The White House and Department of Transport proposed an IndyCar race in Washington DC in 2026, and it was approved by US President Donald Trump, with the announcement being made in the presence of IndyCar owner Roger Penske. Bud Denker, the President of the Penske corporation, came out amid the fans’ criticism of the political angle to the Washington race and silenced them.
As the idea for the IndyCar race in Washington DC was proposed, fans came out and criticised the idea, relating it to politics. Graham Rahal came out during the IndyCar preseason press conference and slammed those who were against the race in the US Capital.
Donald Trump signed an executive order in January 2026 for an IndyCar race to be held in Washington DC in August to celebrate the USA’s 250th Independence Day. The race will be called the Freedom 250 and will take place around the National Mall. The track layout is under plan, with Trump directing the White House Task Force.
Penske Corporation President, Bud Denker, recently featured on the Pit Pass Indy podcast and discussed what it took to get the Freedom 250 race approved. When questioned about the fans criticizing the political angle, the Penske chief detailed how IndyCar is doing it for the country with an agreement on both sides, keeping everything bipartisan.
“I started this mission on Capitol Hill in a bipartisan way and it continued to be a bipartisan way for five months. Amazing, Bruce, is this. I had 81 meetings on Capitol Hill. Not one person from the press, not one driver, not one team knew about that,” said Denker (17:15 onwards)
“I kept this thing bipartisan throughout the entire piece. And it wasn’t until I realized I could get the 60 votes where Mr. Trump jumped in to make it happen. And I’m pleased that he did because without that, we wouldn’t be having this race and this celebration,” he added
IndyCar chief reveals the crucial role of partners that’ll make the Washington DC race logistically possible
The IndyCar calendar was confirmed last year, and the Washington DC race was only confirmed in the final week of January. Bud Denker came out on the Pit Pass Indy podcast and revealed how crucial the partners will be to make the Freedom 250 a possibility, given the short timeline.
Speaking about one such partner, the Penske chief said,
“Harbinger is a company that does big events in Washington, DC. They did the inauguration, they did the Army 250, they’re doing the UFC fight, and they do all the off-track activities for me, from catering, concessions, permits, fencing, portagons, comfort stations, cooling stations. Harbinger pulls that off for me. So I couldn’t do this without important partners.”
The IndyCar Freedom 250 will take place from August 21 to 23.
Edited by Pranay Bhagi
