00:00
Robert Wiccan, so awesome to see you, my friend.
00:08
So we're going to Long Beach, and you're going to get to drive racecars.
00:12
You are a professional racecar driver, my guy, and insight provider, coach, just all kinds
00:21
Really cool thing happening at Long Beach, a little bit of a private screening coming,
00:26
but the unveiling of a project you've been in the middle of, had your life under a microscope
00:31
here for more than a year, the weight of speed, a documentary about your life.
00:38
Tell me about this, Mark Wahlberg, this has been a big production going on behind the
00:42
scenes, but it's time for that to come to light.
00:46
It is, yeah, it's exciting, you know, we're finally in the final stages of post-production,
00:51
and yeah, it's kind of out of my hands, and I get to see it like everyone else for the
00:57
It's, my wife and I have seen kind of a rough cut, and they've done such an amazing job.
01:03
You know, I was always a little weary more, so nervous of like, what if I don't like
01:09
Because it's my life, and obviously I'm protective of my life and my story.
01:12
I think I have a pretty unique story, and one that, you know, maybe I'm too close
01:18
to it, but I felt like it deserved to be told, and we're, yeah, we're just grateful for the
01:23
opportunity to share the journey, because it's been quite the path.
01:29
Tell me about the interest coming in, because as you mentioned, it's not as if you've always
01:34
been super private, but you have been very mindful of this is your life, whether it's
01:41
relationships, now obviously a father, like you're not the guy who's just been come
01:47
in doors wide open, all up to you, make whatever you want out of my life.
01:51
You've been someone who's wanted to take care about how you present yourself.
01:55
What's that process been like, having to allow access, but also having to place trust in a
02:01
production company?
02:02
I think trust is the big word, you know, I think the director, Michael Johnson, right
02:06
from the beginning, we just felt comfortable with him.
02:09
And along this journey, you know, we've been with this production company now for
02:12
a couple of years, but prior to that, we were with some other great production
02:16
And yeah, so it's not like this was just a, you know, snap of a finger idea.
02:23
We've been we've been filming this content gathering since day zero of my
02:27
accident in Pocono in 2018.
02:29
And, you know, what's cool about this journey is, so if we reset way back to
02:35
when I started racing go-karts, you know, I had my parents video all my
02:42
And what I wanted to do is my brother and I, we would go home.
02:45
We would plug in the camcorder into the TV and we would watch my race tape,
02:48
like game tape and figure out just critique my race.
02:52
Should I have passed?
02:53
Should I have defended more, you know, watch other classes, maybe like the
02:57
seniors in karting, like how do they overtake more aggressively?
03:00
And how do they do different stuff?
03:03
Silver lining of all of this is I basically have archive of every
03:06
karting race I've ever competed in.
03:10
Yeah, the production crew had a field day when they got the
03:13
terabytes of hard drives of everything that we have.
03:16
And it was, I think the end total is something like 15 or 20 terabytes
03:20
of footage to make this film.
03:23
And yeah, I'm just excited for everyone to see it and yeah, no better place
03:28
than to have an intimate screening, private screening in Long Beach,
03:32
because it's been a place that's been so close to me.
03:35
You know, it's an amazing event.
03:36
And again, similar last year, it's like my two worlds colliding, right?
03:40
My work with an IndyCar, my career in IndyCar as a driver.
03:44
And obviously the film is going to have a lot of IndyCar presence
03:48
as well as IMSA presence.
03:49
So yeah, couldn't think of a better place to show my close friends.
03:55
Again, looking over the last year, so where just from the outside
03:59
observing, it seems like, OK, I'm seeing more cameras.
04:03
I'm seeing more sound people.
04:05
Again, as you mentioned, this has been going on for many years,
04:08
but really seem to have ramped up, I would say, coming off of your
04:12
championship with Brian Hurta Autosport TCR and IMSA's TCR class there,
04:17
moving into the big leagues, IMSA's top step,
04:20
whether tech sports car championship, DXDT, that amazing Corvette in GTD.
04:26
But really this big kind of return to the top step of professional racing.
04:33
What has that part been like for you?
04:36
Not necessarily on the documentary side, Robby, but the fulfillment
04:40
since that crash you've never been.
04:43
Well, let's see what I can maybe make for myself in life.
04:46
You've been in full mental attack mode of wanting to get back.
04:50
Tell me about this.
04:50
You're about to start a new racing season again.
04:53
It's been hard, but to be honest, it's exactly what I wanted.
04:56
You know, I wanted that challenge.
04:58
I wanted to get to the highest levels possible.
05:01
You know, I know IMSA, whether tech sports car championships,
05:06
the real deal, because nothing comes for free.
05:07
You know, you have to work hard for every inch of the track
05:10
for every tenth of a second in the pits, whether it fits for us
05:13
with driver changes or just general pit stops on track.
05:16
You know, so many different OEMs, so many different professional drivers
05:19
that have that are whether they come from Formula cars or, you know,
05:24
just been sports car guys their whole careers.
