Michael Phelps stepped on the world’s biggest stage at 15 at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. The swimmer didn’t get to the podium on his debut. But he did come really close in the 200-meter butterfly event with a fifth-place finish. But since then, the 39-year-old laid down the building blocks of his impressive legacy with 28 Olympic medals over the next 4 Games. It seems mesmerizing no matter how many times we mention it, doesn’t it? 

Even though the swimmer retired in 2016, he traded his speedo for a microphone in Tokyo and Paris. The 23x gold medalist provided his point-of-view and perspective during major story breaks. He was often spotted at the pool deck with the broadcasting duo Rowdy Gaines and Dan Hicks, watching the action during the swimming breaks. But the Olympian will be taking on another role next month. The Baltimore Bullet will be gracing the tracks instead of the pool.

Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass shared the news on X, “Olympic swimming icon Michael Phelps to drive the pace car prior to the Cup championship race Nov. 10 at Phoenix.” Shortly after, the official X account of Phoenix Raceway shared that the swimmer would be the Honorary Pace Car Driver for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race with the running of a 312-lap at Avondale in Arizona. In fact, this isn’t his only non-swimming outing. 

On September 7, the Olympian was spotted at Ann Arbor during a game between Michigan vs. Texas on College Gameday. He had previously served as the football team’s honorary captain against Penn State in 2022 and showed up wearing several shades of blue to show his allegiance to the Wolverines. Phoenix Raceway’s President, Latasha Causey, believed the Flying Fish is the ideal choice: “Michael Phelps is the prime standard for success and achievement across all of sports.” 

This also wouldn’t be the first time an Olympian showed up to the tracks. 10x Olympic medalist Caeleb Dressel was spotted at the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on August 24. He was the first active Olympian gold medalist in 9 years to wave the green flag at a Cup Series race. Lindsey Vonn was the last to do it before the swimmer. He was accompanied by his wife, Megan, his son, and fellow Olympian Bobby Finke. While this isn’t out of the ordinary, many fans weren’t too pleased by this announcement. 

Michael Phelps might be the G.O.A.T. but NASCAR fans don’t want him on the track

The 2024 season will conclude at the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race on Sunday. What is up for grabs? Four drivers will battle it out for the highly coveted Bill France Cup. Seeing how the stakes are higher than ever, it makes sense for the winningest of Olympians to see things off. However, fans think otherwise.

One fan exclaimed, “Nascar keeps on rolling with the “I was popular 10 years ago” special guests.” The sport has had a strange history with celebrities over the years. However, Michael Phelps last competed at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Another fan agreed, “Why him? Seems like an odd choice.” Michael Phelps walked away with 6 Olympic medals, bringing his staggering collection to 28 medals now. But we understand why they seem to be unimpressed by the choice. 

A fan exclaimed, “You know you put on bad racing when the best part of the event is the pace car driver.” The Flying Fish’s illustrious career speaks for itself. In fact, he is known to be swimming royalty. So it’s understandable that his appearance was hyped up as much. But one fan felt differently. They simply shared a GIF of Donald Trump with the caption, “Nobody Cares.” Even though this may be true, another fan proved them wrong. Instead, they cracked a pun: “Bro’s gonna be swimming in that check.” It isn’t specified what the swimmer will receive for the gig. But this fan believes this could have been one of the many factors considered. 

One fan pointed out, “Makes no sense man, we could have some other legend from the sport do the same thing! Why are we having Phelps for the event is bonkers!!” Even though the Olympian is a celebrated athlete, inviting him over for a sport he never contested didn’t sit well with this fan. On the other hand, NoahGragsonsBarfBag shared the news on the NASCAR thread on Reddit, and a fan sarcastically added, “Who do we bring to celebrate driving racecars in the desert? Olympic swimmer!” In hindsight, that does seem like an odd scenario, doesn’t it? Michael Phelps has proved his mettle in the Olympic pool several times. But fans aren’t excited to see him on the tracks. Do you agree with them?