Katherine Legge, a groundbreaking driver in the NTT IndyCar Series, will be inducted into the Grand Prix of Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame next week, but before the ceremony, she will be preparing for the Indianapolis 500 today as the newest member of Dale Coyne Racing.
Legge, who will be the first woman inducted into the Grand Prix of Long Beach’s Walk of Fame on April 18, is at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for test sessions Wednesday and Thursday. She will drive the No. 51 Honda-powered entry for Dale Coyne Racing with RWR in the Indianapolis 500 in May. Legge was in Long Beach on Tuesday during a pre-race event for the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach scheduled for April 19-21.
Legge and Takuma Sato will be the newest inductees to the Walk of Fame. Sato, a two-time Indy 500 winner and winner of the IndyCar Series race at Long Beach in 2013, will be the first Japanese driver to be inducted into the Walk of Fame. The ceremony will be in front of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center on Pine Avenue at 11 a.m. and is free and open to the public.
Legge was entered in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at the Grand Prix of Long Beach but was replaced on the Gradient Racing team on Wednesday after confirming she joined the Dale Coyne Racing team for the Indy 500. She was the first woman to win a North American open-wheel race in 2005 in the Toyota Atlantic Championship race in Long Beach. She is also the first woman to lead a Champ Car series race in 2006 at Long Beach. She broke the record to become the fastest female qualifier for the Indianapolis 500 in 2023 and won three racing championships, six races and has 15 podium finishes in her career.
She said she was “proud and honored” to be part of the Grand Prix of Long Beach Walk of Fame, but added she felt like a bit of an impostor.
“It’s definitely more than an honor,” Legge said before leaving Long Beach for the airport and flying to Indianapolis for testing.
Sato became the first driver from Japan to win an IndyCar Series race in 2013 at Long Beach. He won the Indianapolis 500 twice, in 2017 and 2020, and will be entered in this year’s Indy 500.
“The tradition, history and heritage of Long Beach, and what it means to be a winner here, are such an honor,” Sato said in a release. “The Walk of Fame at the Grand Prix of Long Beach is a privilege, especially because it is always a race and a track that I love to compete on. Winning the race here was such a significant moment for me, and I would like to once again extend my heartfelt thanks to the entire AJ Foyt Racing team and the fantastic No.14 car crew for their incredible work. Lastly, I feel honored to be inscribed as one of those who could add a page to Japanese motorsport history.”
Legge, from Great Britain, became the ninth woman to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 in 2012. She is the only woman driver entered in this year’s Indy 500. Legge drove for Dale Coyne Racing with RWR in the IndyCar Series in 2007.
The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach is the second race in NTT IndyCar Series and the second race in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. In addition, the weekend will include the Super Drift Challenge under the lights on Friday and Saturday nights, the Speed/UTV Stadium Super Trucks, Historic Indy Car Challenge and the SRO GT America Powered by AWS.