05:26
Like there's just so much talent on that grid.
05:29
And it's exactly what I was looking for.
05:32
You know, if I think back to how 2025 went,
05:35
there was a lot of positives to take away, but it was a little too turbulent.
05:39
You know, there were too many ups and downs, too many almost moments, right?
05:43
We kind of always peaked at the wrong parts of the weekend.
05:45
If I think back to my debut in Long Beach last year,
05:48
you know, I went quickest overall in second practice, surprising myself, right?
05:53
And then I could only qualify eighth and then, you know, the race was the race
05:57
and I left my teammate Tommy Milner with the impossible task
06:00
of trying to take competitive Corvette to the front on the twisty tracks of Long Beach.
06:05
And, you know, in that world, you kind of have to go all in all risk
06:09
to try and make moves happen.
06:10
And we finally got bit and we had to make an extra pit stop for repairs.
06:13
But it's just I'm just so happy with where I am.
06:18
You know, I would be even happier if I could have a full season.
06:21
So that's already the goal for 2027 and doing that, like I said,
06:26
nothing comes for free.
06:27
I need to prove my that I belong.
06:28
I need to prove that I'm not a liability behind the wheel, that I can make
06:32
some good sound decisions and build a strong team, a strong race car
06:37
and work well with teammates kind of all the above, right?
06:39
Sports car racing isn't a selfish individual sport.
06:42
Like I've been used to in my entire career leading up to this,
06:46
but never having to share the car with someone else.
06:48
So it's been everything's been a bit of an adjustment, but we're getting there.
06:53
Boy, Ravi, you could not write your path to the top prior to your crash,
07:00
even where you are now, unless you had a lot of alcohol to drink
07:05
and just freed your mind.
07:07
Any normal traditional path granted, you did start out traditional paths.
07:13
Junior Open Wheel here in America, really standing out from Atlantic and whatnot.
07:18
Hey, let's go to Europe.
07:18
Hey, wow, really successful there.
07:25
Hey, the the what we call Aero McLaren today, their driver,
07:29
Makayla Lotion, not sure he's going to be able to make it in for the Friday.
07:33
It wrote America 2017 IndyCar.
07:36
Hey, could you hop in?
07:37
You've done a test beforehand.
07:39
You fly there, get an invite to come and be a full time IndyCar driver
07:43
in 2018, and that's just up to 2018, my guy.
07:47
And then the season you had prior to that crash.
07:51
Dang near one on pole to open your IndyCar careers, a Rook.
07:55
Dang near win that race.
07:57
Dang near win Phoenix after that going like hell at Long Beach.
08:01
You could have been on the podium for your first three races, my guy.
08:05
Is it OK to wax nostalgic about that?
08:08
Are you still too young and too much of a fighter to let yourself live in that space?
08:12
You know, I'm definitely I'm proud of what we did in 2018, right?
08:15
But it's at the same time I don't want to feel like a like a has been,
08:19
you know, like always talking about my glory years of 2018,
08:22
kind of like when I was, you know, like people in high school
08:25
that talk about like when they went to state for the football team or whatever.
08:28
Right. So, you know, I think I like to always look forward.
08:33
I'm proud of my accomplishments, my entire career,
08:35
whether if it was 2018 in IndyCar, DTM from 2012, 2017,
08:39
being Formula One reserve drivers.
08:40
Like I feel like there's a lot to be proud of, but on the same side,
08:44
you know, that doesn't really change where I am today.
08:48
And really from what I've done, I mean, obviously, I have loads of experience
08:51
and I've experienced a lot of very high level of motorsport,
08:53
which I think is an asset and a tool that I use every day,
08:57
whether if I'm coaching Andretti Global in IndyCar
09:00
or if I'm trying to get the most at a DXTT racing in our Corvette 06 GT3R.
09:05
So it's interesting, right?
09:07
I mean, I've driven Long Beach over a number of years,
09:10
but actually not that many times, right?
09:12
Like I drove it in Atlantic in 2007
09:15
and then IndyCar in 2018 and then, you know, in a GT3 car with Corvette last year.
09:21
So I love the place, you know, it's I have such fond memories.
09:26
Had a podium there in Atlantic, nearly a podium there in IndyCar.
09:30
And then, yeah, last year was last year,
09:33
but we'll hopefully we can write the script a little differently this year.
09:37
Let's close on this.
09:38
So return with DXTT Bosch has obviously been a huge part of that for you, Robbie.
09:43
You working directly with Bosch, developing the hand control system,
09:48
anti-lock braking integration system, huge advancements here.
09:53
Know that this is in your Corvette, but this isn't specific to that Corvette
09:59
or any one car, meaning Robert Wiccans, LMP2 driver, GTP driver,
10:06
IndyCar driver, Indy500, like are those things still possible
10:11
if the doors were to open for you to transport the system?
10:15
Take some money and time to connect, but is that possible?
10:19
Do you have a dream still to get back to the Speedway or somewhere else?
10:22
What else do you want to do with this system?
