NASCAR legend Mark Martin made numerous memories while racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway, and the 2002 Coca-Cola 600 winner will make a triumphant return to the iconic 1.5-mile superspeedway on Sunday when – to commemorate being inducted into the 2017 class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame – Martin will drive the Toyota pace car prior to the green flag for the 57th running of the Coca-Cola 600. ‘When the speedway called to ask me if I’d do it, my first reaction was ‘Hell, yeah!” Martin said. ‘Originally I’d planned to be at Indy, but now I get to do the ‘double’ in a way, and I can say I’ll be driving at Charlotte. Charlotte Motor Speedway was always my favorite race track. I was fortunate enough to have a lot of success there, including winning a Coke 600. Bruton and Marcus always put on a fabulous show, and this will be cool to lead the field to green in front of thousands of fans that I enjoyed racing for all those years.’ Martin will attend the start of the Indianapolis 500 before heading to Charlotte Motor Speedway for his pace-car driving duties. The Batesville, Arkansas, native won four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway in a career that spanned from 1981 to 2013. Martin also captured two NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race wins, in 1998 and 2005, and six NASCAR XFINITY Series victories at the speedway. Fans can purchase tickets, camping and race-day upgrades by calling 1-800-455-FANS (3267) or shopping online at www.charlottemotorspeedway.com.(CMS)
