LOUDON, N.H. — Chris Wagner will lead the field to green next Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
The Boston Bruins forward will drive the Toyota Camry pace car in the Foxwoods 301, the Granite State’s annual Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series summer race, track vice president David McGrath announced Friday. Wagner will be the latest professional Boston sports star to drive the pace car at NHMS; New England Patriots coach Josh McDaniels and safety Patrick Chung filled the role in 2017 and 2018, respectively.
“I’m very excited and honored to drive the pace car for the race on the 21st,” Wager said in a press release. “It should be an awesome experience and I can’t wait to get behind the wheel at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
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Of course, Wagner and the Bruins are a month removed from losing to the St. Louis Blues in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final at TD Garden. The fourth-liner unfortunately had his postseason cut short after suffering an arm injury in the Eastern Conference Final.
Despite the unceremonious end to his first season in Black and Gold, Wagner, a Walpole, Mass., native, left a strong impression in his first year in Boston, thanks to a gritty style of play that Bruins fans love and expect.
“Wagner really showcased that hard-nosed, blue-collar New England vibe this past season,” McGrath said. “Many of our race fans are huge hockey fans as well, so I’m sure they’ll get a thrill of seeing a hometown hero behind the wheel on ‘The Magic Mile’ as he leads the drivers to the green flag to start the Foxwoods Resort Casino 301.”
The Sunday Cup race is far from the only thing happening at NHMS next weekend. Most notably, the track added a pair of night dirt-track races for Friday night.
