When the 2026 IndyCar racing schedule was announced in September, it included races in the familiar locations: Indianapolis, the site of the organization’s marquee race, the Indy 500; Phoenix; Detroit; and Milwaukee. But in late January, a new race was suddenly added to the mix, by executive order.
President Trump announced that as part of the celebrations of the nation’s 250th birthday, a race would be held on the streets of Washington. It will be the first IndyCar race held in the capital, and it will shut down much of downtown Washington for two days on Aug. 22 and 23.
All the top Indy drivers, including the series champion Alex Palou and the Indy 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist, are expected to participate.
The cars will race 147 times around a 1.7-mile course lined with temporary concrete barriers that will pass many of the city’s landmarks. Here’s one lap along the track.
Sources and Methodology
The views of Washington, D.C., visualized in this article use Google’s Photorealistic 3D Tiles. Google incorporates the following sources to create the tiles: Vexcel Imaging US, Inc.; Landsat / Copernicus; Data SIO, NOAA, U.S. Navy, NGA, GEBCO; IBCAO; U.S. Geological Survey. The vehicle and overlays for the turns, labels and course descriptions were added by The New York Times.
