NASCAR stars Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson are to take part in the Race of Champions in December, along with newly-crowned F1 World Champion Michael Schumacher.

Gordon and Johnson will attend the NASCAR awards banquet in New York on Dec 3, before flying on to Paris, where the Race of Champions takes place next day.

"We'll have to get all the sleep we can on the plane because we're going to have to go straight to the track when we arrive," Gordon told the official NASCAR site.

Schumacher's surprise decision to take part in the event, which is usually held in the Canary Islands, has had motorsport rivals chomping at the bit, eager to sign up for the event and take on the man some believe to be the greatest race driver ever.

"The fact that he's going to be there is great," said Gordon. "I had a chance to meet him earlier this year in Barcelona when Jimmie and I went to the F1 race there. He asked me when I was going to come to F1 and I said as soon as he retired.

"Michael brings a lot of interest to the event," he continued. "This is definitely an opportunity to go over there and have some fun in a car that's different. The fact that he's over there and I get to go head-to-head against him is going to be awesome, win or lose. I would love to beat him, obviously, but I'm just excited to get to race him."

The other confirmed 'big name' for the event is WRC leader Sebastian Loeb, though organizers are known to be chasing several F1 drivers in addition to MotoGP star Valentino Rossi.