INDIANAPOLIS — On Tuesday it was announced former driver and team owner Sarah Fisher will drive the pace car for the 106th Indianapolis 500.
Fisher, an Ohio native, ran the Indy 500 nine times in her career – the most for any female.
In 2002, Fisher’s qualifying speed of 229.439 mph remains the fastest by any female in event history.
After her racing career, which included her becoming the first female to earn a pole position and the first female to finish in the top three in a race, Fisher moved over to team ownership.
Today, Fisher and her husband Andy O’Gara own and operate Speedway Indoor Karting in Speedway and Daytona Beach. She is the mother of two children.
“Every time I’ve had the opportunity to drive at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, it’s been special – from INDYCAR SERIES cars to two-seaters to vintage cars,” Fisher said. “Driving the Pace Car is just as special of an honor. And to have served in that role for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES since Johnny Rutherford retired, I’ve had many great memories to add to my career.
“Sarah Fisher is an Indianapolis 500 icon who always takes the time to appreciate her fans and represent the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’ with class and humility,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said. “She is such a fitting person for this honor, and it will be such a thrill and privilege to see her lead the field of 33 cars to the green flag before a huge crowd at the track and a global television audience.
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