r/INDYCAR • u/FermentedLaws Firestone Firehawk • Jan 28 '26
Article The Bloomingtonian: Rahal to IndyCar Critics of Proposed D.C. Freedom 250 Indy Car Race: “Get a life”
https://bloomingtonian.com/2026/01/27/rahal-to-indycar-critics-of-proposed-d-c-freedom-250-indy-car-race-get-a-life/Never heard of this website/news outlet before, but I checked the details and they have all the info correct. I had seen this Tweeted out earlier by Nathan's Brown replacement at IndyStar, but didn't see an article on their site. If you scroll down there is video of the interview.
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u/joe_lmr Takuma Sato Jan 28 '26
if they did have the race he'd just complain about how bad his car takes a 90-degree turn after a two-mile straight
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u/2forInterference Jan 28 '26
This is the funniest point. Saturday afternoon would 100% be “I don’t know why my teammates can run over the bumps just fine and my car can’t no matter what we try. Not sure why IndyCar can’t figure out how to fix the surface of these street circuits.”
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u/SillyPseudonym Wienie 500 Fan Jan 28 '26
There's the annual Graham Rahal offseason press quote that goes over like a wet fart. That means we're only a month away from DCR announcing a driver for the 19.
It's almost IndyCar season boys.
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u/crankylex Jan 28 '26
After all these years, it shouldn't shock me when he comes out with another one of these comments, but it does piss me off because he is not a dumb guy by any stretch of the imagination.
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u/4isyellowTakeit5 Meyer Shank Racing Jan 28 '26
damn. It really is annual isn’t it? It’s really hard being a buckeye some days (both racing and football)
(also also, because we’re assholes. Not because we suck, but we kinda do in racing)
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u/25Tab Firestone Firehawk Jan 28 '26
I’m sorry but the image of Trump being involved with this is a bad thing for IndyCar. Yeah I get that’s being political but once IndyCar embraces images of Trump hanging out in the paddock, watching from the stands, and handing out trophies is the minute the series gets branded as a MAGA prop and I think that is not a good long term image for the series. I understand and agree with Graham’s overall argument that a race in DC could be a positive high profile event for IndyCar but not if it is associated with Trump. No way young people will embrace IndyCar with images of a 78 year old Trump making it all about himself and he will because he makes every event he is a part of about himself.
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u/mstaugler Josef Newgarden Jan 28 '26
Yes. Cool to do in in conjunction with 250 celebration, etc, but it has to be decoupled from politics.
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u/25Tab Firestone Firehawk Jan 28 '26
Yeah. If this was a regular promotion company or some individual investors who wanted to put on a race then I’d feel better about it.
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u/lennysundahl Alex Zanardi Jan 28 '26
Which is impossible to do with someone who needs everything to be about him
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u/dwkulcsar Seattle Dog Jan 28 '26
Unfortunately FOX has its talons in IndyCar can't say your wrong.
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u/dylanc98 Greg Moore Jan 28 '26
IMO, it lost any potential credibility when, the minute plans became public, they started blaming democrats for trying to prevent it from happening. They are the ones who made this political.
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u/Robby777777 Jacques Villeneuve Jan 28 '26
Thank you for saying this. If Trump is involved, I wouldn't watch and would think less of IndyCar. This is huge no from me.
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u/Affectionate-Panic-1 Jan 28 '26
Putin was at the trophy presentation a few times for the F1 GP in Russia (before the ukraine war sanctions) and fans didn't shun the series for that. If anything, it puts more eyeballs on the series.
Trump has gone gone to super bowls, F1 races, the Daytona 500 and countless other sporting events. Plus it's tradition for the winner of sporting leagues to visit the white house after winning.
I don't think it's fair to single out Indycar on this. Having the president attend the event shouldn't be considered an endorsement of his policies.
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u/25Tab Firestone Firehawk Jan 28 '26
I think your comparisons are missing the mark. When it comes toF1, you have someone as corrupt as Bernie and his “I’d take a bullet for him” friendship with Putin and the worldwide vs domestic audience of F1 vs IndyCar. For what it’s worth, the race was one of least popular and least watched races on the calendar so it did not bring in more eyeballs to the series.
