U.S. Army racing to honor 9/11 Pentagon victims

FORT KNOX, Ky. (Aug. 30, 2011) - As the nation observes the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the U.S. Army announced Tuesday that both its NHRA and NASCAR teams will honor the victims of the Pentagon attack with special paint schemes at upcoming races.

At this weekend’s Mac Tools U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis (Sept. 2-5), Tony Schumacher’s U.S. Army Top Fuel dragster will carry the names of the 75 U.S. Army personnel killed at the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001.

One week later, on Sept. 10, Stewart-Haas Racing driver Ryan Newman also will carry the names of the 75 U.S. Army Pentagon victims on his No. 39 U.S. Army Chevrolet in the Wonderful Pistachios 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway.

In addition to the listing of the names, both race cars will carry an inscription "We Will Never Forget" and sport a specially-designed logo featuring the World Trade Center twin towers, Pentagon and the American Flag.

"It will be a moving experience when we unveil the race car in Indy," said Schumacher, a seven-time world champion. "Many years later, all of us still remember that horrible day which affected so many innocent people, including those at the Pentagon. Our hearts and prayers clearly remain with the families of the victims. We will never, ever forget that terrible tragedy."

Winless thus far this season, Schumacher would love to be able to dedicate a victory and trophy to the victims’ families on Labor Day.

"I couldn’t think of a better time to get our first win of the year," said the Chicago-area resident. "As always, we will definitely be Army Strong on race day and give it our usual 150 percent effort."

Like Schumacher, Newman is expecting to be deeply moved by the first appearance of his Richmond race car.

"There’s no question it will be an emotional time for not only my team, but the entire NASCAR family," said Newman, a 15-time Sprint Cup winner. "We all remember where we were and what we were doing when the news surfaced about the attacks. I know it will be etched in my memory forever. And, it should be that way for everyone.

"We want to win every race for the Army, but you can imagine how much more we’ll want to win the Richmond event. It would be a very special, touching moment if we could drive into victory lane carrying the names of those great Americans."