Fernandez relishing double-duty

Fernandez will have probably his busiest race weekend ever which is set to start on Thursday with two practice sessions at Long Beach.

Once finished he will fly for nearly four hours to Mexico, where he will take part in Friday's practice sessions for the Nationwide Series race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

Back at Long Beach his teammate Luis Diaz will take care of qualifying their car for Saturday's American Le Mans race.

On Friday, once Fernandez finishes practice in Mexico, he will take a helicopter from the track to the airport, where his private jet will be waiting for him to fly back to Long Beach.

On Saturday he will compete in the American Le Mans Series race in the afternoon, missing the qualifying session for the Mexico event. Former Nationwide Series champion David Green will fill in for him, although he will still have to start from the back of the grid on Sunday.

Fernandez will then fly for the third time in as many days back to Mexico on Saturday, right after he is finished with the race at Long Beach.

Despite the conflicting schedules forcing him to start from the back in the Nationwide Series race, he doesn't see that as something that will hamper his chances of winning on home turf.

"No, because I have done it before," says Fernandez, who will drive for JR Motorsports on Sunday. "I did it the first year I was racing in Mexico and we almost won the race. I don't have problem. The race is plenty long enough.

"The main thing is to have patience and to be there at the end with no damage to your car. At the end, the strongest guys will always be at the front."

Although the weekend will be quite hectic for him and complex logistics are involved, the former Champ Car and IRL Indy Car Series race winner says he doesn't have any concerns about the physical and mental stress that he will be subject of over the four days of driving in two different cars.

"No, because I am organizing everything pretty well in terms of food, fluids and the schedule," he says. "I should be fine and actually I like the idea of not waiting around.

"One of the things that I don't like sometimes is waiting around. This weekend, things will happen a lot quicker and I like that. You don't have too much time to sit around and think. You go there and do your job, which I like."

Fernandez had already played double-duty on the same weekend before, although at the same venue, when he previously competed in the Rolex Grand Am and the Nationwide Series events at Mexico City.