Back in April, NASCAR star and former IZOD IndyCar Series champion Tony Stewart offered the winner of the Indianapolis 500 a ride for his ‘Prelude to the Dream’ charity race on June 9.
But instead of Dario Franchitti, Stewart’s event will get the services of another former IndyCar titleholder — Tony Kanaan.
Both Franchitti and Kanaan will be testing on June 9 at Watkins Glen International, but Kanaan will fly afterwards to Ohio in order to compete in the ‘Prelude,’ which is being held at Eldora Speedway in the town of Rossburg. The Late Model stock car race is scheduled that night for 7 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on pay-per-view, with net proceeds from the broadcast going to four U.S. children’s hospitals.
“I always have watched [the Prelude] on TV, and when [Juan Pablo] Montoya made his first attempt a few years ago, some guys I know said they’d like to see me driving on the dirt,” said Kanaan in an Indianapolis Motor Speedway release. “It will be difficult. I’ll be jumping out of a full-day test and go straight to a car that I’ve never seen before in my life. It’s about having fun, it’s for a good cause and I’m excited.”
As for Franchitti, he was quoted in a press release stating that while he was happy to have received an invitation to the event, he felt that the IndyCar test at the Glen was simply too important.
“I would like nothing more than to be there with Tony and the guys, but the team and I are focused on winning the IndyCar Series championship and that must take precedence,” the two-time ‘500’ winner said. “I wish the event every success and hope my schedule allows me to race at Eldora in the future.”
Kanaan will battle some of NASCAR’s elite drivers, including Stewart, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, and Carl Edwards. Plenty of stars from other realms of motorsport are also in the ‘Prelude’, including NHRA drag racers Ron Capps and Cruz Pedregon, and motocross/rally racer Travis Pastrana.
