IndyCar Grand Prix Set to Make History with Spectacular Race and Live Broadcast
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The Freedom 250 Grand Prix is poised to bring dozens of race cars and tens of thousands of spectators to the heart of Washington, D.C.'s National Mall this weekend.
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PBS NewsHourWATCH: IndyCar hosts Freedom 250 Grand Prix news conference ahead of Washington race The race, scheduled for Aug. 22 and 23, is the latest — and the fastest — of the major events President Donald Trump has hosted against the backdrop of America's 250th birthday.
USA TodayRoads throughout downtown Washington DC have been closed as prep continues for this week's Freedom 250 Grand Prix.
ABC NewsThe main event will occur on Sunday with the Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C., beginning around 1:10 p.m. ET with the green flag start of the race on 3rd Street in front of the U.S. Capitol Building.
Washington TimesTraffic on the National Mall will look a little different this weekend. Honking horns, road-raging commuters and distracted out-of-town minivans will be replaced by 25 of the world’s best IndyCar drivers for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix.
The HillIndyCar president: ‘Could be a little bit of carnage’ in DC race this weekend IndyCar President Doug Boles said Thursday morning that tight corners on the Freedom 250 Grand Prix race course around the National Mall this weekend could result in a “little bit of carnage” around the nation’s capital.   The nearly-1.7-mile course, which loops around the National Archives, National Gallery of Art and Smithsonian National Air and Space…
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The 250-mile race, or 147 laps around the track, is expected to take about 3 hours to finish and will be broadcast live on Fox.
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NPR NewsThe race itself will be broadcast live on Fox, and is slated to take about two and a half hours. The full Fox broadcast schedule includes post-race ceremonies at 3:40 p.m. ET.
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"You're going to see cars at a level they've never been at before, with cars racing more than 190 mph, and even higher than that, down Pennsylvania Avenue," Trump said in July.
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NPR NewsOrganizers are promising a patriotic spectacle, with cars zipping through 147 laps of a 1.7-mile route in the shadow of the Capitol building, as well as flyovers and other fanfare. At a preview event in July, President Trump said drivers may reach speeds of 190 miles per hour down Pennsylvania Avenue.
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"INDYCAR has successfully hosted races on downtown street circuits in urban areas for decades," the statement said. "With this excellent track record and the thorough preparation we have done for this event, we do not anticipate any impact on the structures surrounding the circuit as a result of the racing activity at the upcoming Freedom 250 Grand Prix."
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NPR News"With this excellent track record and the thorough preparation we have done for this event, working closely with all the appropriate local and federal agencies, we do not anticipate any impact on the structures surrounding the circuit as a result of the race," IndyCar spokesperson Alex Damron told NPR in a statement.
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The course goes directly past landmarks like the National Archives Building, the National Gallery of Art and three Smithsonian museums: Air and Space, American Indian and American History. Some art experts have expressed concern that vibrations from the track construction and race itself could damage the artifacts inside.
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ABC NewsSeveral major museums are also situated alongside the race course, including the National Archives, the National Museum for the American Indian, the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum and the National Gallery of Art.
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Abanavas said in a statement that based on the results of the study, "we have implemented a set of measures to ensure the safety of our staff, visitors, collection, and facilities during the race."
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NPR NewsSpokesperson Chris Abanavas told NPR over email that it "conducted an extensive vibration study and based on the results we have implemented a set of measures to ensure the safety of our staff, visitors, collection, and facilities during the race."
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How was the event put together? The IndyCar series is owned by Penske Entertainment Corp., a subsidiary of Penske Corporation. Denker says he and Fox Sports CEO Eric Shanks had the idea — over a beer after a board meeting last year — to celebrate the country's 250th birthday with a race in Washington, D.C.
4 details only one outlet reported
Independent claims that didn't surface elsewhere in our corpus. Treat as supplementary — not corroborated across outlets.
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01 ABC News A historic preservationist group has raised concerns about the race. Start your engines. President Donald Trump is transforming the streets around the National Mall in Washington, D.C., this weekend into an IndyCar motorsports mecca for the first time.
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02 USA Today FOX is putting a camera on top of the Washington Monument. Yes. That's how innovative the team was thinking for the IndyCar Freedom 250.
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03 Washington Times Like previous events — the UFC White House card and the Great American State Fair — this weekend’s festivities required a substantial logistical lift.
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04 NPR News The two-day motorsports event, which culminates in Sunday's marquee 250-mile race, is the first IndyCar race to take place in the nation's capital. And organizers say it might be the last.
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