INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Hall of Fame outfielder Ken Griffey Jr. will drive the pace car for the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday. Griffey has attended “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” in his second career as a photographer, but now his job will be much more visible. He’ll be behind the wheel of the 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray that brings the field of 33 cars — led by record-setting pole sitter Scott McLaughlin — to the green flag at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “Driving the Pace Car and leading the field to start the Indy 500 is one of the coolest experiences,” Griffey said Monday. “I came to the track a few years ago as a photographer and look forward to seeing the race from a different perspective.” The pace car driver has been a coveted job among athletes, actors and other celebrities since the 1970s, when actor James Garner and singer Marty Robbins handled it. Others that have driven the car include Jay Leno, Morgan Freeman and Patrick Dempsey and, in more recent years, NBA players Victor Oladipo and Tyrese Haliburton. |
Whistleblower questions EPA delays in use of sensor plane after Norfolk Southern derailmentAI, digital technologies inject new impetus to cultural tourism boomJason Kelce to be part of 'Monday Night Football' pregame show, ESPN announcesJason Aldean will honor Toby Keith with a performance at the 2024 ACM AwardsAstros starter Ronel Blanco ejected in the fourth inning after a foreign substance checkChina's FAST telescope discovers distant gasNaylor brothers key big frame for Guardians in 7Pirates designate LHP Josh Fleming for assignment one night after a poor relief performanceChina's tech giant Huawei hosts cloud database summit in ThailandChina completes construction of space weather telescope