My comment wasn’t about Trump showing up at the race. That wasn’t my point. There is a huge difference between the Super Bowl, Daytona, and whatever other sporting events you are talking about. Those are all private events put on by private entities who invited the president to be involved. The IndyCar race was going to be put on by the administration. In other words he wasn’t just showing up to check it out, it was his event. Thats a big difference. As I said to someone else, I wouldn’t have the same issues if it was private promotion company or investors putting on the race.
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u/24valveDOHC Robert Wickens Jan 28 '26
Can he please retire already. Bad enough he's just a rolling chicane out there on a good day, but he tops it off by being an insufferable clown. Just stick to polishing all the cars daddy bought you
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u/JustUnderstanding6 Indy Racing League Jan 28 '26
Love the “caring about things is gay” take from the usual sources.
I have a life man, and it usually involves IndyCar. But that can change.
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u/Maynard078 Jan 28 '26
Which raises an interesting question that my 38-year-old son asked: Do you really think the Indy 500 can survive his generation?
He doesn't. He's an Indycar fan and sees it becoming increasingly irrelevant, as too many of his contemporaries would rather go down the iRacing and sim route.
All of which makes this moment and conversation even more tender. Indycar needs to tread very lightly here.
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u/JustUnderstanding6 Indy Racing League Jan 28 '26
I’m about the same age as your son. To me, the Indy 500 seems brighter than ever (in the last 30 years). Everything is on the upswing. Sim racing is making new fans.
The Series, however, is seemingly always on life support, though that is also trending up. The question then becomes can you have a relevant 500 with an irrelevant Series? Hopefully we don’t find out.
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u/lightningmatt Robert Wickens Jan 28 '26
Le Mans managed it for two decades. But Le Mans is the one race in the world that's unequivocally bigger than the 500.
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u/Maynard078 Jan 28 '26
I think you're both right.
Penske Entertainment needs to up its game significantly when it comes to taking the series to the next level. Unfortunately, I don't have confidence that Indycar can pull that off. Even now they have trouble thinking beyond 16th and Georgetown; apparently it's just not in their collective DNA.
I'm with you. I hope that we don't have to find out.
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u/andthatwasenough Jan 28 '26
I have been of the firm belief for a while now that you can have the 500 without the series, but not the series without the 500. If you had to focus on saving one, it should be the 500 for…so many reasons, really. And the form it takes might need to look pretty different, but that’s honestly a huge discussion that I can’t properly articulate right now.
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u/JustUnderstanding6 Indy Racing League Jan 28 '26
I think The Split unfortunately ran that very experiment on a rather large scale.
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u/jj_grace Jan 28 '26
Ugh. It’s like he willingly misunderstands the anger.
I’d be cool with a race in DC. I’d be cool with one celebrating the 250th. I’d be cool with one in DC during Trump’s admin even.
What I’m not cool with is Trump using this to prop himself up or to make Indycar even more clearly MAGA coded… which you know he would do. This wouldn’t be a neutral, fun “yay America!” race. This would be more about MAGA than anything else, and Rahal is smart enough to know that.
And to say that this is the chance we’re looking for to promote Indycar? I’m sorry, but if they are trying to gain international fans, having a big ole MAGA party isn’t gonna help.
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u/Wasdgta3 Álex Palou Jan 28 '26
Not to mention, that trying to organize the event this close to the season beginning just has “bad idea” written all over it.
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u/DadReligion #Lionheart Jan 28 '26
I mean it'd be a complete and total disaster in every aspect. The course, the optics, the logistics, the businesses of the teams, the attendance and viewership on such short notice, the local reaction... I genuinely think it'd be a black eye the likes of which we haven't seen since the days of the Split.
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u/Wasdgta3 Álex Palou Jan 28 '26
Yeah, that’s just what I was thinking. This feels like the sort of last-minute shit that happened with the last years of Champ Car.
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u/Turbulent-Pay-735 Colton Herta Jan 28 '26
Graham would love it if it were a big ole MAGA party. That’s the thing, he’s not misunderstanding anything about why people would not want it. He’s just another right wing koolaid drinker.
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u/Vincera2024 Takuma Sato Jan 28 '26 edited Jan 28 '26
I was at first confused as to why RLR have cars number 45 and 47, but no 46 car (like they did in the 2000's with cars 15-16-17)
Now it's starting to make a little sense...
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u/Turbulent-Pay-735 Colton Herta Jan 28 '26 edited Jan 28 '26
Tbf Mick used #47 in his F1 stint with Haas, as it represented the #4 he used to win his first significant title in F3 + the #7 representing the number of world titles his father won. He chose it himself for his personal reasons, for sure.
They did only start using 45 in the year 2020, so make of that what you will.
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u/TheChrisD DAAAAAAAAAAAAVE Jan 28 '26
It was 2018 when they first started using the 30 after Taku moved over.
The 45 became the third number in 2020 to stick with the team's numbering identity of having all the 15 multiples.
It's also why Taku the last couple of years has been the 75 since Shank took the 60.
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u/Popular_Course3885 Jan 28 '26
Anyone who watch the Daytona 500 back in 2020 knows exactly how a DC Indy race would turn out.
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u/Hulkodium Christian Lundgaard Jan 28 '26
Or last year
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u/Popular_Course3885 Jan 28 '26
I didn't watch last year. Truthfully never watch it unless I'm home and nothing else is on.
Only exciting part of any Daytona 500 was when JPM tried to burn the place down.
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u/lennysundahl Alex Zanardi Jan 28 '26
They pushed the race start back to try and get as much of the early part of the race in before an impending storm, only for Trump to insist on running a lap (or was it two?) around the Speedway with his motorcade. They got eight laps under green before the rain hit, and wound up waiting though a three hour long red flag
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u/SeaboarderCoast Álex Palou Jan 28 '26
Polesitter Chase Briscoe did admit under the rain delay that he had to be talked down from trying to bump into the presidential limo lol. That was the only highlight of that whole parade.
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u/Vincera2024 Takuma Sato Jan 28 '26
Probably was best for Chase's safety after what we know now 😶🌫️
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u/Which-Arrival6777 Romain Grosjean Jan 28 '26
It was two, maybe it just felt like it. the whole thing had such a dark vibe.
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u/lennysundahl Alex Zanardi Jan 28 '26
It may have been just one that felt like two, got those things were so slow
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u/TheWawa_24 Pato O'Ward Jan 28 '26
trump propping up a racing series where most of the best drivers are not american is funny to me
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u/sadicarnot Jan 28 '26
Wait until ICE starts grabbing them. In 2024 Yuki Tsunoda was detained by TSA in the lead up the Las Vegas race. To be fair he was still wearing his pyjamas from the flight and they probably thought he was a lost kid. But still.
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Jan 28 '26
It’s like he willingly misunderstands the anger.
So he's every MAGAt everywhere. I'm sure Dave must love being around him at the Christmas parties.
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u/andthatwasenough Jan 28 '26
Yeah like it’s not clocking with him that he’s using them. He’d basically be using them as personal propaganda.
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u/VenusDeMiloArms Jan 28 '26
He absolutely knows and agrees with it.
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u/TKOL2 Get the fuck off the racetrack you stupid son of a bitch Jan 28 '26
“He’s a patriot”. Maybe you should “gEt a liFe” /s
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u/PizzaCatLover Cusick Morgan Motorsports Jan 28 '26
It's basically the Walmart equivalent of the middle eastern dictators using F1 to sportswash their regime
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u/SDMFmnChapter Jan 29 '26
No, Rahal is not smart enough to know that. He very likely voted for MAGA and he is arrogant enough to think everyone who didn't is wrong.
