Courtesy of his nine-year sponsor, Red Bull Racing and benefiting from Brian Vickers medical condition, Ekstrom got the chance to do so this week, behind the wheel of Vickers' No. 83 Toyota.
The experience turned out to be trickier than expected for Ekstrom, who admitted he needed a bit more time then usual to get the feel of the car.
"I was really surprised how the car drove," Ekstrom said according to Autosport. "Everyone had told me that it would be very special and it was quite nice."
"The first hour of the test I was fighting the car a lot just getting used to the power, the weight, and the fact that the car has little aero, all things that are very different for me."
In the end, however, once car and driver began speaking the same language, the 31-year-old driver enjoyed the experience but, unlike others who come from other competitions to have a taste of NASCAR, abstained from saying anything about a possible NASCAR tie-up in the future.
"A few hours into the test I felt a lot more comfortable in the car and overall I think we had a really good test," Ekstrom added. "I came into this test not having any experience in these type of cars, and also having never worked with the No. 83 team before, so it was nice to see how well we all worked together."
"I really enjoyed my first Sprint Cup test and am glad to have had this opportunity."
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