London, England (My Sportsbook) - Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet Jr. said on Tuesday he will not return to Formula One and plans to compete in NASCAR this year.

Piquet is most known for his role in Renault's racing fixing scandal in the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. He lost his ride at Renault last July after giving testimony to F1's governing body that he deliberately crashed in the Singapore GP to help then teammate Fernando Alonso win the race.

The 24-year-old has since tried to secure another ride in F1, but has been unsuccessful in his attempts.

"I have spent the last few months carefully evaluating my options for this year," Piquet said on his personal website. "I had to choose a path, and it was a difficult decision to make. Being successful in Formula 1 was always my goal, but I have learned that happiness is just as important as ambition, and after my first 18 months in F1 did not go as planned, I have decided to focus on something different and have chosen to take a route in America."

Last October, Piquet tested a Toyota Tundra for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team Red Horse Racing. Piquet has not revealed which NASCAR series he plans to run.

"NASCAR is hugely challenging, and nobody has ever come in as an outsider before and gone on to win it," he added. "It will be the ultimate challenge. I will let you know more details on the exact program soon."