Jeff Gordon will serve as the honorary pace car driver for the 99th running of the Indianapolis 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 24.
Gordon, who is running his final full-time Sprint Cup Series season, has five victories in the Brickyard 400 at the historic track, including the inaugural running of the annual NASCAR race on the 2.5-mile track.
“It’s great to have Jeff Gordon serve as this year’s pace car driver,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. vice president of performance vehicles and motorsports in a release. “He is a true champion who has earned the respect and admiration of competitors and race fans alike. It will be very special to have Jeff lead the Indy 500 field to the green flag, behind the wheel of the most powerful and capable production car ever from Chevrolet – on a day he’ll also be competing in the Coca Cola 600 NASCAR race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.”
Gordon will lead the field in a Chevrolet Corvette Z06 around the track. The car has 650 supercharged horsepower with a seven-speed manual transmission. It also features a chassis system that is track-capable. The car will feature a white exterior and red Adrenaline interior.
“Indy is hallowed ground for racers like me and I couldn’t be more thrilled to drive the Corvette Z06 pace car around the track that helped drive my success over the years,” Gordon said in a release. ”The Indianapolis 500 is one of the most celebrated races of the year and an event I always dreamed of racing while growing up in California and in nearby Pittsboro. I’ve won five NASCAR races at IMS and the track will always be a special place for me, so to be able to participate in such a historic day will be something I remember for the rest of my life.”
The 99th Indianapolis 500 will be televised on ABC. Fans can also listen to radio coverage on the IMS Radio Network.
About Me: Brett has been following the sport of NASCAR since the beginning of the 2006 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. Since Brett was 13, he has had a passion of chasing a job in sports that not many get the opportunity of doing. He has been in the NASCAR media since the middle of the 2010 season. Since then, he has been a part of many racing podcast shows to improve his talents. He has written for racingonfuel.com and theracingwheel.com. Currently, Brett writes for motorsportsnat.com and TracksideChatter.com. You can find him on twitter @NASCAR_Brett.
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