Dan Wheldon’s family was honoured at the 2025 Firestone Grand Prix of St Petersburg, held on March 2. Wheldon was the winner of the debut race around the street of St. Pete in 2005, and his family were honoured at the 20th anniversary of the partnership between IndyCar and the track. Wheldon's son Sebastian took to Instagram and shared a picture from the special weekend.
Sebastian Wheldon uploaded a carousel of 13 pictures from the race weekend at St. Pete and tagged his younger brother Oliver as a collaborator. The first couple of pictures were with the FOX broadcasting crew, which included Will Buxton, James Hinchcliffe and Townsend Bell.
The third one was with the newly appointed Arrow McLaren Team Principal Tony Kanaan and the next one, with his mother Susie Wheldon. The next couple of slides included a video of the grid and a clip of Sebastian Wheldon driving the Civic Type-R pace car.
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The next few pictures were of friends and family from the IndyCar paddock, and the last one was a family picture that included Susie, Sebastian, and Oliver Wheldon. The caption of the post read,
“St. Pete Grand Prix A busy weekend, but a special weekend remembering the 20th anniversary of our dad's win.”
The 2005 St. Pete GP was the first IndyCar race at the Circuit and was also the first street circuit to be featured on the IndyCar calendar. Dan Wheldon passed away in 2011 during a race in Las Vegas at the end of the season.
Florida was the second home for Dan Wheldon, who hailed from England and moved to the US to race in the IndyCar series. The Briton settled down in Florida, and in honour of the former IndyCar driver, the Turn 10 at St. Pete was renamed the Dan Wheldon Way after his demise.
Dan Wheldon's wife Susie on the St. Pete GP honour being a “full circle moment.”
Dan Wheldon's son Sebastian took to driving the pace car, while his wife Susie waved the green flag to get the race at the St. Petersburg circuit going. Susie spoke about the opportunity to participate in the pre-race rituals to honour her husband's legacy as she said, (via gpstpete.com)
“To be here with Sebastian and Oliver 20 years later - and for Sebastian to be driving a pace car in the parade lap - is really a full circle moment. And I am honored to wave the green flag for the start of the race. I have to thank Kim (Green) Kevin (Savoree) and the entire IndyCar family for always making the boys and I feel supported. We are looking forward to an exciting race weekend,” she added.
Both of Dan Wheldon's sons, Sebastian and Wheldon, are making their way up the open-wheel racing ladder and are sponsored by Gainbridge.