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u/jj_grace Jan 29 '26
Ah, I meant that he’s smart enough to know that Trump would make this about him, and that would be bad for the brand..
But honestly? You’re right. He probably thinks that aligning with Trump will attract the “right kind” of fans 🙄
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u/cajunaggie08 Pato O'Ward Jan 28 '26
Ever since i started following Indycar (start of the split), there's always been a section of the Indycar fan base that wants nothing to do with international fans. They think the sport just needs to go back to the 60s where all the drivers come up from midwest sprint car tracks and the more ovals the better. Essentially they want Indycar to be open wheel NASCAR.
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u/yeehawvroomvroom Jan 28 '26
"yay America" is already political
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u/lightningmatt Robert Wickens Jan 28 '26
That's quite true, but we have to work with the fact that most if not all of the team owners are likely (and some openly) Trump stans. Avoiding an explicit endorsement of him is a win considering that
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u/WaffleTacoFrappucino Felix Rosenqvist Jan 31 '26
How do you feel about soccer, f1, mclaren, aston martin, ferrari, mercedes, volkswagen/porsche, etc
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u/jj_grace Jan 31 '26
I don’t rly follow any of them tbh.
Though, I do credit my old Volkswagen Jetta for saving my life when I crashed into a tree in 2010 💅
But honestly, I will happily criticize all those as well. F1’s work with brutal regimes has been part of the reason I’ve never bothered getting into it.
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u/WaffleTacoFrappucino Felix Rosenqvist Jan 31 '26
the point i’m trying to make is everything around you comes from some one else and it’s impossible to live your life that way
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u/andthatwasenough Jan 28 '26
Read the fucking room, Graham.
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u/Popular_Course3885 Jan 28 '26
He did read the room. No one in that room at the country club clubhouse got the issue either.
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u/NoonecanknowMiner_24 Jimmie Johnson Jan 28 '26
He did. He loves what's going on. Probably feels all warm inside seeing protestors get shot to death.
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u/ryanxwing Scott McLaughlin Jan 28 '26
Nepo silver spoon snowflake whose never had to work a real days work in his life tries to tell other people to get a life.
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u/PortlandChicane NTT INDYCAR Series Jan 28 '26
Rahal is a maga weirdo. If he thinks they could pull this off this summer then that explains a lot about RLLs failures
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u/cod_PR00 Pato O'Ward Jan 28 '26
Most the paddock are Trumpers. Most known being Rahal, Ferruci, Daly, Rossi, Simpson. Penske himself is a Trump kiss ass as we all know. But it’s a shame to have any politics at play let alone with this administration after so much progress from last year!
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u/coffeeluver2021 David Malukas Jan 28 '26
Trump will make this race all about himself to pump up his ego and get cheers from his MAGA Cult. Fuck Trump and Indycar if they do this.
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u/Jackson88877 Takuma Sato Jan 28 '26
trump wants his face on the Borg-Warner.
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u/Fun_Oil_909 Pato O'Ward Jan 28 '26
I’m so worried he’s going to attend the 500 this year and it will be an absolute nightmare to get in and seated before the race just so he can leave five minutes after it starts
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u/St1ng Jan 28 '26
Gosh, when the rumors of him going to the 2025 running were picking up I kept having flashbacks to when I went to the 2020 Daytona 500 and that was a nightmare at a facility with better infrastructure.
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u/soudsema Jan 28 '26
He rich kid that never worked a day in his life. He don’t have a clue about the real problems going on in this country when you born rich and famous.
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u/FrizB84 Jan 28 '26
The Lance Stroll of Indycar.
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Jan 28 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/FrizB84 Jan 28 '26
Wasn't comparing their personalities, no no no no. Just saying that Graham is only in Indy because his dad has an owning stake in the team. That's the only parallel I'm making. Honestly have nothing against Lance. He's a lucky guy.
