Shawn Michaels to drive official pace car at NRA 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

The Showstopper is now the Showstarter.

Less than a week after WrestleMania, where Shawn Michaels stood in the corner of longtime friend Triple H in his match against Brock Lesnar — and delivered a resounding Sweet Chin Music superkick to a slippery Paul Heyman — the WWE Hall of Famer is set to drive the official pace car at the NRA 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas.

This Saturday, Michaels will join the ranks of actor Vince Vaughn and former Texas Rangers pitcher C.J. Wilson as only the third celebrity in the history of the Texas Motor Speedway to earn this distinction. However, Michaels argues that the honor is all his, and owes it to his friendship with President of Texas Motor Speedway, Eddie Gossage. “Some time ago, he reached out to me through 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin because Eddie knew I was a NASCAR fan,” the WWE Hall of Famer said. “But honestly, this time, I begged him to let me do something at this race. The NRA and NASCAR are two organizations I wholeheartedly support.”

WWE Hall of Fame Profile | Watch HBK’s greatest matches

HBK won’t be the only Michaels family member stepping behind the wheel this week. His son Cameron, who won the Winter Series Championship earlier this year, is competing in the Battle at the Big Top at Lil’ Texas Motor Speedway during the NRA 500 race week. 

“I guess I’m reaping what I sowed with my parents,” said Michaels. “He’s gotten into some wrecks, he’s banged up against the wall and had other cars run into him. But I’ll tell you what, he’s fearless.”

Aside from Cameron, whom else is Michaels cheering for on Saturday? “I support all of Hendrick Motorsports. They were so kind to my family the first time we went to a NASCAR event. So we’re cheering for all of those guys, but also Tony Stewart and of course, Carl Edwards, who has always been such a big supporter of WWE and is just a class act.”

Tickets to see Shawn and Cameron, and the 43-car field this weekend are still available atwww.texasmotorspeedway.com.

Also, catch HBK on “Shawn Michaels' MacMillan River Adventures" on the Outdoor Channel.