The former Xfinity Series driver is ready to run and learn the Rolex 24.
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00:00Well we're joined by Parker Kligerman who makes his IMSA debut here the night
00:05in the next two weeks for the Rolex 24. Parker, obviously Big Machine Vodka,
00:10Big Machine Racing I should say has has helped you a lot in getting this
00:13opportunity but how did it come about? How did this all come about? Well it's
00:18been a dream of mine a bucket list for I think we figured out about 20 years now
00:22so I've always wanted to do this race I've tried to make it happen and then
00:25sort of all the stars aligned with Forte Racing as we got to like October
00:29November and obviously of Scott Borchetta's help and it's just you know
00:34just one of those rare moments where everything kind of came together at the
00:38right time and Scott and I when we first came together at Big Machine Racing it
00:43was funny that we kind of became quick friends over the fact that we both loved
00:46all motorsports not just NASCAR not IndyCar and so it was like we loved
00:49everything and so when I came to him midway through last year and said hey I
00:52don't you know I think my full-time racing is coming to an end he was like
00:57we both wondered if there's anything fun we could do together and number one
01:00the list was do the Rolex 24 so I'm excited he's gonna be here for the race
01:04which is super cool and then we're with an amazing race team at Forte Racing and
01:07Huntress on board this year with the at the Rolex which you know is so cool
01:12because for me you you look at these teams and all the different manufacturers
01:18and such to sort of see like oh you know where they stack up and that sort of
01:21thing I've been really impressed by is the professionalism and just like the
01:25fit and finish and the level of preparation logistics that goes behind
01:29this race and seeing our whole Forte Racing team you know what they've been
01:33putting behind this is amazing and with the support of Lamborghini which is
01:36super cool I mean at the end of the day I drove a v10 Lamborghini at the test
01:40to you know back in December through the banking of Daytona with it singing
01:47behind me and thought this is the coolest thing ever like how did this
01:50happen so absolutely just it's a dream come true and I mentioned all those
01:54things because it does take you know take such a huge effort to be here for
01:57this race this race is such a massive undertaking I've got a new joke is that
02:01you know I've done I've been here for the TV side but we're only here a couple
02:04days when you do the driving side between the test and how often we're how
02:08much we're down here and everything I was like this is no longer the 24 hours
02:11Daytona it's the 24 days of Daytona like we're here we now live here I pretty
02:15sure I can now start applying for tax income tax down here in Florida but now
02:21it's it's such a cool event it's so big the competition is amazing and I think
02:25we're I'm with a really good race team that has a shot at a Rolex you know just
02:29looking at our lineup and how quick everyone is and so I just want to go get
02:33done yeah how how how exciting has been to kind of learn the car get to you know
02:38kind of understand the nuances of this style of racing and and and just alone
02:42you know having the experience that you have with this lineup I imagine that
02:46definitely is helpful to get that advice and to get the understanding of this
02:49style racing because it is different than the NASCAR and what you usually do
02:53every Sunday or Saturday it was it's massively different and to your point
02:57you know Mario Farnbacher who's a two-time champ has been super helpful
03:00Misha Guickberg who's more the probably the fastest AMS out there has been super
03:04helpful this whole race team Bob Perona who's our spotter but was my driver
03:07coach for many years he's my manager for years he's been super helpful Frank I
03:11just met him I know he's gonna be really helpful because he has so much
03:14experience these Lamborghinis and with the the new energy management systems
03:19and torque sensors and all that stuff so there is an incredible amount to
03:22learn and a lot of people want to know like okay what is the difference well
03:25here's the biggest difference one of the biggest differences is that in these
03:28cars there's so many so much technology that compared to a NASCAR XFINITY car
03:34which I drove where if the car is not handling the way you want in XFINITY you
03:38as a driver have to adjust what you're doing in the car or try to find a
03:42different line or do something like that in these they have so many tools within
03:46the car you have to sort of take yourself out of like oh I'll do this
03:49differently and start to be like oh maybe I should change this system maybe
03:52I should change this setting maybe change that setting and help the car do
03:56a better job and you keep doing the same thing so that's a huge difference
04:00mentality wise for me that had to adjust to and then I've talked a lot about for
04:05many too many people the braking which is I find this very funny but like
04:08people wonder about the differences in race cars and I think this really sort
04:13of explains it in a good way a NASCAR stock car the highest peak brake
04:16pressure you'll see it like a road course like 1,250 pounds in these cars
04:21with ABS and all that they have it's about 2,000 pounds so when I did the
04:25test the funniest part was we got done the whole thing we're looking at the
04:28data and my peak brake pressure was 1,250 pounds so I've had to do a lot of
04:33work on my left leg tried really hard to you know get better at that and that's
04:38been my task is really figuring that out and then traffic's gonna be really tough
04:41yeah I can imagine even to just while you're learning the car understanding
04:46the way the track races you obviously have you know having experience racing
