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Legge announces plans to run more NASCAR events
Katherine Legge is set to return to NASCAR competition with an entry in the Xfinity Series race at Rockingham Speedway.
e.l.f Cosmetics will sponsor Legge’s effort in the No. 32 Chevrolet for Jordan Anderson Racing. Rockingham Speedway (April 19) will be the first of at least seven NASCAR races Legge is set to contest.
“I’ve never felt more empowered than I do with e.l.f. by my side,” Legge said. “e.l.f. truly walks the walk when it comes to putting its community -- and especially women in sports -- in the, pun-intended, driver’s seat. I’m thrilled to work towards achieving my racing goals with my e.l.f. team alongside Team Chevy. I want to be respected as one of the best drivers in motorsport, and there is no better place to hone my skillset against the best of the best in front of the largest motorsport audience in the U.S. With the pivot to go all in on NASCAR, we are diversifying my own racing legacy as well as the paddock for future generations.”
Charlotte Motor Speedway (May 24) in the Xfinity Series will be one of the others. Her full schedule was not announced. She has made five career starts in the Xfinity Series.
e.l.f Cosmetics is shifting its attention to Legge’s NASCAR efforts after supporting her in the NTT IndyCar Series, specifically the Indianapolis 500, the last two seasons. A ride for this year’s Indianapolis 500 has not been announced for Legge, and it does not appear she will run the race now that she will enter the Xfinity Series race at Charlotte the same weekend.
Legge is also going to run select NASCAR Cup Series races. The first will be in Mexico City (June 15). However, the team Legge will run for was not announced.
“As they say in NASCAR, we have found our groove,” said Kory Marchisotto, chief marketing officer, e.l.f. Beauty. “Fueling Katherine’s dream to be one of the best motorsports drivers of all time is our mission. Inspiring young athletes to fast-track their own ambitions is our passion. Female NASCAR fans are more likely to watch sports on TV, listen on the radio and attend a live event than female fans of other sports. That’s our signal to lean the e.l.f. in with zero distance between us and the community.”
RACER was informed additional announcements and details for Legge’s upcoming events will be coming soon.
The 44-year-old Briton made her Cup Series debut at Phoenix Raceway on March 9. A spin with 98 laps to go made Legge the center of attention as she collected Daniel Suarez, who was running inside the top 10. However, Legge's enthusiasm for with stock car racing was undaunted.
“I had somebody from another team call me … and say, part of me thought that you were going to say, 'OK, I don’t want to do this anymore' or 'This isn’t for me,'” Legge told RACER. “I was like, 'Hell no. You don’t know me very well, but all this does is make me dig my heels in and go, you know what, I’m going to prove everybody wrong, because I know that I’m a good race car driver and this was just a blip in the matrix.'”
Kelly Crandall
Kelly has been on the NASCAR beat full-time since 2013, and joined RACER as chief NASCAR writer in 2017. Her work has also appeared in NASCAR.com, the NASCAR Illustrated magazine, and NBC Sports. A corporate communications graduate from Central Penn College, Crandall is a two-time George Cunningham Writer of the Year recipient from the National Motorsports Press Association.
Read Kelly Crandall's articles
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