Owen Wilson Named as Grand Marshal for the 59th Annual Daytona 500 in Celebration of 'Cars 3'

Ka-chow! In celebration of the June 16 release of Cars 3, Owen Wilson (the voice of Lighting McQueen) will serve as Grand Marshal for the 59th annual Daytona 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race on Feb. 26 at Daytona International Speedway in Florida. The duties of the Grand Marshal include shouting the famous phrase "Drivers, start your engines" to the 40-car field. In addition, Wilson will ride in one of the Grand Marshal cars during pace laps prior to the green flag of the 200-lap (500-mile) race and attend the driver's meeting.

“Owen Wilson is one of America’s most beloved comedic actors and his voice has brought Lightning McQueen to life for millions of movie-goers over the last 10 years,” said Daytona International Speedway President Chip Wile. “His star-power, and of course his personality, are perfect fits for ‘The Great American Race.’”

While there is no word if there will be a sighting of the "real" Lighting McQueen - similar to the one on display at the North American International Auto Show, we will keep our fingers crossed that perhaps an additional Cars 3 trailer will be revealed during the televised race. To purchase tickets for the 2017 DAYTONA 500 visit www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or call 1-800-PITSHOP. Be sure to chat about everything Cars 3 with other Pixar fans in the Pixar Post Forum.

CARS 3 SYNOPSIS

Blindsided by a new generation of blazing-fast racers, the legendary Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson) is suddenly pushed out of the sport he loves. To get back in the game, he will need the help of an eager young race technician, Cruz Ramirez (voice of Cristela Alonzo), with her own plan to win, plus inspiration from the late Fabulous Hudson Hornet and a few unexpected turns. Proving that #95 isn’t through yet will test the heart of a champion on Piston Cup Racing’s biggest stage! Directed by Brian Fee (storyboard artist “Cars,” “Cars 2“) and produced by Kevin Reher (“A Bug’s Life,” “La Luna” short), “Cars 3” cruises into theaters on June 16, 2017.

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