Let’s Get Ready to RACE! World Boxing Council’s (WBC) current World Heavyweight Champion and Tuscaloosa, AL native Deontay Wilder, will serve as the Honorary Pace Car Driver for this Sunday’s GEICO 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway (April 29).
Prior to the start of the GEICO 500, Wilder – “The Bronze Bomber” – will lead the field around the mammoth 2.66-mile track in the Official Ford Mustang GT Pace Car and take them to the green flag to start off the much-anticipated event.
Wilder, 32, has risen to be the most dominant boxer in the world with a 40-0 record, 39 by knockout. Driven by an indomitable will and a relentless work ethic, he has decimated his foes on his way to fulfilling his destiny.
He is considered the most dynamic heavyweight boxer, and pound-for-pound, one of the best boxers in the world. Wilder is not limited by boxing. He uses his unique platform as heavyweight champion of the world to touch the lives of others. The 2008 Olympian is inspired by his idol Muhammad Ali to become a humanitarian force in the world.
Boxing was not his first impulse. Like many children of the south he longed to play football on Saturdays and Sundays. But, an unanticipated obstacle changed the course of his life. Wilder’s daughter was born with spina bifida, so he put aside his childhood dream and took on the responsibilities of being a father.
Determined to provide for his daughter and family, Wilder, now a father of four, took up boxing. He soon discovered he was a natural. In short order, he began to shape his masterful career.
The GEICO 500 is set to get the green flag at 1:00 p.m. (CDT). Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., is the defending champion. The Sparks Energy 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series event is set for this Saturday (April 28), at 2:00 p.m. (CDT), while the General Tire 200 ARCA Racing Series Presented by Menards race will kick off the weekend at 5:00 p.m. (CDT) on Friday (April 27).
Great tickets are available by logging onto www.talladegasuperspeedway.com or calling 855-518-RACE (7223).
TSS PR/ (Photos:Ed Diller/DiBella Entertainment)
