IndyCar is all set to race in Washington, DC, in August as part of America's 250th anniversary celebrations. It will be the sport's first ever outing at the National Capitol. On Monday, IndyCar owner Roger Penske lauded the organization as he thanked President Donald Trump at the White House.

Trump held a Freedom 250 GP showcase on Monday afternoon. Penske was present at the event alongside top IndyCar management and three drivers.

"It's a great place to live. It's a great place to work," Penske said in a video published by Bob Pockrass on X. "And I think we're fortunate to have the most important office in the world give us the green light and then the checkered flag to have this event in August."

The race, titled the Freedom 250 Grand Prix, is scheduled for August 22-23 and will be the 15th race of the 2026 season. The first day will have the qualifying and support races, while the second day will have the main race.

"Think about it. Over 250,000 people signed up to come to this event. And we'll be able to accommodate 100,000 each of the two days. And it's for free, as the President said. But we're honored. I think it's an opportunity to showcase the technology, the speed, the partnerships, and the athletes that make such a difference," Penske further added in the video shared by Pockrass.

Alongside Roger Penske were Penske Corporation president Bud Denker and three IndyCar drivers: Reigning series champion Alex Palou, reigning Indy 500 champion Felix Rosenqvist, and Team Penske's David Malukas.

The drivers will race around a 1.7-mile circuit, where they can reach up to 190 miles an hour. Besides this, the International Race of Champions will be a support race, where iconic drivers Jeff Gordon, Helio Castroneves, and Tony Kanaan, among many others, will drive the iconic Pontiac Firebirds.

Alex Palou is currently leading the 2026 championship with 404 points, and he is 56 points ahead of Andretti Global's Kyle Kirkwood. Roger Penske's driver, David Malukas of Team Penske, is in fourth place, while teammates Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin are in sixth and eighth places, respectively.

Roger Penske's driver dominated NASCAR a day before Freedom 250 GP event

A day before the Freedom 250 GP event, Ryan Blaney dominated the Cup Series race at Atlanta for Team Penske. On Sunday, he led a race-high 171 of 263 laps and won the Quaker State 400 ahead of Christopher Bell and Carson Hocevar.

"It was definitely, honestly, a pretty awesome night," Blaney said via NBC Sports. "Having a really fast car and sitting on the pole, winning both stages and leading a ton of laps and just in a position to win the race. You never know how these things are gonna end, honestly.

"There are a couple of things I probably could have done better, but we were able to stick around, and just how the last couple laps played out, we were able to get the lead back and just barely hold on. It’s a pretty cool day when you have weekends like that."

Blaney started the race from pole, kept his place in Stage 1 and Stage 2, and went on to win the race in the final stage. After a thrilling final lap battle against Carson Hocevar, Blaney grabbed the win and secured his second win of the season.

With this, Ford dented Toyota's non-stop dominance in the Cup Series this season. And Blaney remains the only driver to grab wins for Ford this season.

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Written by

Sabyasachi Biswas

Edited by

Yash Kotak