The streets of the nation’s capital will host an IndyCar race this summer as part of celebrations marking America’s 250th birthday, President Trump announced Friday, relishing the prospect of vehicles roaring past the White House at speeds approaching 200 mph.
Mr. Trump signed an executive order establishing the race on Aug. 23 alongside Roger Penske, owner of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IndyCar and teams in multiple racing series, including NASCAR.
“It’s going to be so exciting,” Trump said. “I love the racing. I don’t have a lot of time to watch it, but I love the racing.”
The race will be called the Freedom 250 Grand Prix, according to the executive order. “This race, the first motor race ever to be held in our Nation’s capital near the National Mall, will showcase the majesty of our great city as drivers navigate a track around our iconic national monuments in celebration of America’s 250th birthday,” the order reads.
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Penske suggested there was “no better way for us to bring automotive and speed into the D.C. area, and to be able to have the opportunity to compete here with our IndyCars.”
A news release from IndyCar said the route would include the National Mall, and the executive order gives the Departments of Transportation and the Interior two weeks to designate a route through Washington “that is suitable for conducting an INDYCAR street race and that will showcase the majesty of our capital city in celebration of the 250th anniversary of America’s independence.”
The order also directs city and other officials to work closely with race organizers.
“Soon-to-be the home of every major sports franchise, Washington, D.C. is the undisputed Sports Capital,” Mayor Muriel Bowser said in IndyCar’s news release.
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The event continues Mr. Trump’s embrace of sports during his second term, and he has attended major games and events — including the recent NCAA football national championship in Miami Gardens, Florida.
The president has also been personally involved in promoting a UFC fight to help mark America’s 250th anniversary, which he has said is set to take place on the White House grounds on June 14 — also his 80th birthday.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who also attended Friday’s signing ceremony in the Oval Office, said: “To think, 190 miles an hour down Pennsylvania Avenue. This is going to be wild.”
Mr. Trump said he’d urged organizers to pick the best race route through Washington’s streets — even if they were more complicated logistically.
“I said, pick the best site. It’s very important,” the president said. “Even if it’s more difficult to get, to get approved, pick the absolute best site.”
Organizers said they’d long lobbied members of Congress to authorize a road race in Washington, but had been previously unsuccessful. Duffy asked when the last road race in the capital occurred and was told it was in 1801 and involved horses during the administration of President Thomas Jefferson — prompting Trump to reply, “That’s something.”
“Now we’re going to do a real race,” said Duffy, who said the event would be free for the public, saying: “Freedom, America. Speed. And road racing. It doesn’t get more American than that.”
