NASCAR Driver Requests Prayers "For All the Poor Souls in Purgatory" After Major Win

This is so cool!

NASCAR driver Johnny Sauter won the Jag Metals 350 at Texas Motor Speedway. In a post-race interview, he added a few things you don’t normally hear: “I just thank the Sacred of Jesus and the Blessed Mother. And today is First Friday so we should pray for all the poor souls in purgatory.” (full video below)

The Friday Friday devotion he mentioned dates back to the 17th century and is associated with devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which he also referenced.

This isn’t the first time Sauter has been public about his Catholic faith in post-race interviews. In 2016, he told his interviewer: “I thank the Blessed Mother and the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”

Sauter has been open about his Catholic faith for a while now. According to an article about him from earlier in his career in 2004, his favorite quote was “God brought you to it, God will bring you through it. No matter what you’re doing and how bad things seem, it seems that there’s always a way around it or always a way through it.”

He also said he thinks “the whole NASCAR family is religious” and that he thinks about God “on a daily basis.”

Here’s the full video: