Boles: Lack of Prep Time Led to Indy 500 Postponement
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway says the decision to postpone the Indianapolis 500 essentially came down to preparation time. The Speedway announced last month the Indy 500 will take place August 23 while the GMR Grand Prix will be held July 4. Doug Boles said IMS and INDYCAR officials remained hopeful that the race could still take place as scheduled, but as Governor Eric Holcomb issued his stay at home order, it became clear that preparing to pack 300,000 fans into the famed track on a shorter timeline would be a challenge.
In an interview on Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick, Boles said one of the biggest challenges with rescheduling was finding the best time to hold the races.
“We want the Indy 500, wherever we put it, to feel like the Indy 500 so we felt like it needed at least that qualifying weekend and practice leading up to it ahead of the race weekend itself, which then caused us to look at the GMR Grand Prix and where do we put that?” said Boles. “And we’re actually pretty excited about landing that race right in the middle of our (Brickyard 400) weekend and as a doubleheader on the road course with the (NASCAR) Xfinity (Series) cars.”
Boles says even though the 500 will not take place on Memorial Day weekend, the traditions of the race will continue on the rescheduled date.
This year’s 500 mile race will be the first under the ownership of Roger Penske, who acquired IMS, the NTT IndyCar Series and IMS Productions in January. Boles says the decision to postpone the race was not one that Penske took lightly.
“From the very beginning…(Penske) said he wants to be a great corporate citizen in the state of Indiana and he has proven that as we’ve gone through this. Many times a day, I’m having a conversation with him. He’s talked to our mayor. He’s talked to our governor. He’s really plugged in. He wants this to be the Indiana institution that it is and he’s committed to investing in it to make it the Hoosier racetrack that we all have fallen in love with.”
On Monday, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway announced it will host a third INDYCAR race. The INDYCAR Harvest GP will take place on the IMS road course on October 3.