2026 is the year to find your Indy 500 grandstand seats early. In addition to the usual pre-race ceremony on May 24, there will be some added touches this year to celebrate America’s semiquincentennial.
But what, exactly? Much of that will be a surprise, said Michael Kaltenmark, vice president of marketing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Still, he advises race goers to get to the speedway early to experience the celebratory additions.
While the traditional sequence of events — which includes the “Drivers, to your cars” command and performances of the national anthem and “(Back Home Again in) Indiana” — will remain intact, Indianapolis Motor Speedway intends to embellish the celebration this year. Those new flourishes will involve more flyovers, fireworks and other pyrotechnics and visual representations of military, he said.
“It’ll be our normal pre-race but on steroids a little bit,” Kaltenmark said.
Because the race has long been a Memorial Day weekend affair, the speedway always focuses on honoring U.S. military members’ sacrifice, he said. The country’s big birthday this year adds an avenue to add more patriotic honors, as evidenced by the track’s 2026 theme: United We Race.
Throughout May, speedway activities like Indy 500 practices and porch parties will also focus on 250 years of the United States.
“It’s just a celebration of our identity as Americans and the country’s founding and the ideals and principles that go with that and just our shared heritage,” Kaltenmark said.
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Contact IndyStar reporter Domenica Bongiovanni at 317-444-7339 or d.bongiovanni@indystar.com. Sign up here for the newsletter she curates about things to do and ways to explore Indianapolis. Find her on Facebook, Instagram or X: @domenicareports.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indy 500 will unleash surprises to celebrate U.S.’s 250th anniversary
Reporting by Domenica Bongiovanni, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
