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Ray Evernham, Bill Elliott
NASCAR Legends Elliott, Evernham Added as 'Garage 34' Entries in Indy Legends Pro-Am at Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational

NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees Bill Elliott and Ray Evernham – both winners in Cup Series competition at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway – once again are entered as co-drivers of the special “Garage 34” entry in the Indy Legends Pro-Am during the Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational June 16-18 at IMS.

Elliott and Evernham will join a field of 33 Indianapolis 500 veterans in the 45-minute Pro-Am race, the featured event Saturday, June 17 on the 2.439-mile road course at IMS. Legendary driver Elliott and renowned crew chief and team owner Evernham will share the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA)-certified 1970 Ford Mustang of Elliott’s longtime colleague and mechanic, Carlus Gann.

All drivers in the Pro-Am race compete in machines from the “Group 6” SVRA class, which includes 1963 to 1972 vintage Corvettes, Camaros and Mustangs. Race officials are considering adding other Group 6 marques, such as Porsche and Jaguar, for variety. All 33 Indianapolis 500 veterans in the race will be paired with amateur drivers, splitting stints behind the wheel at their discretion.

Elliott won the 2002 Brickyard 400 in a Dodge owned and prepared by Evernham. Elliott also won the 1988 NASCAR Cup Series championship and the Daytona 500 in 1985 and 1987 in his renowned Ford Thunderbird. He won NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver Award a record 16 times and was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2015.

Evernham was the crew chief for Jeff Gordon’s first two Brickyard 400 victories, in 1994 and 1998. He also guided Gordon to two victories in the Daytona 500 and NASCAR Cup Series championships in 1995, 1997 and 1998. Evernham recently was voted to the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2018.

A noted vintage racing enthusiast, Evernham featured the Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational last year on his popular “Americarna” show on the Velocity cable television network.

Other Indy 500 veterans previously entered in the Pro-Am include Al Unser, Al Unser Jr., Jimmy Vasser, Willy T. Ribbs, Sarah Fisher, Josele Garza, Davy Jones, Geoff Brabham, Lyn St. James, Johnny Unser, A.J. Foyt IV, Davey Hamilton, Roberto Guerrero and last year’s A and B Production winners, Robby Unser and Paul Tracy.

All the Indianapolis 500 veterans will practice in a special track session Friday, June 16. They will also be available for autographs and pictures during the pre-race fan pit walk just before their feature race Saturday.

In addition to the Pro-Am, there will be a festival of other activities at the Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational, including the Hagerty Insurance “shine and show” car corral, a “Celebration of Vintage Motorcycles” with vintage motorcycle racing and displays and 500-plus vintage racers ranging more than 100 years of automotive history racing in SVRA Groups 1 through 12. An oval exhibition featuring a race car show of judged competition for the A.J. Watson and Sir Jack Brabham trophies led by IMS historian Donald Davidson also will take place.

The professional Trans Am series will compete as the feature race Sunday, June 18. Heading the pack will be series champion Amy Ruman, who has won the title the last two years. The Mazda Global MX-5 Cup also will race Saturday and Sunday at IMS.

Visit IMS.com to order tickets or learn more about the Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational. Kids 15 and under are free when accompanied by an adult.

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