Lally, who has an extensive background in sports car racing as well as starts in all three NASCAR national series, will drive Rick Ware Racing’s No. 15 Ford beginning with Sunday’s race at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway.
He will also compete in the July 2 Chicago Street Race, the Aug. 13 race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, the Aug. 20 race at Watkins Glen, N.Y. and the Oct. 8 race on the Charlotte Roval.
Lally’s five-race schedule will be sponsored by Camping World.
“This is obviously an incredible opportunity, and I am very thankful to Rick (Ware, team owner) and Camping World for making this all come together in a very short amount of time,” Lally said.
“So many of my chances to race in NASCAR have been one-race deals. With five races now, I get to really focus and embed myself with a team to develop a stronger communication and understanding of each other, as well as learning what the Next Gen car likes on road courses.”
Lally, 48, has made 40 previous Cup starts and is a five-time Rolex 24 champion and three-time IMSA champion. He also holds Grand Am records for most wins, podiums and top-five finishes.
Lally’s best performances in NASCAR competition have come in the Xfinity Series, where has finished fifth on four occasions, most recently in 2021 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
“When we first talked to Andy about driving a few races with our team, I was very interested based on his impressive road course acumen,” said Ware.
“When Camping World wanted to partner with us for the rest of this year’s road course races, it was an easy decision. Our team is looking forward to getting it started this weekend.”
Sponsorship for the five-race deal came about when Lally announced on his social media channels last month that he had an opportunity to race in the Cup series. Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis responded with an offer to do all five road course events.
“It blew my mind,” Lally said. “I can’t thank Marcus and the Camping World family enough.”
Source : Motorsport.com