10:24
Yeah, kind of all the above.
10:25
You know, I mean, I think right now my focus is this be a full-time figure
10:29
in the MCW sports car championship.
10:32
I'm incredibly happy and honored for the support that I've had from GM
10:35
and from Corvette racing to be able to drive their great race cars.
10:40
And at all, like you said, stems from the partnership with Bosch
10:43
and their electronic braking system.
10:45
You know, it's such a compact, beautiful system
10:49
to no surprise of anyone that knows Bosch.
10:51
But yeah, I mean, as long as it fits in the car,
10:55
it can work with pretty much anything.
10:57
And we already know that it would fit inside of an IndyCar,
11:02
I would have to compromise a little bit by, for example,
11:05
not having my like cool suit in there
11:09
because that would basically replace that in terms of space.
11:12
But you know, I think doing the Indy500 would be a dream,
11:18
You know, I don't know at my age,
11:21
like do I want to be a rookie again in IndyCar?
11:26
Now I'm 37 years old.
11:30
You know, never say never.
11:31
But on the same side, I think doing the Indy500
11:33
would be something special.
11:34
It's a race with so much history.
11:38
Yeah, I mean, Marshall, you know,
11:40
when you're just in that paddock on race day,
11:42
like you can't not want to just be involved, right?
11:45
And once you've experienced it as a driver,
11:48
it's, you know, I've had the fortunate opportunity now
11:50
to work with race teams now for every Indy500 since, right?
11:54
And it's just not the same, the excitement, the adrenaline,
11:58
that when you're on the grid getting strapped into that car
12:00
with just the roar, the crowd, the flyovers,
12:02
the whole thing, it's unmatched.
12:05
With a race that's, you know, 110 years of running,
12:08
you know, it's never been done with the hand controls.
12:11
Like I think that'd be something pretty special, right?
12:14
And something that, you know, a legacy that I'd like to leave
12:16
behind, something that, you know, one day when my kids
12:18
are going through the museum at IMS, you know,
12:22
that we could be a part of history,
12:23
which would be something super special.
12:25
So, but I want to walk before I run.
12:28
I want to be a full-time professional driver
12:30
in the IMS and WeatherTech Sports Car Championship first.
12:33
But like you said, it would fit in an LMP2 car,
12:35
it would fit in a GTP car, it would fit in any GT3 car.
12:41
I'm just incredibly thankful for the sport that I have
12:43
from GM and from Corvette Racing.
12:45
Matt Miller with the integration and the design
12:48
into their beautiful car.
12:49
And it's, it just works so well.
12:52
That's the thing that just blew me away
12:54
from the first test is how it just felt
12:56
like it just belonged in the car.
12:57
It was just engineered so perfectly.
13:00
And it allowed me to be the driver that I wanted to be.
13:04
When I was racing with Hyundai and TCR
13:05
with Brynard Autosport, I was constantly adapting
13:08
to the braking environment that I had
13:11
and the braking feel and the braking sensation
13:13
where my first lap in the Corvette,
13:15
I felt more on top of the car
13:17
than I almost ever did in the TCR car.
13:19
So it's, it was a really huge relief
13:23
to make that first lap at SeaBring last year
13:25
and to kind of know what I have
13:27
and then how we've built on it moving forward.
13:30
You know, we're constantly pushing the software side of stuff.
13:32
Hardware were more or less the same
13:33
because of homologations and a lot of, you know,
13:36
paperwork and everything else.
13:37
But we're constantly pushing the software
13:40
to make it better and better.
13:41
And we've learned actually from track to track
13:43
it needs some tuning.
13:46
So it's, yeah, it's been,
13:48
it's been a very enjoyable journey so far.
13:51
And I like to think that we're just getting started.
13:53
The weight of speed cannot wait for folks to see that.
13:59
Also, I hope I do not see Mark Wahlberg
14:02
because if I do, I'm going to tell him,
14:04
this is only part one of the Wiccans documentary.
14:07
You got a part two where he does the Rolex 24 Daytona,
14:10
Mobile 112 hours of SeaBring and the Indy 500.
14:14
And let's throw in Motul Petit Le Mans,
14:16
sale in six hours of the Glen.
14:18
Let's just get you on the full ticket ride here,
14:21
full season of IMSA and the Indy 500.
14:25
That's the weight of speed part two that I'm looking for.
14:27
We might as well throw in the Le Mans 24-hour while we're at it,
14:30
You know, I mean, there's the Daytona 500,
14:33
You ever want to do a Monaco F1 Robbie, but seriously.
14:38
You know how much you are loved in the paddock,
14:40
respected in the paddock,
14:42
how much of a inspiration you are to everybody
14:46
could not think of any individual who deserves a love
14:50
letter like this to you and your life and everything you fought
14:53
for, fought through with this documentary.
14:56
So, so happy for you, Robbie.
14:58
Can't wait to see you here in a few days at Long Beach
15:00
and here and see that beautiful Corvette
15:03
ripping around with you inside.
15:06
Thank you, Marshall.