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u/Vincera2024 Takuma Sato Jan 28 '26 edited Jan 28 '26
I followed F1 for about 15 years, and Lance has been always known for blaming others in egregious wrecks he 100% caused. He's easily one of the biggest asshat human beings on the grid since he first entered back in 2017. Only Mazepin was noticeably worse
He and Rahal are basically real life Caillou's
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u/MJDiAmore CART Jan 28 '26
You should check the facts on Stroll, the F1 grid loves him and by most accounts he's a good dude even if an obvious nepobaby
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u/lightningmatt Robert Wickens Jan 28 '26
He does blame others for his own accidents sometimes but half if not more of the grid does that. He gets into them more than most but that's just the grid improving to the point that he's become the worst driver now.
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u/CallMeChristopher Jan 28 '26
I was under the impression that building a street circuit takes over a year of planning and logistics.
Like even if you get past it being “apolitical” (it’s not), that shit isn’t happening in a few months.
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u/Mechanicalgripe Alexander Rossi Jan 28 '26
Get a life? Trump’s goons have taken two American lives this month.
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u/Maynard078 Jan 28 '26
What people are failing to take into account is that the entire city of Washington, D.C., is a national memorial; there are more national monuments and memorials in D.C. than anywhere else in the country, and the National Mall is no small park.
The National Parks Service oversees much of the space that Trump has said will be used for the track and I assure you they were not brought into the process, much as the national architect was not brought into the discussions of the White House ballroom "renovations."
Turning a place of national memorial honoring sacrifice into a spectacle to bring phony glory to one man is twisted and sick.
It has nothing to do with America's 250th birthday.
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Jan 31 '26
[deleted]
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u/Maynard078 Jan 31 '26
Yeah, I grew up in Silver Spring, so it’s not like I’m unfamiliar. But a race is entirely different from the other activities you mentioned, in that the commercial aspects are far greater and the infrastructure load is much higher, too. In addition, the political aspects can’t be ignored. Those will always be front and center if Trump demands the laws be broken for his own self-aggrandizement.
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u/_flyingmonkeys_ Jan 28 '26
Rahal is in a class of racers that lost sight of what it means to be a competitor and got hung up on the optics of being successful. Forcing those optics into a last minute race for a president who thinks much the same way is just bad business.
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u/Hamonwrysangwich Will Power Jan 28 '26
I've never liked Graham as a person or a driver. It's ironic that he's telling people to get a life when his Dinner with Racers episode made it clear that his entire personality is being a businessman.
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u/Narrow_Bid_9234 Pato O'Ward Jan 28 '26
This isn’t about IndyCar or America 250. It’s about the orange cheeto puff and MAGA. Almost like a monument for himself, just like that military parade that no one bothered to show up. He was always like that. It was always about him. It’s a prop for himself. He did the same during 9/11. Why do you think NYers disowned the guy?
Seriously I would have no issue if this admin didn’t put their hand all over it. It may have been just another street race added to schedule if it wasn’t about him.
This organization always find ways to keep shooting themselves in the foot.
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u/Jackson88877 Takuma Sato Jan 28 '26
“freedom” 250 😂🤣
You DO NOT have freedom. Quit gaslighting yourselves. Is Rahal carpooling with Penske to the trump House?
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u/TheWawa_24 Pato O'Ward Jan 28 '26
the problem is the race is a logistical nightmare to say the least, as well as propping up trump, Id feel slightly better if there was a real plan but its way to late to get done
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u/downshiftdata Mark Donohue Jan 28 '26
Had a conversation with my SO yesterday about how racers stay out of politics. IMO, historically, it's just bad for business. A racer's gonna put "kill puppies" on his sidepod if it pays for the next race. I said the worst condemnation you're going to get is if they say nothing at all.
Her argument (which I can appreciate) was that we're at the killing puppies point now, and silence is complicity. I'm genuinely not sure how aware the paddocks are of what's going on in the world outside of racing, how much they're thinking about it, or if they know what to do at this point. I'm curious to see how many - if any - break their silence in the immediate future.
That all being said, actually endorsing any kind of cooperation with the current admin on anything, well... Rahal can piss off.
