This year’s Indy 500 takes place on Sunday, May 26, and Kelly Clarkson will be on hand to kick off the festivities when she sings the national anthem ahead of the race for the third time.
She previously sang the anthem ahead of last year’s race and in a 2011 duet with Seal while accompanied on piano by David Foster.
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“It’s a pleasure to welcome Kelly back to IMS on Race Day to sing the national anthem for hundreds of thousands of fans in the stands and millions of viewers around the world,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said, via IMS. “She is a global icon and an incredible singer, and our fans have loved her performances of the anthem last year and in 2011. We look forward to her delivering another stirring, poignant rendition just before engines are fired for ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.’”
Sunday’s race marks the 103rd running of the Indy 500, and the celebratory weekend kicks off on Friday, May 24 with the Miller Lite Carb Day Concert at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which will be headlined by Kool & the Gang and Foreigner.
On Saturday, Zac Brown Band will headline the Firestone Legends Day Concert, with Carly Pearce and Clayton Anderson also performing at the event.
Sunday will start off with performances from DJ/producers Skrillex, Alesso, Illenium and Chris Lake at the Indy 500 Snake Pit at the Turn 3 infield before Clarkson sings the anthem ahead of the race.
Actors Christian Bale and Matt Damon will also serve as honorary starters for this year’s race, with the duo kicking things off by waving the green flag. It’s a fitting appearance, as Bale and Damon will star in the upcoming film Ford v. Ferrari, which follows Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles as the two join forces to take on Enzo Ferrari at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. The movie is scheduled for release on Nov. 15.
Watch Clarkson perform the anthem in 2018 below, and watch the pre-race show on NBC at 11 a.m. ET with the live race to follow.
Photo Credit: Getty / Jeff Kravitz