04:50you know road court you know like I imagine that's also got to be an added
04:53layer on top of it as well learning how the track race is learning when the
04:56brake the timing and obviously these cars can be so sensitive that I imagine
05:00that can also be a challenge as well it is but it's you know it's I like to say
05:05it has four tires of a steering wheel so pretty much there's there's it's not
05:09gonna do anything that defies physics at least that I've felt and if you find
05:14a race car defies physics you're gonna win a lot of races but I think the the
05:19you know I've actually gotten a race here in trucks we came here back in 2020
05:23I think forever so I generally knew the track I've done a bajillion laps in sim
05:27racing at this racetrack I've done multiple Rolex 24s on iRacing so or they
05:33call it just a day 2024 on that so like it really wasn't a big adjustment for me
05:41what I know will be an adjustment was some of the mentality stuff in the race
05:45car and then traffic like navigating having GTP cars which are you know 10 15
05:52seconds a lot faster whatever it is is really difficult to sort of
05:57conceptualize as you're trying to drive fast at the same time so that I know
06:01will be a task for me to learn this weekend because we're at the test that
06:05we did we only had LMP2 cars there and you know you get a cadence for them but
06:10now you're adding even faster cars who you know are full of some of the best
06:14drivers in the world so it's gonna be it's a task there's a reason you know
06:18this race starts with 61 cars but it is not 61 to finish because it is a battle
06:23royale out there yeah I can imagine to having this weekend where you're gonna
06:27have the entire field you know on track and stuff I can imagine that's
06:30definitely gonna be a nice positive in terms of learning the traffic and
06:33understanding I know not everybody will be out at once each team is gonna have
06:36their own thing but I imagine that's gonna help a lot just understanding the
06:39traffic and navigating through them because that can definitely be a
06:41challenge oh yeah no it'd be huge it's probably my besides the braking stuff a
06:46little bit and learning the system the tools to use inside the car my biggest
06:51task is learning traffic and really getting a cadence understanding if you
06:56know you have spotters who do an amazing job of saying hey you're coming out of
06:59turn three and they'll tell you GTP car 20 back you're clear into four maybe
07:05five well when he says maybe five I've got to get enough knowledge to see in
07:10the camera or in the mirror there's a GTP car there he's actually coming he's
07:15gonna be here quicker than the spotters even realizing or not right and so you
07:19just have to have that you have to understand that and then there's the
07:21really tough situations which are you know you have a GTP car you see it in
07:27the in the camera they say there's another one there's one but there's
07:30another but you can't see behind them so now you've got to kind of be like oh
07:33well can I turn in behind this guy no I can't and so those are the decisions
07:38that are being made every corner of every lap in a Rolex 24 and it's just
07:41what's it's what makes this race so crazy and you know interesting and
07:46dynamic as you have all these different classes out there trying to navigate the
07:50same bit of real estate at the same time it's kind of cool you can build a
07:52broadcast crew this weekend with some of the drivers you got Townsend Bell you
07:56got James Hinchcliffe and then you got yourself and we're all gonna be on the
07:59broadcast you guys are all gonna be the broadcast how exciting is that to be
08:02able to to go up against those two guys who obviously are did stuff on the Indy
08:06car side of the house for NBC but I imagine you probably have had it been
08:10able to get a have a relationship with them yeah who is that to be able to to
08:14get the race against them and kind of be the broadcast driver trio if you will I
08:19think it's gotta be the first broadcast ever has had three competitors in the
08:22actual sport that's being covered at the same time as it's going on so I it's
08:26definitely setting maybe some sort of record you know I think James and I are
08:31close friends and he and I actually did some iRacing together on Monday because
08:34he's driving a Lamborghini as well so we were hoping he would help me out with some
08:37advice which was really nice of him and then I know Townsend you know kind of
08:42had an unexpected call to be in that car but he's a pro man the guy's done so
08:46much in motorsports and and has done he kind of set the tone of being the driver
08:51and TV guy then James Hinchcliffe did it now we're all gonna do it so it's
08:56like we're the we're we're like all following his footsteps and I have to
09:01say that you know for Townsend pretty incredible that he's even here and able
09:05to focus on this after everything just went down in in LA and was continues to
09:08go on but you know he's he's such a pro and and never ceases to amaze me and his
09:12ability to say be great on TV drive like all that stuff I'm just like I don't
09:17know how that guy does it but hopefully I can follow someone his footsteps and
09:21and get a Rolex are you is there interest to run more of these right now
09:24that you have a more open schedule obviously I know you you retired full
09:28time from Xfinity now you have a bit of more of an open schedule is there
09:31interest to run more races here in the future like is there plans to want to
09:35run more here and I would I love this endurance racing stuff this is really
09:39really cool and I really really enjoy it you know I don't foresee trying to be
09:47here full time or anything like that but if the opportunity were to be able to do
09:50Sebring at some point and do petite and you know eventually one day do them all
