While the Daytona 500 is considered to be the official start of the NASCAR Cup Series season, drivers will go toe-to-toe against one another before the Great American Race in the Busch Light Clash at the L.A. Coliseum. The exhibition race is usually characterized by a lot of star power, and 2024 will be no different. NASCAR recently announced that Mexican-born professional boxer and super middleweight undisputed champion Canelo Alvarez will be the Grand Marshal for the Clash on February 4.

The Busch Light Clash has been serving as a precursor to the NASCAR Cup Series season for several years now. Drivers get a chance to test out their cars ahead of the new season under competitive race conditions. There may not be any points involved in the event but the race isn a prestigious one and winning it will instill a driver with a lot of confidence right before the Cup season officially begins.

NASCAR’s Senior Vice President hails middleweight champ Canelo Alvarez

Canelo Alvarez may not be from the world of motorsports but his exploits in combat sports have made him one of the most popular athletes in the world today. There is no doubt that the super middleweight champion’s inclusion in the Busch Light Clash will draw a lot of eyeballs to the product. It also makes for great entertainment. NASCAR’s Senior Vice President of Racing Development and Strategy Ben Kennedy had words of praise for Alvarez

“Canelo is synonymous with strength, victory, and triumph. He’s a fan favorite in Los Angeles and Mexico, and we’re honored to have him give the command to start the engines for the Busch Light Clash,”  Kennedy said as per Speedway Digest.

Born in Guadalajara, Mexico, Canelo Alvarez is the youngest of 8 siblings and he took an affinity for boxing from a very young age. It initially started as a means to defend himself against bullies but it soon turned into his passion. He was trained at the legendary Julian Magdaleno Gym by the father-son duo of Chepo and Eddy Reynoso. The 33-year-old’s career began when he was only 13 years old and it did not take him long to become the Junior Mexico National Champion with a 44-2 record.

The inclusion of the super middleweight champion makes the Busch Light Clash special but that’s not the only thing to look forward to in the event. NASCAR has the goal to gradually become as environment-friendly as possible and to that end, they will be testing out a special car that could be the norm in the future.

Read More – “Not the Season We Wanted to Have” – Joey Logano Reflects on Being the First Defending Champion to Be Eliminated in the First Round of the Playoffs

Fans will get the first glimpse of the sport’s ‘future’ in Los Angeles

This special car will be an EV driven by David Ragan. NASCAR has been doing whatever possible to make the car as good as possible ahead of the Clash. Several tests have already been run on the car, including one at the iconic Martinsville Speedway. According to NASCAR’s Vice-President of Vehicle Design Brandon Thomas, the electric car will be the future of the sport, something that fans have mixed opinions about.

“The [current] NextGen car does project to have hybrid-style power, but we’ve elected not to implement that to date. But it also has the ability to adopt full battery electric, and aspirational down the road, more hydrogen combustion, so that when the time comes, and someone says, ‘This is the car of the future,’ we don’t have to pull out the pencil and design it. We’ll already have it,” he said as per Hagerty.

It will be interesting to see how the car runs and whether it is as good as the Cup Series cars that run today. How do you think the EV will run at the Coliseum? Let us know your thoughts.

Watch This Story: NASCAR Veteran Reveals Ford’s “Dead Ringer” Status at Tony Stewart’s Expense