Former F1 driver Nelson Piquet Jr is moving to NASCAR for 2010.

Piquet Jr. said yesterday on his website that his…

“first 18 months in F-1 did not go as planned. I have decided to focus on something different and have chosen to take a route in America.

“I have spent the last few months carefully evaluating my options for this year.

“NASCAR is hugely challenging and nobody has ever come in as an outsider before and gone on to win it — it will be the ultimate challenge.

This will be an awesome new challenge for me, and a healthy one.”

Piquet Jr has not driven in F1 since August when he was sacked by the Renault F1 Team. Piquet sparked controversy at Renault when he turned whistleblower against the Renault F1 bosses Pat Symonds and Flavio Briatore following being sacked. Piquet said that he had been told to deliberately crash at the Singapore Grand Prix 2008.