During the broadcast of the NFC Championship game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Los Angeles Rams, the NASCAR community was treated to major news regarding the Daytona 500, arguably the biggest day on the sport’s calendar. The announcement involved Hollywood icon Kurt Russell.
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Fox News revealed that Russell would be the honorary pace car driver for the Daytona 500, which takes place in three weeks time on February 16th.
The 74-year-old has a Hollywood career stretching back to the 1960s, punctuated by roles in blockbusters like “Tombstone,” “Miracle,” and “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.” Russell’s NASCAR appearance lands just two weeks ahead of season two’s premiere of his Apple TV series, “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters,” which will hit the streaming platform February 27th.
He expressed his enthusiasm in a press release, stating, “It’s incredibly exciting to be named the honorary pace car driver for this year’s Daytona 500. I can’t wait to get back behind the wheel. It’s been a long time since I’ve been in a race car.”
President of Daytona International Speedway, Frank Kelleher, weighed in on the selection, saying, “The DAYTONA 500 has always been bigger than a race. It’s a global event that blends competition, spectacle, and culture. Kurt Russell’s impact in entertainment mirrors what makes The Great American Race special, moments that endure long after the checkered flag.”
Kurt Russell named honorary pace car driver for Daytona 500 https://t.co/4s1jsNnsM6
— Jayski (@jayski) January 26, 2026
This won’t be Russell’s first stint in a racecar on a track. He has legitimate racing credentials, from national championships during his youth to offshore powerboat competition as an adult. In fact, during the late 1950s, Russell and his three sisters drove “Pacemaker” quarter midgets when they were eight and nine years old.
He flourished in that arena, amassing hundreds of trophies before capturing the United States National Championship in Las Vegas in 1959. Back in 2023, Russell donated his championship-winning machine to the Museum of American Speed in Lincoln, Nebraska. Russell’s Pacemaker, along with sister Jami’s later-model Pacemaker, came out of storage after decades tucked away since those early race-winning campaigns.
While Russell shifted to acting in the 1960s, starring in pictures like ‘Follow Me, Boys’ and ‘The Thing,’ he dove into offshore powerboat racing during the 1980s, while continuing his acting career. He competed in Grand Prix events alongside fellow actors like Don Johnson and famously absorbed a defeat at the hands of Chuck Norris in one memorable showdown.
Beyond professional racing, Russell has earned recognition for performing his own driving stunts in films, including Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof, in which he portrayed a professional stunt driver.
