Washington, D.C. is set to host an IndyCar race on the National Mall this weekend as part of events celebrating the United States' 250th anniversary. The event, dubbed the Freedom 250 Grand Prix, will feature a 1.66-mile, 7-turn track utilizing city streets.
The race course begins on 3rd Street near the Capitol building and proceeds down Pennsylvania Avenue, which will serve as the longest straightaway at 0.4 miles. The route will pass landmarks such as the Lincoln Reflecting Pool and the Smithsonian Museum before looping back to 3rd Street to finish.
Penske Corp., the owner of IndyCar, is shouldering the majority of the financial responsibility for the race. Bud Denker, Penske Corp. president and chair of the Freedom 250 Grand Prix, indicated that the event's budget is substantially larger than IndyCar's Detroit street race, which has a budget of $20 million. An exact total cost for the Washington D.C. event has not been disclosed.
Security costs for the race will be covered by a $90 million budget that Congress allocated for special events in the capital. This allocation was mentioned by Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice Lindsey Appiah during a public briefing in July.