Cheever to be ESPN analyst for 500

Eddie Cheever

Photo Courtesy IMS

1998 Indianapolis 500 winner Eddie Cheever has been named as an analyst for ESPN on ABC's coverage of the 92nd Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, May 25.

ESPN on ABC's coverage starts at noon (ET), with the live race broadcast at 1 p.m.

Cheever, who last raced in 2006, also will serve as analyst for ESPN's coverage of Indianapolis 500 qualifications May 10-11 and 17-18, and Miller Lite Carb Day May 23. All telecasts will be presented in high definition.

"It is truly an honor and a privilege to join ABC and ESPN in providing coverage of the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500," Cheever said. "I look forward to bringing the fans the sights and sounds of all the great events at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this month of May. Although I will miss sitting on the grid, I hear the view from the announcer's booth is pretty good."

Cheever will work in the ESPN booth with lead announcer Marty Reid and analyst Scott Goodyear. ESPN's IndyCar Series pit reporter team of Jack Arute, Brienne Pedigo and Vince Welch will expand to four at Indianapolis with the addition of Jamie Little, and Brent Musburger will serve as host of the Indianapolis 500 telecast.

One of the most recognized names and faces in motorsports, Cheever won races all over the world in many different forms of race cars during his 30-year driving career.

Phoenix native Cheever made 132 starts in Formula One from 1978-89, the most by an American driver in F1 history. He returned to the United States in 1990 to pursue his dream of winning the Indianapolis 500, racing in the former CART series and then in the IndyCar Series when it launched in 1996. That same year, he set the record for the fastest Indianapolis 500 race lap, 236.103 mph. He won the first race with the IndyCar Series' new engine and chassis formula in 1997, and in 1998 won the Indianapolis 500 as a driver-owner.

Cheever had five wins in 77 starts in the IndyCar Series, winning races in five consecutive seasons between 1997 and 2001. He stepped out of the cockpit following the 2002 season, returning for a limited schedule in 2006.

"We are very pleased to have someone with the knowledge and experience of Eddie Cheever join our Indianapolis 500 coverage," said Norby Williamson, ESPN executive vice president, production. "He will bring the perspective of his long and diverse career to our team and help us to better serve the fans of this great event."

ABC is televising the Indianapolis 500 for the 44th year, and ESPN is in its 13th year of IndyCar Series coverage in 2008. For 2008, all IndyCar Series races are being televised in high definition for the first time. The ESPN alliance dates back to the series' inaugural 1996 event and with ABC's' first telecast of the Indianapolis 500 in 1965, a relationship that is the second-longest in sports between a network and sports property. Only CBS and the Masters have been together longer.