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Trump’s IndyCar race: Doing 200 in a 25 mph zone with manhole cover-displacing torque - AP News
From Associated Press via USVI News: President Donald Trump is hosting an IndyCar street race in Washington, D.C., as part of America’s 250th anniversary celebrations. The Freedom 250 Grand Prix, set for Aug. 22 and 23, will see cars speeding down Pennsylvania Avenue at up to eight times the usua.
Trump’s IndyCar race: Doing 200 in a 25 mph zone with manhole cover-displacing torque
IndyCar Series driver David Malukas drives a race car down West Executive Drive during an event with President Donald Trump to promote the upcoming Freedom 250 Grand Prix auto race, Monday, July 13, 2026, at the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Construction for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix on the National Mall is seen from the Washington Monument, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Tierney L. Cross)
President Donald Trump speaks at an event to promote the Freedom 250 Grand Prix IndyCar race in August, Monday, July 13, 2026, on West Executive Drive at the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
President Donald Trump reacts after receiving a helmet as Alex Palou, the reigning IndyCar champion, left, and Roger Penske, chairperson and founder of Penske Corp., right, watch on West Executive Drive at the White House during a showcase for the upcoming Freedom 250 Grand Prix auto race, Monday, July 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
A sign on a building along the route for the upcoming Freedom 250 Grand Prix promotes the event, Friday, July 31, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The speed limit along Pennsylvania Avenue is 25 mph.
But the open-wheel race cars roaring through the longest straightaway of the upcoming Washington IndyCar race organized by President Donald Trump could be going nearly eight times that fast.
“If we did that during the regular day, I think people would be put in jail, perhaps for the rest of their lives,” Trump joked recently while hosting an IndyCar pit crew at the White House to hype the Freedom 250 Grand Prix.
The race, scheduled for Aug. 22 and 23, features vehicles that typically reach street-course speeds approaching 200 mph and have enough torque to tear off manhole covers. It is the latest — and the fastest — of the major events Trump has hosted against the backdrop of America’s 250th birthday, a larger celebration he has made as much about himself as possible.
The president staged a UFC fight on the White House’s South Lawn for his 80th birthday in June and held a rally to kick off the Great American State Fair on the National Mall after most of the event’s scheduled musical acts pulled out. He headlined another rally for July Fourth on the National Mall, ahead of a massive fireworks display marking the semiquincentennial of the Declaration of Independence’s signing.
This article is republished through the USVI News affiliate desk. Reporting, analysis, and viewpoints are those of the original publisher and do not necessarily reflect USVI News.