09:55that sort of stuff 100% like I'd love that's all bucket list stuff for me so
09:59we'll see what's out there this year and in the future but for right now I got to
10:05focus at least on this one and learn and trying to learn as much as I can but I
10:09can tell you that I just I was coming here on the golf cart over to talk to
10:14you and I was just sitting there being like god I love it here like this is so
10:17cool it's just I don't know like when I was a young kid I dreamed of racing
10:21something like this and I love NASCAR and obviously I've made my life there
10:26and it was one of my loves as well but this to me is just such a dynamic
10:32different form of racing that it's it's in such a golden age right now too with
10:37all the manufacturers everything involved that it's just like it's so if
10:40I could just be a small small tiny piece of getting to do this every now and
10:44forever I'd love that going into this season you mentioned focus you get
10:49you're gonna be focused on your new CW opportunity which is super exciting
10:53congratulations on that um how excited are you to get in the broadcast booth be
10:57part with Adam Alexander and the rest of the game with CW and and get to kind of
11:01launch you know CW had a bit of a soft opening if you will towards the end of
11:05the season but now you get really get to truly launch this year with the CW a
11:08part of the broadcast crew so how excited are you to be able to attack
11:11that and get a chance to do more broadcasting this year man I super
11:15flattered that it's come together because I I don't know if I foresaw this
11:19being a possibility five years ago whatever that I would ever have a chance
11:22to get to the booth in this capacity and to be you know with the CW and Adam
11:27Alexander I think's one of the best Jay McMurray who I've told this story
11:30multiple times but when I heard him and saw him do his first practice broadcast
11:35in the booth for Fox many years ago I remember I think I tweeted like that's
11:38the that guy's one of the best so I mean joining those two I know I have a
11:43lot to learn I'll learn a lot from them but I'm really looking forward to it
11:47because you know I love the Xfinity series and what it's become recently and
11:52that it's gotten its own identity right and it's to me classic stock car racing
11:57and as the Cup Series is gone and as it should and stayed more of the times and
12:01revered you know technology technology wise with the car and such Xfinity is
12:06kind of like hey if you liked what you saw the last 20 years it's still
12:08here right and it's full of really cool drivers veterans up-and-comers and a lot
12:14of drivers who spread throughout the field from the front to basically the
12:19back that are making a living in the in that series and whether it's gathering
12:24sponsorship whatever they're all doing that and to me that's the mark of a
12:28healthy series and I think it's probably one of its healthiest positions ever so
12:31now getting to do up to the booth and talk about it I was like that sounds
12:36like a dream come true because I'd already be watching the races anyway so
12:38why not get paid to do it but yeah it's it's gonna be a lot to learn but I'm
12:43super excited about it because I just think you know with the commitment the
12:48CW has made and putting on network television it's such a big opportunity
12:52for Xfinity to really become a standalone product of classic stock car
12:57racing and it's exciting to see the crossover between NASCAR and IMSA with
13:00you guys like you Shane yeah Connor you know you have guys who have raced in
13:05NASCAR prior like Andy Lally and Colin Braun who's been in the in the cup in
13:09the series before so it's pretty cool to see the crossover between NASCAR and
13:13IMSA and the amount of guys who are gonna be competing in this Rolex 24 it
13:16shows how important this race is for a lot of those NASCAR guys but I think it
13:20also shows a lot of the you know maybe similarities if you will and excitement
13:26around this event yeah I mean Austin Cedric Daytona 500 winners yeah right
13:30so I mean to me I just think that for years NASCAR really was sort of being
13:37like in a silo by itself in the motorsports world and this connected
13:40obviously way more to IndyCar and F1 and that sort of thing because of the nature
13:45of the people who work in it and the sort of the manufacturers involved and
13:48all that but I think what's happened in the last what five six seven years is
13:51NASCAR has done a ton more road courses has become one of the most diverse
13:54schedules probably in all motorsports especially when they had a dirt track
13:58when when there was a dirt tracking cup you basically raced on every single type
14:02of course possible in the motorsports world it was the most diverse schedule
14:05in all motorsports so I think that has risen you know raised the profile of a
14:10NASCAR driver who can now get opportunities here because these teams
14:15and manufacturers understand and respect their abilities from that side and on
14:21the flip side I think they want to do it because it's such a big event that's
14:24really cool so like why not if you have the chance and you have the desire to
14:29come over here and do this race and and it's I can I was texting with a very
14:36well-known future Hall of Famer NASCAR Cup Series driver that I said when you
14:42get done you're gonna have to go do this and he said I want to so it's just it's
14:48such a it is so different from what we do yeah but in so many cool ways and you
14:55know NASCAR is very cool in its own way but this is very cool in a different way
14:58and it's it's hard to maybe put the words what that is but it's just
15:02different in school experience well Parker have a lot of fun these next
15:05few weeks enjoy yourself looking forward to hearing your you your voice on the
15:09broadcast for the CW and excited for what's to come for you man congrats on
15:13everything appreciate that thanks so much