Pacers All-Star Pascal Siakam is selected as pace car driver for Sunday’s Brickyard 400

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Brickyard 400 fans will get their own glimpse into a Pacers and racers weekend Sunday.

Brickyard 400 organizers said Tuesday that Indiana Pacers All-Star Pascal Siakam has been selected as the pace-car driver for this weekend’s race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

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The announcement comes almost exactly two months after the Pacers played the New York Knicks in an Eastern Conference final game on the same day as the Indianapolis 500. The events took place just a short drive apart.

It was just the fourth time a Pacers and racers doubleheader had taken place in Indy.

Now, though, Siakam will get a chance to experience the other part, this time leading the Cup cars to the green flag in a 2025 Chevrolet Blazer EV SS. The race will take place on the historic 2.5-mile oval for the second straight year after it had been run on the track’s road course.

“Basketball and motorsports — Pacers and racers — go hand in hand in Indianapolis,” IndyCar and speedway President Doug Boles said in a statement. “Following the Pacers’ electrifying postseason run, it’s only fitting to have Pascal join us to pace the field as NASCAR’s biggest stars compete to win the In-Season Challenge and add their name to the history books with a win at the Brickyard.”

Siakam didn’t start playing basketball until he was 17 years old. He grew up in Cameroon and the three-time All-Star also is a two-time All-NBA selection and won an NBA title with the Toronto Raptors in 2019.