Fox Sports’ Shanks: Freedom 250 can take IndyCar to new heights

WASHINGTON -- As Fox Sports heads into yet another big event for the network with this week’s Freedom 250 in Washington, D.C., one of the visionaries of the NTT INDYCAR Series event has noticed the event has drawn nationwide attention to the racing series.

“The energy around this place, when you're in D.C. and everybody talking about it around the country, is incredible,” said Eric Shanks, CEO and executive producer of Fox Sports.

The $35 million race through downtown District of Columbia uses a 1.7-mile course through the nation’s capital in which cars will zoom past multiple major American landmarks. The Freedom 250 is part of the celebration of America’s 250th birthday and, in building for it, promoter Penske Entertainment ensured it would be a world-class event.

The course itself is immaculate, the grounds crisp and clean, and hospitality offerings are among the best on the 17-race INDYCAR schedule. Free tickets were distributed through a lottery, with close to 150,000 spectators expected Saturday for practice and qualifying and Sunday for the race.

The event has created high expectations for a once-in-a-lifetime experience that has sent sponsorship through the roof to levels typically only seen for the Indianapolis 500. INDYCAR and Fox Sports have been seen a strong demand for corporate involvement and the list of sponsors includes a ton of global companies either new to the series or using the event as a trial.

Signs throughout the track feature Boeing and Lockheed Martin; Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Gulfstream, General Motors, Ram Truck and Honda; Starlink (SpaceX) and Oracle; Chevron, John Deere, Washington Gas, Phorm Energy, The Mosaic Company; and Mastercard, Deloitte and UnitedHealth Group.

The UFC, which staged a fight on the White House Lawn earlier this summer, is also a sponsor in the event.

Shanks believes the heavy interest in the Freedom 250 will be a benefit to teams and INDYCAR moving forward as they attempt to sell potential partners on the series’ upswing. The Freedom 250 is one of three new venues on the 17-race INDYCAR schedule that included a race in Arlington, Texas, in conjunction with Jerry Joes and the Dallas Cowboys, and last weekend’s event on the streets in Markham, Ontario.

“I mean, look, the world is noisy. If you're a company, I can't imagine the number of calls that you get a day looking for sponsorship or looking to partner,” Shanks said. “You have to break through that noise, and I think that this event, honestly, it's the event of 2026, celebrating America 250.

“I think that every team and the series is going to have a lot more success in partnership talks once everybody sees this spectacle.”

Fox Sports has a heavy lineup of big events throughout the year, most recently the World Cup over the summer. In motorsports, Fox Sports holds the rights to the Daytona 500 and the entire INDYCAR schedule, with the Indianapolis 500. The network also has broadcast Super Bowls, World Series, the MLB All-Star race and prides itself in showcasing the best entertainment experience possible.

That’s why Fox Sports, which owns 1/3 of the INDYCAR Series alongside Penske Entertainment, wanted the Freedom 250 and the opportunity to showcase a property it has an ownership stake in.

“Fox Sports has an incredible partnership with INDYCAR and when we were talking about,  besides the Indy 500, how are we going to celebrate America 250?” Shanks said. “It was pretty obvious. Like we do what we do. Let's put on a race somewhere, and we kind of just rolled the dice and said, ‘know better place than in our nation's capital. Have the fastest racing in the world at the most important city in the world, and Washington, D.C. was it.’”

Shanks also praised the assistance INDYCAR and Fox Sports have received from President Donald J. Trump and his administration, which gave the green-light to the Freedom 250 and has assisted with the legalities and permits of such a massive undertaking.

“I think that the White House administration absolutely reveres Roger Penske, kind of thinks of him as a hero, not just in motorsports, but as a true American hero,” Shanks said. “And when Roger knocks, there's no door that just can't be opened.”

The Freedom 250 on Sunday begins at 11:30 a.m. Sunday on Fox Sports with an extensive pre-race ceremony featuring revered broadcaster Tom Rinaldi, as well as retired racers Helio Castroneves and Danica Patrick.

The green-flag for the second-longest street race in series history is 1:13 p.m. on Fox.