Marco Andretti pays tribute to Mario with throwback livery
Marco Andretti will honor his grandfather Mario’s win in the 1969 Indianapolis 500 with a throwback paint scheme for this year’s Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
The 32-year-old from Nazareth, Pennsylvania’s No. 98 US Concrete Honda for Andretti Herta Autosport with Marco & Curb-Agajanian will carry the dayglow orange colors that brought Mario to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway victory lane 50 years ago. It was the elder Andretti’s only win in the 500 in a career that lasted from 1965 to 1994.
Marco Andretti will honor his grandfather Mario’s win in the 1969 Indianapolis 500 with a throwback paint scheme for this year’s Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
The 32-year-old from Nazareth, Pennsylvania’s No. 98 US Concrete Honda for Andretti Herta Autosport with Marco & Curb-Agajanian will carry the dayglow orange colors that brought Mario to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway victory lane 50 years ago. It was the elder Andretti’s only win in the 500 in a career that lasted from 1965 to 1994.
“I’m really happy we were able to pull this off, it’s a really cool way to honor Mario’s 50th anniversary,” Marco said. “The color will be hard to miss on track and the car looks great. We’re all very thankful that U.S. Concrete was on board to run the livery and make this year’s car as special as possible. We can’t wait to have a shot at bringing this car to victory lane on May 26.”
Marco along with Mario and father Michael unveiled the car on “TODAY” on NBC, who is airing the Indy 500 for the first time on Sunday, May, 26.
The livery goes beyond the color scheme and features the same white-on-black number design as Mario’s No. 2 winning car along with a historical Firestone logo. The initials “FB”, representing Mario’s engine builder Frank Boeninghaus, are placed near the front suspension as they were in 1969.
“I was full of pride when I learned that my son Michael was paying tribute to me this way,” said Mario Andretti. “The effort his team is going through to present this commemorative car is flattering. Thank you to the team for that effort and also for acknowledging my part in Indy 500 history. I am honored to have Marco carry the design from my 1969 car. I hope this winning paint scheme will be a good omen for him and that he’ll get his first 500 victory . When I see the car, it will definitely be an opportunity for reflection. It’s humbling. It is a tremendous compliment to me that this team would look back at my victory and find it worthy of recognition."
The car will make its debut on April 24 at the official open test at IMS.
