By: Spencer Neff

August 21, 2026

For the second consecutive week, The NTT INDYCAR SERIES heads to an inaugural event on a street course.

Earlier this year, the Freedom 250 was added to the schedule as part of the celebration for America’s Semiquincentennial.

Sunday’s race will be a 147-lap event around a 1.7-mile, seven-turn temporary circuit around the nation’s capital.

While the series returns to the DMV (D.C.-Maryland-Virginia area) for the first time since a street race in Baltimore from 2011-2013, this race is expected to be a one-off for the series.

Before this weekend’s on-track action commences, here’s a look at the major stories to watch.

Headlines

After passing Dale Coyne Racing’s Romain Grosjean with five laps to go, Marcus Ericsson won for the first time in 63 races at the inaugural Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham.

This weekend, the Kumla, Sweden native looks for his third win at a street course’s inaugural race in his career (Nashville 2021).

A win by one of he or teammates Will Power (who finished third at Markham) and Kyle Kirkwood can gibe Andretti Global a perfect win percentage in all three of this year’s inaugural street course events.

Kirkwood won at the inaugural event on the streets of Arlington, Texas on March 15. After a mid-race crash left him 21st, he sits 133 points back of championship leader Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing.

Palou can clinch his fourth consecutive series championship and fifth in six years if he ends the race on Sunday with a points lead of 162 or more.

While Palou marches on during a historic run, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Louis Foster heads into the weekend in a similar position to Kirkwood. After qualifying on the pole and leading the first 32 laps, Foster crashed while battling Ericsson for third place on Lap 43.

Foster heads into the final four races of his sophomore campaign looking for his first Top Six finish to go along with a pair of poles he’s earned during his NTT INDYCAR SERIES career with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C.  Fast Facts   Spotter Guide Pit Assignments

Race weekend: Saturday, Aug. 22-Sunday, Aug. 23 Track: Streets of Washington, D.C., a 1.7-mile, seven-turn temporary street course (counterclockwise) in Washington, D.C. Race distance: 147 laps / 250 miles Push-to-pass parameters: 150 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 15 seconds per activation. Hybrid energy deployment parameters: Unlimited activation with a maximum deployment of 265 kilojoules (kj) per lap Firestone tire allotment: Six sets primary, five sets alternate to be used during the event weekend. Teams fielding a rookie driver may use one additional set of primary tires. Teams must use one set of primary and two sets of alternate tires for at least two laps in the race.  X: @Freedom250GP, @INDYCAR, #INDYCAR Instagram: @Freedom250GP, @IndyCar, #INDYCAR Facebook: @Freedom250GP, @IndyCar, #INDYCAR TikTok: @IndyCar, #INDYCAR YouTube: @INDYCAR Event website: www.freedom250gp.com    INDYCAR website: www.indycar.com 2025 race winner: Inaugural event Qualifying record: Inaugural event FOX Sports telecasts: Practice 1, 9 a.m. ET Saturday, FS1 (live); Practice 2, 1 p.m. ET Saturday, FS2 (live); Qualifying, 5 p.m. ET Saturday, FS2 (live); Warmup Show/Final Practice, 9 a.m. ET Sunday, FS1; Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C. Pre-Race Show, 11:30 a.m. ET, FOX; Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C., 1 p.m. ET, Sunday, FOX (live). Will Buxton is the play-by-play announcer for FOX’s coverage of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. Georgia Henneberry, Kevin Lee and Jack Harvey are the pit reporters, with Jamie Little providing special reports. Chris Myers hosts FOX’s special, expanded pre-race coverage, alongside Helio Castroneves and Danica Patrick. Tom Rinaldi will offer special features and interviews. All sessions air on FOX One. INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the anchor alongside driver analyst Davey Hamilton. Jake Query is the turn announcer. Jonathan Grace and Alex Wollf are the pit reporters. The Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C. race (12:30 p.m. ET Sunday) can be heard live on network affiliates nationwide. The NTT INDYCAR SERIES race, NTT P1 Award Qualifying (5 p.m. ET Saturday) and all NTT INDYCAR SERIES practices also air live on SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation 218, indycar.com/leaderboard and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA. At-track schedule (All Times Local/Eastern Time): Saturday, Aug. 22 9:05-10:30 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice 1 (split group format), FS1 1:05-2:30 p.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice 2 (split group format), FS2 5-6:30 p.m. – NTT P1 Award qualifying (two rounds of knockout qualifying followed by Firestone Fast Six single-car pole showdown), FS2 Sunday, Aug. 23 9:15-9:45 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Warmup, FS1 11:30 a.m. – FOX Pre-Race Show on air 1:06 p.m. – “Drivers, start your engines” 1:13 p.m. – Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C. (147 laps/250 miles), FOX (Live)

Header Image By Chris Owens/INDYCAR, Fast Facts By INDYCAR