Petersen Museum to Host ‘Future of Motorsports’ Panel at Velocity Invitational
The Petersen Automotive Museum, in partnership with the Velocity Invitational, will host “The Future of Motorsports Panel Discussion and Auction” at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on Nov. 12, the museum announced.
The event will feature a panel of several high-profile figures in the motorsports world, including Jim Farley, CEO of Ford; Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing; Richard Varner, CFO of MotoAmerica and chairman of the Board of Directors at the Petersen Museum; Jay Frye, President of INDYCAR and Jacob Hawksworth, Founder and CEO of Hypercraft. Guests will have the opportunity to listen to these automotive personalities discuss the future of motorsports through their respective lenses.
Alongside the panel discussion, a live auction will feature a number of high end, motorsports-themed items available to bid on. The auction includes a racing suit worn by Dan Gurney at the Toyota Pro/Celebrity Long Beach Grand Prix, a ride-along with Bruce Canepa in one of his personal race cars, a signed painting by ex-Formula1 driver and painter Stefan Johansson and an ESP LTD James Hetfield Signature Iron Cross electric guitar signed by the Metallica frontman himself.
“We are honored to be a part of the first Velocity Invitational event,” said Petersen Automotive Museum Executive Director Terry L. Karges. “One of our goals at the Petersen is to educate people about the history of racing and we are proud to offer a long list of vehicles and exhibits that have highlighted different moments in motorsport history.”
As part of the Velocity Invitational event, the Petersen will bring the Hetfield Collection which features James Hetfield’s personal collection of custom cars. Cars on display include his 1936 Packard “Aquarius,” 1936 Auburn Speedster replica “Slow Burn,” 1936 Ford 5-Window Coupe “Iron Fist,” 1937 Lincoln Zephyr “Voodoo Priest,” 1948 Jaguar “Black Pearl” and 1953 Buick Skylark “Skyscraper.”
The Future of Motorsports Panel and Auction takes place from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Turn 1 hospitality pavilion at the track, giving guests views of the “Mini vs. Mustang” Enduro Challenge race at 5 p.m. that evening.
The Velocity Invitational takes place Nov.11-14 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Salinas, California with back-to-back races held daily from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
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