Highly Respected Drivers Add More Power to Brickyard Invitational At IMS
The Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA) today announced that Alex Lloyd and Max Papis have entered the June 13 “Indy Legends” Pro-Am at the second annual Brickyard Invitational hosted by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS). Lloyd competed in the event last year while this will be Papis’ first run at one of American vintage racing’s biggest prizes. Their additions take the field to 27 entries to date and the SVRA expects 33 Indianapolis 500 veterans to start.
Lloyd is a veteran of four Indianapolis 500s with a best finish of fourth in 2010. Among numerous other successes he was the Indy Lights champion in 2007, winning eight of 16 races. As with last year he will again be teamed with Dave Roberts, CEO of Carlisle Corporation, a successful racer in his own right as a class winner at the Baja 1000 and owner of Pirelli World Challenge driver Mike Skeen’s Audi R8 entry. Lloyd drove Roberts’ 1969 Camaro near the front in last year’s Pro-Am until a broken U-bolt ended their day. Lloyd so impressed Roberts he offered him a ride in three Pirelli World Challenge races later in the year. Roberts also sponsors Penske IndyCar drivers Juan Pablo Montoya and Simon Pagenaud through two of his Carlisle companies, Hawk Performance and DeVilBiss respectively.
The massively versatile Papis has driven in virtually every major series this side of drag racing. This includes Formula One, NASCAR, Indianapolis-style racing, Le Mans as well as V8 Supercars and IROC. He competed in two Indianapolis 500s for 1998 race winner Eddie Cheever and won three Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) races for Bobby Rahal’s team. In NASCAR he raced Sprint Cup, the Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series. He competed in seven 24 Hours of Le Mans contests, scoring a class podium in five of those events along with top-10 overall finishes on four occasions. Papis also won two 24 Hours of Daytona races and started in more NASCAR contests than any European driver in history.
During the Brickyard Invitational, Max Papis will introduce his line of steering wheels, MPI (Max Papis Innovations) to the SVRA. MPI will select a couple of drivers to showcase the line during its debut. All MPI wheels are designed and engineered in the USA and built in Italy using the latest steering wheel technology and state of the art materials. MPI prides itself on several wins in all major NASCAR divisions, Late Models, Legends and local tracks. In 2014, MPI won its first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship with Kevin Harvick and Stewart Haas Racing, as well as its first NASCAR Nationwide Series Championship with Chase Elliot and JR Motorsports. MPI is co-owned by Max and Tati Papis and is operated out of Mooresville, NC.
“Alex was a joy to work with last year and Max has impeccable credentials,” says SVRA President & CEO Tony Parella. “Alex’ drive in the Mark Donohue 1972 Indy 500 winner during our oval exhibition was so appropriate and respectful. He captured it all as a reporter for Yahoo Auto News and it was brilliant.”
The “Indy Legends” Charity Pro-Am for Indy 500 veterans is a 40-minute race of American muscle cars on the Speedway’s 2.43-mile Grand Prix road course on Saturday, June 13. All veterans will have 1963 to 1972 vintage 355 cubic inch Corvettes, Camaros and Mustangs of the “Group 6” SVRA class. Professionals will be paired with amateur drivers, splitting stints at the wheel at their discretion.
The Pro-Am is the crowning event of the Brickyard Invitational but there is also a festival of other activities. As announced earlier the iconic Unser family (Al Sr., Bobby, Al Jr., Robby and Johnny) will lead the storied 2.5-mile oval exhibition runs by a wide variety of cars including several of the crowd-favorite 1950’s Indianapolis 500 “roadsters.” The 2015 weekend not only promises a huge gathering of race cars but also some of the finest collector cars. Motostalgia, with offices in Austin, Mexico City and Monaco will stage a June 12 auction of select automobiles from around the world. The Brickyard Invitational will also expand out onto the world-famous infield IMS golf course with car corrals for organizations and clubs united by special marques and vintages.
The SVRA has 11 groups of race cars spanning 100 years of vintage machines and all will be at IMS. The array of entries include select pre-war machines, classic sports cars, Formula One and Le Mans prototypes as current as 2009. Race fans can enjoy every minute of the action with overnight camping inside IMS. Pro-Am cars and drivers will also participate in a Fan Walk through the starting grid prior to the opening ceremonies allowing fans to see the cars up close, take photos and chat with the drivers. All entry fees will be donated to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum Foundation.
Brickyard Invitational ticket information: Fans can order Brickyard Vintage Racing Invitational tickets for all or any one of the four days of the event online through the Speedway or by calling 800-822-INDY or 317-492-6700 between 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday through Friday. Fans can also visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at 4790 West 16th Street between 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday through Friday. Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are available. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information. Children 12 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.