There are not many things cooler in sports than being able to drive the honorary pace car for a NASCAR race, and former NFL star Chris Long is going to do just that on Sunday in Richmond. It’s a big get for NASCAR as Long was a star on the field, but he has also become a star off of it, too, with “The Green Light” podcast that he also hosts.
Chris Long Driving Pace Car at NASCAR Race
Richmond Raceway President Dennis Bickmeier said of Long, “We are happy to welcome Chris Long back to his home track in the Commonwealth of Virginia as the Honorary Pace Car Driver for the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway.” He continued, “Chris (Long) has achieved immense success on the gridiron, but his dedication to improve the lives of others through The Chris Long Foundation has built a legacy that will last for generations to come. We look forward to welcoming one of the Commonwealth of Virginia’s own back home to America’s Premier Short Track.”
Long stays busy these days. His foundation does a multitude of great things for the community, one of which is the Waterboys initiative to provide clean drinking water to the communities that need them. He’s also from the Virginia area and starred as a defensive end at the University of Virginia way back when.
Long said, “Not only am I a Toyota owner, I’ve also had a lifelong dream of driving the pace car.” He’s always wanted to do it. Now he will in Richmond. He concluded, “This weekend I’ll do just that at the Toyota Owners 400 in Richmond and I’m bringing the whole Green Light crew. It’s going to be the best trip of the year!”
Chris Long on The St. Louis Rams Fans vs. Philly Fans
Long won a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles. The former Cavalier got to experience the craziness that is the Philly faithful up close and personal. He loved it. He also spent the first half of his career in St. Louis. This is where he starred for the majority of his career. Before the team moved to Los Angeles.
He said on his podcast, “I’m not saying in St. Louis nobody watches the games, I’m talking about nobody sees it on TV. Nobody – it’s not a market where we’re gonna have a bunch of primetime games. Like, for years of my career it was like, ‘Hey, noon game. Hey, noon game. Hey, noon game.’ There was never primetime, there was never an opportunity to show what we could do in front of 65,000 people. Because the organization was bad, and we weren’t winning, so I’m not blaming the fans.”
The situation was not great for the Rams. Gone was the Best Show on Turf days in St. Louis. They also played at noon in the dome. It was hard to never play in primetime for the Rams.
