NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon briefly pauses retirement, will race at IMS Labor Day weekend

INDIANAPOLIS — NASCAR legend and five-time Brickyard 400 race winner Jeff Gordon is returning to the track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

On Wednesday, it was announced that Gordon will briefly step out of retirement to race in the IMSA-sanctioned Porsche Carrera Cup North America on Labor Day weekend.

The race will be held on the road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

In the race, Gordon will reunite with longtime crew chief Ray Evernham. It marks the first time the championship-winning combination has teamed together since 1999.

Gordon joins an entry list of over 30 Porsche specialists all driving Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race cars in competition on the 14-turn, 2.439-mile, road course at the world’s most famous racetrack.

“I’m looking forward to getting back in a race car and competing against a talented field of teams and drivers,” Gordon said. “It’s always special when I get a chance to compete at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Ray and I have always talked about running another race together, and we felt like Indy was the perfect place. It’ll be a fun way to spend the holiday weekend and make some new memories.”

Gordon will drive the No. 24 entry in the Invitational class of the premier Porsche one-make race series in North America as part of the second-annual Porsche Sports Car Together Fest.

The 93-time NASCAR Cup race winner is no stranger to the road course at IMS. In 2003, he had his first taste of the Indy road course in a famous “seat swap” with Formula One driver Juan Pablo Montoya.

Opening practice for the two 40-minute Carrera Cup races will take place Friday, Sept. 2, followed by qualifying and race 1 on Saturday, Sept. 3 and race 2 scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 4.