Among the drivers assigned to entries are past BC39 winners Brady Bacon (2018) and Buddy Kofoid (2022). Read More>
Indianapolis Motor Speedway employees Luisa Lopez Macer (photo, left) and Alicia Mendez McCarthy (photo, right) share their pride and joy about their Hispanic roots in this piece saluting National Hispanic Heritage Month. Read More>
Nick Tandy and Mathieu Jaminet won the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race for Porsche Penske Motorsport on Sunday at IMS. Read More>
Pictures from Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks. View Photos>
Images from Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks. View Photos>
Photos from the first day of practice for the IMSA TireRack.com Battle of the Bricks at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. View Photos>
How do we go from a 2.5-mile oval to a 2.439-mile road course and back again? We're here to show you on this episode of Behind the Bricks! It includes 48 barriers, 576,000 pounds of concrete and about 15 hours of work for a full conversion. Watch Video>
Is it a tradition, or is it a fact of life at the Indianapolis 500? Every year when you show up for Race Day, pit lane is lined with stencils signifying each driver's pit box. On this episode of Behind the Bricks, Doug Boles investigates the origins of the stencil work and shows you how we bring this to life each and every May. Watch Video>
In this continued episode of Behind the Bricks, IMS President Doug Boles continues to give you a behind the scenes look at pre-race ceremonies for the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. You'll see how Jewel prepared for the National Anthem, how we time the flyover just perfectly, and which pre-race song made Boles get emotional minutes before the largest single-day sporting event on the planet. Watch Video>
May 22, 2019 | By Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Matt Iseman and Akbar Gbajabiamila, hosts of NBC’s three-time Emmy Award nominated obstacle course competition series “American Ninja Warrior,” will serve as co-grand marshals of the 103rd Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on Sunday, May 26 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Iseman and Gbajabiamila will be the first co-grand marshals in the race’s history. They will give the traditional command for drivers to report to their cars during the official pre-race ceremonies. “American Ninja Warrior” will premiere its 11th season on NBC May 29 (8-10 p.m. ET/PT). The high-octane series follows competitors as they tackle obstacle courses in city qualifying and city finals rounds around the country. This season, the show makes stops in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Oklahoma City, Baltimore, Cincinnati and Seattle before heading to the national finals in Las Vegas. Indianapolis has hosted “American Ninja Warrior” on two previous occasions and many NTT IndyCar series drivers have run the course over several seasons, including Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, Josef Newgarden, Conor Daly and most recently, Scott Dixon. “It’s awesome to get to take part in something that is an American sports institution,” Iseman said. “I’ve been to the Brickyard before, but never during the ‘500.’ I can’t wait to see it in its full glory.” “I am so honored and excited to be participating in this year’s Indy 500 as a co-grand marshal,” Gbajabiamila said. “After multiple seasons of seeing top race car drivers compete on the ‘American Ninja Warrior’ course, I can’t wait to see up close the athleticism and energy of this hallmark race.” “Matt and Akbar are so dynamic and fun on ‘American Ninja Warrior,’ so they’re ideally suited to serve as the first co-grand marshals of the Indy 500,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said. “Their historic role in ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’ is yet another testament of our strong, growing partnership with NBC and NBC Sports.” NBC will televise the 103rd Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge at 11 a.m. (ET) Sunday, May 26. Iseman graduated with honors from Princeton and earned his medical degree from Columbia College. However, during his residency at the University of Colorado he quit his job and moved to Hollywood to pursue stand-up comedy, and the rest is history. The Daytime Emmy Award winner has hosted “American Ninja Warrior” for 10 seasons and has hosted the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular for NBC and HISTORY’s “Evel Live,” which honored legendary daredevil Evel Knievel. He also won NBC’s “The New Celebrity Apprentice” hosted by Arnold Schwarzenegger. He frequently tours around the U.S. and Canada as a stand-up comic. Gbajabiamila, a Los Angeles native and one of seven children of Nigerian immigrants, is a former NFL defensive end and linebacker who played for the Raiders, Chargers and Dolphins over a five-year career. His inspiring new book, “Everyone Can Be a Ninja: Find Your Inner Warrior and Achieve Your Dreams” (Gallery Books) is out now. Gbajabiamila’s first name means “great” in Arabic and his last name, meaning “big man, come save me,” derives from his Nigerian paternal great-great grandfather. Gbajabiamila avidly volunteers his time to community service. He serves as a board member for both the Asomugha Foundation – aimed at creating better educational opportunities for impoverished communities – and the Michael J. Fox Foundation. Visit IMS.com to purchase tickets and for more information on the complete Month of May schedule.