Legends Continue To Flock to Brickyard Vintage Invitational Field
April 17, 2017 | By Paul Kelly, IMS
A growing number of Indianapolis 500 legends will compete in the fourth annual Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational on June 16-18 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a showcase of the rich heritage of drivers and machines of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser and his son, two-time “500” winner Al Unser Jr., lead the impressive list of competitors for the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA) event.
Other “500” veterans entered to race include Paul Tracy, Jimmy Vasser, Sarah Fisher, Lyn St. James, Ana Beatriz, Willy T. Ribbs, Robby Unser, Johnny Unser, Davey Hamilton, Jimmy Kite, Donnie Beechler, Geoff Brabham, Davy Jones, Dick Simon, Johnny Parsons Jr. and another father-and-son pairing, Bob Lazier and Jaques Lazier. More entries are expected before the Father’s Day weekend event.
More than 500 vintage racers are expected to compete in sprint and enduro format on the 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course at IMS in a variety of classes of beautiful, vintage machinery from more than 100 years of motorsports competition.
The 45-minute Indy Legends Charity Pro-Am is the feature race. The field features 33 Indianapolis 500 veteran drivers and one “Garage 34” wild-card entry, all in 1963 to 1972 vintage Camaros, Mustangs and Corvettes.
Vintage motorcycle racing also is scheduled, further highlighting the rich heritage of competition at IMS.
Two modern-day road-racing series also will compete during the Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational weekend, Trans Am and the Mazda MX-5 Cup.
In addition to on-track competition, many other activities will attract fans of all ages.
An oval exhibition featuring a race car show of judged competition for the A.J. Watson and Sir Jack Brabham trophies, led by track historian Donald Davidson, will also take place. This consists of three exhibition runs on the 2.5-mile oval for pre-war Indy cars as well as roadsters and rear-engine racers of pre-1970 vintage. The cars will run together in a pure exhibition, managed-speed format once Saturday and twice Sunday.
The oval machines are automatically entered in an “Indy Legends Race Car Concours” show for three trophies. Two of the awards, the A.J. Watson Trophy and the Sir Jack Brabham Trophy, will be judged by an expert panel. IMS Historian Donald Davidson will assemble and lead the team of judges. These cars must be authentic, verifiable in-period machines to be considered.
A third prize is named in Davidson’s honor, the new “Donald Davidson People’s Choice Trophy.” Fans will vote to determine the winner of the new trophy, and new replica cars are eligible for this competition. Fans will be provided ballots upon entering the Speedway.
The Motostalgia auctions of rare automobiles, Hagerty Insurance “shine and show” car corral and “Celebration of Motorcycles” vintage motorcycle display also are scheduled during the weekend.
A new event, the World Open Wheel Challenge, will precede the Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational this year. This event, June 8-11, will commemorate 50 years of Formula Ford competition and feature racing among all forms of open-wheel race cars.
Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational tickets are available at www.ims.com, by calling 800-822-INDY or 317-492-6700 between 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday through Friday or in person at the IMS Ticket Office at 4790 W. 16th St. between 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Children 15 and under are admitted free each day when accompanied by an adult. Tent camping passes in the IMS infield start at $30 and are available all four days.