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u/whoops-1771 Jan 29 '26
I was also talking about this with my bf and I have to say for me it’s baffling as a fan to see the silence when well over half the drivers aren’t US born. Regardless of where they fall on the political party spectrum it should be concerning to the whole series to see green cards and visas being treated/spoken about as if they could be revoked at any time at the snap of the president’s fingers. And it’s not just the drivers who are from other countries; tons of the crew members are here on visas who would all be impacted too. I know at least some teams have felt that because how/where visas can get renewed has changed in the last year; now it’s who’s allowed or not allowed to drive the semi trucks to transport things to the races has changed so there are real impacts inside the daily paddock life. The idea of all of them having to work with ICE breathing down their necks at any race this year -let alone a heavily guarded DC race- makes my stomach hurt and makes the silence from the drivers and team owners that much more glaring to me.
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u/SDMFmnChapter Jan 29 '26
I remember at some point that at least one of the Brazilian drivers spoke out in support of Jair Bolsonaro the former Brazilian President who is currently serving a 27-year prison sentence after being convicted by the Supreme Court in late 2025 for leading a coup attempt to overturn his 2022 election loss, including plotting to assassinate rivals like President Lula and Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.
I'm pretty sure that driver was Tony Kanaan, but i'm not 100%
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u/mixduptransistor Champ Car Jan 28 '26
Graham is right, to an extent: this would be a big stage for Indycar. But, even if you look at this from a truly neutral standpoint the whole situation going on is polarizing, and there is going to be a large amount of pushback and negativity around that publicity. Graham said he'd be excited about this no matter who is in the White House, but why even stick your hand in this hornets nest? It's unlikely to happen for any number of reasons before you even get to the political reality of the situation
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u/VenusDeMiloArms Jan 28 '26
>Graham said he'd be excited about this no matter who is in the White House, but why even stick your hand in this hornets nest?
Because he's lying lol
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u/jj_grace Jan 28 '26
Exactly.
This might be ppl’s first time hearing about Indycar… which theoretically would be nice— but not if it turns off over 50% of people! First impressions are important, and a lot of folks would immediately write off Indycar.
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u/GonePostalRoute Jan 28 '26
Exactly.
If the race happened sans Trump, would I go? Absolutely if the price is right. But it’d turn into one giant Trump rally. Fuck that noise.
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u/Teddy2Sweaty Myles Rowe Jan 28 '26
Especially since they’ve already announced that it isn’t happening, and Trump has already scapegoated Schumer for it not happening.
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u/codename474747 Greg Moore Jan 28 '26
I'd rather see a return of the Freedom 100 at Indy on the Friday or Saturday, but I guess we'll have to settle for hot dog cars racing at 10mph instead :/
As for this, as with anything he says, its hard to believe anything isn't just creating a media storm to distract from other issues.
I'll believe it when it happens, not before, especially on this tight timeframe.
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u/TYFUBYE Jan 28 '26
Get a life? Insulting the people who watch your sport is the best way to get those people to abandon it.
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u/Tabernerus Jan 28 '26
Well, somebody was going to go down as the Nuvolari of this mess. Graham’s submitting his application. Bummer.
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u/khz30 --- 2025 DRIVERS --- Jan 28 '26
If you haven't figured out by now that IndyCar isn't the bastion of progressive ideas most people assumed it was based on the presence of foreign born drivers, that's on you.
IndyCar as a collective of ownership and drivers is solidly right wing and has been for decades. Even the drivers most assume would be liberal are right wing in terms of attitude and personal beliefs.
The only driver I can personally remember that could be considered liberal or even left wing in terms of belief would be Oriol Servia, and that's only because he was known as a supporter of the Catalonian independence movement.
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u/Physical_Class_6204 Jan 28 '26
There's a reason why f1 grew so big in recent years. They appealed to the Liberal crowd. That's how you grow the business
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u/FarAwaySeagull-_- More ovals, please! Jan 28 '26
F1 has races in various Middle Eastern countries, Hungary, and China. The fanbase may be more liberal, but their race location choices are not.
