Former USAC CEO discusses global impact of Indiana’s motorsports ecosystem
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe former CEO of the United States Auto Club says momentum in the state’s motorsports is as strong as he has seen and that means job opportunities statewide.
Rollie Helmling says Indianapolis remains one of three global motorsports centers of influence, along with the United Kingdom’s Motorsports Valley and Charlotte, North Carolina.
“Charlotte is very NASCAR centric, very stock car centric. Then when we come to our home, Indiana, we are much more diverse,” Helmling said. “We’re here at this magnificent facility (IMS) that does so much to brand the state of Indiana and the city of Indianapolis. Not only are the bulk of the IndyCar teams here, but much of the industry is here.”
Helming says in addition to IndyCar, drag racing with the National Hot Rod Association and open wheel short track racing also boost the state’s economy.
This week, the new Fishers-based Cadillac F1 team officially announced its arrival in Florida. The team is on pace to be on the grid in 2026, the Associated Press reported.
“We’re building cars; we’ve been in the wind tunnel for a long time,” said Dan Towriss, CEO of TWG Motorsports, the team owner. “Chassis has arrived, we’re continuing to add (personnel) to the team, there are so many work streams that are happening all at once.”
Cadillac will have the largest U.S. presence of any F1 team and will operate out of facilities in Fishers, as well as in Charlotte. The team also has a satellite facility at Silverstone, England.
“This will truly be the only U.S.-based Formula One team; the impact of that is so significant,” Helmling said. “Between the new facility in Fishers, what they’re doing on the north side of Indianapolis with the former (Indianapolis) Star printing facility…and then we have a new Indy car team called PREMA, which has come from Italy. We’re adding almost 800,000 square feet of additional race shop, primarily on the north side of Indianapolis.”
In March, Andretti Global announced plans to convert a former Indianapolis Star printing facility into the headquarters of the team’s NTT IndyCar, Indy NXT and Formula E teams. Prema Racing, an Italian team that competes in F1’s lower levels, has its U.S. home at Indianapolis Metropolitan Airport in Fishers. The headquarters facility measures more than 100,000 square feet with room for expansion, according to IndyCar.
Helmling says motorsports-related jobs pay about 120% of the state average, and the skills employees bring can transfer to other industries. As the month of May revvs up, Helmling thinks it’s important for the state to keep its motorsports marketing.
“We sometimes, I think, underestimate the value of the brand and what motorsports brings to our state,” he said. “It’s a very significant industry, and so not just all of us who are racing enthusiasts, racing fans, but our entire state needs to totally be promoting this very unique industry and exciting events that we have that are unique to Indiana.”