Trump caps summer of US 250th birthday with auto race through Washington

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump will cap celebrations of the U.S. 250th anniversary with a first-of-its-kind auto race through the streets of Washington, closing a summer ​of sports and spectacle as drivers speed past the capital's iconic landmarks.

IndyCar's Freedom 250 Grand Prix will zoom through the National Mall, past the U.S. Capitol, down historic Pennsylvania Avenue and around the National Archives, with the marquee event on Sunday afternoon.

The race ‌is expected to draw roughly 200,000 spectators, officials said, and tickets are free. Passes to private trackside clubs sold for $5,000.

Trump set to wave the starting flag

Trump's motorcade will take an honorary ⁠loop around the racetrack, and he is set to wave the green ​flag to start the 250-mile race.

"I don't know if anything will ⁠ever top what we're going to be having," Trump said in July, as drivers visited the White House to celebrate the start of track ‌construction.

The race is the latest in a ‌series of sporting events Trump has used to celebrate the country and his second term, even as his approval ⁠rating has dropped to the lowest point since he returned to the White House in ⁠January 2025 and the U.S. is embroiled in a war with Iran.

He opened the summer with a professional mixed martial arts bout on the South Lawn of the White House, then presented the championship trophy to FIFA World Cup champion Spain a month later.

Earlier in August, he appeared at the "Patriot Games," a cross between a game show and track meet for high school athletes, televised on sports network ESPN.

For Trump, the events have served to raise his profile, both domestically and globally. The UFC fight card was streamed internationally, and ‌during the World Cup trophy presentation, he lingered at mid-pitch while the Spanish team hoisted the trophy.

IndyCar ​driver Pato O'Ward, who races for Arrow McLaren, told the Fox News Sunday show he was feeling "pretty surreal" ahead of the race.

"We never thought that we were going to be racing here anytime in 2026," O'Ward said. "Everyone's excited that we're here and, I mean, it's a pretty picturesque backdrop."

Race plans have faced criticism

The Washington race has faced its share of criticism. The track was originally set to run through the grounds of the U.S. Capitol, but the proposal required lawmakers' approval and stalled in Congress. Advertising is prohibited on Capitol grounds, and the race cars, with their dozens of corporate sponsors, along with trackside billboards, would have run afoul of those regulations.

Trump instead issued ​an executive order commanding Transportation Department officials to draw up a course that did not require congressional signoff.

"When you think about America 250, you also think about cars, and when ‌you think about ‌cars, you do think about ⁠freedom," Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said at the White House event with Trump.

Officials will pause air traffic at Washington's Ronald Reagan National Airport for three hours at midday on Sunday to accommodate military flyovers of the racetrack, angering some locals. The city's police will close major thoroughfares downtown due to pedestrian activity and security procedures.

Race officials said the city's roads will not need much refurbishment before or after the race, in which drivers are expected ‌to reach 185 mph on the Pennsylvania ​Avenue straightaway.

The event has dozens of corporate sponsors, including major companies such as Boeing (BA.N), ‌SpaceX's (SPCX.O) Starlink and Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) that ⁠will be sponsoring an IndyCar ​race for the first time, Bud Denker, the Grand Prix's chair and president of Penske Corp., said on Thursday.

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