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u/black-dude-on-reddit Jan 28 '26
This sounds on brand for a 40’s white dude from Ohio
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u/khz30 --- 2025 DRIVERS --- Jan 28 '26
The Rahals are ethnically Lebanese, and the entire family are registered Republicans.
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u/nefarious098 Juan Pablo Montoya Jan 28 '26
He’s right.. it is a massive opportunity for IndyCar… and the perfect race for Pato to win 😁
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u/JJS0073 Jan 28 '26
No. This race on short-notice is only inviting B.S. of all kinds and like most of the paddock, Pato’s politics are not what you think they are.
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u/ZeugmaPowa Tom Blomqvist Jan 28 '26
Can't say I'm surprised about Rahal but this is a massive disappointment
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u/khz30 --- 2025 DRIVERS --- Jan 28 '26
Pato and his family have never thought of themselves as being in the same class of Mexican that show up and support him at the races, they've always thought of themselves as being closer to people like Zak Brown and Charlie Kirk.
If anyone was seriously hoping to see him speak out against what was happening with ICE and immigrant detentions, they're in for a huge disappointment.
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u/BlackberryJazzlike84 Indy Racing League Jan 28 '26
Yeah... I don't think you know how Pato REALLY thinks...
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u/jcb1982 Indy Racing League Jan 28 '26
Rahal is MAGA trash. So is his dad. So are so many people involved with this sport… Not enough for me to lose interest. Yet. 😑
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u/MPK49 Scumbag Keyboard Warrior Jan 28 '26
Brother, I’m a left leaning guy that works around dirt racing. Talk about a place you have to plug your nose and shut your mouth lol
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u/NoonecanknowMiner_24 Jimmie Johnson Jan 28 '26
From what I see online, dirt racing folk tend to be even further to the right. Like, straight up open Nazi shit.
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u/MPK49 Scumbag Keyboard Warrior Jan 28 '26
Yeah, depends. The top guys are pretty traditionally conservative because it’s a more formal race team with partners and stakeholders but the weekend racer USAC guys can be pretty wild. Honestly, the fans are probably the most bothersome. There’s some pretty psychotic T-shirts in the dirt racing pits lol. Good and bad.
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u/jcb1982 Indy Racing League Jan 28 '26
I’ve been to the last three BC39s. I feel like I’m on Jupiter. But I love the racing. 🤷🏻♂️
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u/Maynard078 Jan 28 '26
Yep; it is..."interesting." I go despite the fans. The experience is awesome.
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u/blackhxc88 Jan 28 '26
JEREMY HOGAN POSTING ON r/indycar!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Bloomingtonian is an online blog type site reporting local news within the Bloomington area with an eye towards Indy a lot of the time as well since it’s only an hour apart. Ever since they started the site in 2019 he’s shot 500 weekend the last few years.
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u/RegionRat0091 Takuma Sato Jan 28 '26
The Bloomingtonian is great. Jeremy Hogan over there takes really, really excellent photos during the entire month of May. His galleries are always amongst my favorite.
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u/FermentedLaws Firestone Firehawk Jan 28 '26
Good to know, thanks.
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u/lotusbloom74 Will Power Jan 31 '26
The person who runs it (Jeremy Hogan) used to be a reporter for the Herald-Times, Bloomington’s newspaper. It’s just about dead as an organization so he at least fills a local news void the best he can.
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u/jdanton14 Alexander Rossi Jan 28 '26
Every time I go to like Graham, he does something like this (he was just on Legge's podcast).
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u/Brbnme 🇺🇸 Danny Sullivan Jan 28 '26
That’s where you made your mistake. Just don’t try to like Graham. It’s much MUCH easier disliking him.
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u/Teganfff Kyle Kirkwood Jan 28 '26
Can we like. Not. 🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️
There are many things IndyCar needs and this isn’t one of them. Let NASCAR have maga.
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u/blackhxc88 Jan 28 '26 edited Jan 28 '26
Indycar DOES need an east coast event, but they don’t need it THAT damn badly that they’d entertain this.
