Sports car racing veteran Katherine Legge announced Monday that she’ll be making her NASCAR Cup Series debut this weekend at Phoenix Raceway for the Shriners Children’s 500. She will become the first woman to race in stock car competition’s premier series since Danica Patrick in 2018.
Legge has five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts to her name, and she recently competed in the ‘Dente 200 NASCAR ARCA at Daytona this year, though was caught up in a Lap 3 crash that brought her race to an early end. Prior to that, Legge’s most recent stock car race was at Road Atlanta in 2023. Legge is best known for her vast experience in endurance racing in IMSA as well as her recent outings at the Indy 500 and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. She’s also branched out to other forms of racing, even competing at the Chili Bowl Nationals in 2024.
The popular Brit will drive Live Fast Motorsports’ No. 78 Chevrolet, which is typically raced by team co-owner BJ McCloud. The Mooresville, North Carolina-based team originally claimed it would only race seven Cup races in 2025, though the Phoenix race with Legge marks an addition to the original calendar.
Legge has over 20 years of racing experience across several series and currently holds two records at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway: one for the fastest single-lap Indy 500 qualifying run by a woman at 231.627 mph, and the fastest four-lap qualifying run by a woman at 230.070 mph.
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