Castroneves is set to start at P41, row 21, in the very last place. He'll have an uphill battle but the veteran has proved many times over, that he is more than willing to fight for his spot.