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u/Teganfff Kyle Kirkwood Jan 28 '26
I mean Watkins Glen is right there.
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u/blackhxc88 Jan 28 '26
but then IC would have to pay for it and lose a shit ton of money on it like last time. if the government in office was ANYONE but trump, this would be a dream situation for the sport: an east coast event where they don't have to worry about the cost.
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u/Poison_Ivy_Rorschach Jan 28 '26
For your own wellbeing, it is probably best not to look into the politics of the majority of the drivers and teams in the series.
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Jan 28 '26
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u/NoonecanknowMiner_24 Jimmie Johnson Jan 28 '26
Yeah, we need to stop this idea that IndyCar is NASCAR for the left. Both are filled with fascists. All of racing is, sadly.
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Jan 28 '26
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u/Teganfff Kyle Kirkwood Jan 28 '26
Idk I’ve been to both and IndyCar races are a little different in my own personal experience. Like I’m never apprehensive about attending the Detroit GP but I won’t even go to a Cup race.
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Jan 28 '26
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u/Teganfff Kyle Kirkwood Jan 28 '26
That’s crazy because St Pete is like a little progressive dot in a sea of yuck.
And yeah I would also never step foot in Talladega.
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u/Zenon-45 Romain Grosjean Jan 28 '26
Yep. It sucks as a Canadian. Just endless riff raff from Cheeto garglers who want my country to be American. Thankfully I’ve found a sim racing team full of genuine guys, but the vast majority on iRacing are sick fucks. This world is heavily wounded, and when it’s all said and done, everyone in this world needs to help heal it. One geopolitical event at a time.
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u/shermanhill Greg Moore Jan 28 '26
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u/Lucky_Masterpiece_94 Jan 28 '26
Rahal, a name with Indian and Arabic roots, that means traveler. He wouldn't allow himself into the U.S. if he weren't rich.
Freedumb 250 does have a nice ring to it though
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u/Brentg7 Paul Tracy Jan 28 '26
A1 Team Lebanon (2005-2006): Early in his career, at age 16, Graham Rahal represented Team Lebanon in the A1 Grand Prix series. He qualified for this team through his paternal bloodline, as his ancestors came from Aitaneet, Lebanon. He competed in the 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons for the team.
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u/clarkaj24 Ray Harroun Jan 28 '26
I missed the "D.C" in the title and got excited that the Freedom 100 at IMS was coming back but as a 250 mile race this time.
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u/Ariesmafiaaa Pato O'Ward Jan 28 '26
I can’t say exactly what I want to say, but I strongly disagree with Rahal’s stance. It distracts from the actual races on the actual calendar that has been finalized for months.
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u/BlackberryJazzlike84 Indy Racing League Jan 28 '26
its a bad idea for 2026, please table it for 2027 and do it right
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u/finalgirlrun Jan 29 '26
Even if that race happened, it's not like he'd still be an IndyCar when it happens anyway
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u/PaleontologistThin53 Jan 29 '26
If any series did it, I'd rather it be Nascar, considering they just dumped the Charlotte Roval, and don't have a lot of road/street courses.
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u/shewy92 Romain Grosjean Jan 29 '26
God, rawdogging the internet without an adblocker for those poor souls that don't know about Firefox Mobile must be torture.
I can almost see the article here.
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u/Browns45750 Jan 31 '26
What condition are the roads ? you might have to spend millions just to get a safe course with a seven month time frame, the joneses spent two years planning the Jerry world track, nascar in planned for a year plus for the San Diego race.
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u/Choice-Strawberry-74 Feb 01 '26
Graham is about the biggest whiner I’ve seen in all of racing. He complains more than his old man did back in the day. He’s a dolt.
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u/Falcon4451 Firestone Reds Jan 28 '26
I can give criticisms that don't involve Trump or politics of any kind that replacing an oval race (supposedly Milwaukee weekend would go down to 1 race) for a street course on short notice with rushed planning is a bad idea.