CONCORD, N.C. – This weekend at Chicagoland Speedway, Kasey Kahne will have a very special fan in his corner.
Wyatt, a 9-year-old patient at Seattle Children’s Hospital, will watch the race in-person along with his family as special guests of the No. 5 Great Clips team.
It was Wyatt who designed Kahne’s No. 5 Great Clips Strong Against Cancer Chevrolet SS for Sunday’s playoffs opener.
Great Clips teamed up with Seattle Children's Hospital's Strong Against Cancer initiative, giving children in the hospital a chance to design their very own paint schemes for the No. 5 Chevrolet SS.
Kahne narrowed it down to his favorite three, and fans voted Wyatt’s design as the winner.
“I thought of what the coolest car would look like, and that’s what I came up with,” Wyatt said, noting that the inspiration for the design was “water and fire.”
The 9-year-old spent months in Seattle Children’s Hospital after being diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in October 2016.
He picked up a new hobby to help pass his time at the hospital – art. That’s why one of his nurses thought he would be a great candidate to enter the contest to design Kahne’s scheme.
Now, he’ll get to see it up close on the racetrack at Chicagoland Speedway.
“I am really looking forward to meeting Wyatt and his family at Chicagoland and I can’t wait for him to see his design on the track,” Kahne said.
Wyatt found out on June 16 that he was well enough to stop chemotherapy treatments, and a little over a month later, he got the green light from his care team to travel, meaning his VIP trip to Chicago was on.
“The thing I’m most excited about for the race is seeing Kasey win!” Wyatt smiled.
Sunday’s race is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Meet Wyatt and his family in the video below, courtesy of Seattle's KOMO News.