IndyCar to race in Detroit until at least 2028

IndyCar has agreed a deal to continue racing in Detroit until at least the 2028 season.

Contract:

• New three-year deal for Detroit Grand Prix starts from next season
• The contract includes the option of a further three-year extension

Context:

In 2021, IndyCar agreed a three-year deal to race on the streets of Detroit starting in 2023. This marked the series’ new home in the city after stop-start visits to Belle Isle between 1992 and 2022, as confirmed by Penske Corporation’s vice president of community and government affairs Letty Azar.

Although, one potential issue surrounding the future of the race concerns plans to demolish two buildings in the Renaissance Center. Detroit Grand Prix president Bud Denker says this creates a “TBD” situation for the future of the race. But he also claims that other events in the city mean that “nothing is going to be going away here from what we understand until past 2027,” which protects the current layout of the race for at least the next two seasons.

Coming next:

Next up for IndyCar is a visit to Gateway, which will be the first-ever scheduled primetime network IndyCar race on a Sunday night and the first night race at the circuit since 2019.

Go deeper:

• IndyCar’s TV deal with Fox: Why has the series left NBC and what does the move mean for its future?
• IndyCar 2024 season review: Stuttering viewership and off-track politics overshadow an exciting year