Indianapolis, Indiana – Alex Wakefield enjoys racing a lot. “My god, the turbo eight cylinders they had on them back then. Honda, Ford, it was just outstanding, and I couldn’t believe the sound and how fast they were going,” Wakefield said.
He has a great ability to describe his passion for the game. “I like the speed, I like the diversity of the cars, like I said. The road courses, the shorter ovals, those are interesting too because you get into lap traffic and you’re trying to keep this guy in front of you, but then this lap car sets a pick, and then Michael Andretti goes around the outside and this type of thing,” Wakefield said.
With a brush, he can also create some impressive paintings. “I never put down the crayons, nobody told me no and I kept doing it. I was drawing what I was interested in as a kid and racing was one of those things I was interested in,” Wakefield said.
His works of art are primarily around auto racing. He claims that there are clear similarities between racing and painting. “It’s a colorful sport, whether it’s the colors and designs of literally the cars or the paint schemes, if you look at an old Benetton from the mid 80’s it had a lot of green, but then it had all these paint splotches all over them,” Wakefield said.
His most recent endeavor, “The Collection,” is centered on some of the simplest methods for recognizing drivers and their helmets. “I should say it’s kind of a cocreation here because it’s Troy Lee doing the designs of the helmet and it’s Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti, this is what I want, those guys are having those conversations. I love these guys, I love what they’re doing, how can I do my own take on it,” Wakefield said.
The same reason Wakefield enjoys art is also the reason he enjoys racing. “Everybody has their own perspective on it and what makes it exciting for them. Some people want red flames on an NHRA, car which is super rad, and other others want these fine lines that are Penske perfect, and both are valid, they’re just different,” he said.
