Latest news with #Indianapolis500
Indianapolis Star
2 hours ago
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
IndyCar working to implement partial scanning into tech inspection process
DETROIT — With the assistance of Chip Ganassi Racing, Andretti Global, A.J. Foyt Enterprises, Arrow McLaren and Dallara, IndyCar president Doug Boles said the series has begun to explore a partial scanning process for its tech inspection process that will "advance" IndyCar's ability to ensure all cars are competing on a level playing field. A week ago, in the wake of Team Penske's pair of Indianapolis 500 pre-Fast 12 tech inspection failures and the ensuing firestorm of penalties, firings and paddock-wide controversy, Boles was asked whether implementing scanning in IndyCar's pre- and post-session tech inspection process, something that both IMSA and NASCAR use, could offer an easy fix to ensure something like Penske's out-of-compliance attenuators that have existed for well over a year wouldn't get missed. At the time, the series president said that due to the fact the cars in use have been made over such a long period of time, it might prove ineffective until a new car came online in 2027 at the earliest. Boles said Friday that IndyCar in recent days made progress in at least a partial-scanning process the series hopes to validate over a couple more races the rest of this season. "(Chip Ganassi Racing, Andretti Global, A.J. Foyt Enterprises and Arrow McLaren) provided their Indianapolis 500 cars for us to use this week for scanning verification. This was extra work for their crews after a very busy weekend, and Iappreciate their support," Boles said. "We learned quite a bit in the exercise and are targeting at least two more events this year where we can validate the process and our learnings and continue to advance our technical inspection process in the future." Additionally, Boles noted that IndyCar had had "productive dialogue" with Andretti Global and Prema Racing in the wake of the post-race tech inspection penalties levied against both teams less than 24 hours after the completion of the 500. Andretti's Nos. 27 (Kyle Kirkwood) and 28 (Marcus Ericsson) cars that finished sixth and second were found to have modified the Dallara-supplied Energy Management System covers and cover-to-A-arm mounting points with unapproved spacers and parts. Prema's No. 90 car (Callum Ilott) was found post-race to have a left side front wing endplate that didn't reach minimum height. Prema noted immediately on Monday that it accepted the penalties, while Andretti Global triggered a review process this week before saying Friday that it accepted IndyCar's penalties "after careful analysis with IndyCar" and wouldn't pursue any further review or appeals. Along with the cars being shifted to the back of the finishing order for the 500 (31st through 33rd) and seeing their prize money and championship points from the event shift to correspond with their final finishing spots, each of the three penalized cars were fined $100,000, and team managers on the cars were suspended for the Detroit Grand Prix. Insider: Indy 500 broadcast hit 17-year high. What comes next is important for IndyCar's growth In his Friday statement, Boles thanked both teams for sharing in "transparent and open conversations regarding how the mistakes were made."
Associated Press
3 hours ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Lottery.com and Sports.com Power Triple Driver Lineup at Detroit Grand Prix
DETROIT, May 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Inc. (Nasdaq: LTRY, LTRYW)('the Company' or ' and the next-generation sports media platform, are proud to announce their continued sponsorship of three exceptionally talented drivers — Callum Ilott, Louis Foster and Sebastian Murray — as they take to the streets of Detroit this weekend in both the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and INDY NXT by Firestone. branded helmet worn by Callum Ilott Callum Ilott: Helmet Deal Extended Through 2025 Following his standout showing at the Indianapolis 500, Callum Ilott will now wear the logo front and center on his custom helmet for the remainder of the 2025 season. Driving car number 90 for the Prema racing team, Ilott represents lead entry in the top-tier INDYCAR SERIES. 'We're proud to extend our relationship with Callum,'said Matthew McGahan, Chairman and CEO of and 'I had the pleasure of spending time with Callum at the Indy 500 following his great drive, and I was really impressed not only by his ability to drive the wheels off a car, but also by his commercial understanding of how important partnerships like this are for the future. We look forward to working with Callum through this year and beyond.' branded helmet worn by Louis Foster. Louis Foster: Partnership Continues Post-Indy 500 After finishing 12th and earning Top Rookie Honors at the Indy 500 last weekend, Louis Foster continues his strong run in the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing No. 45 car. The branding will now appear on the chin of Foster's car, showcasing the Company's commitment to elite racing talent. 'Detroit's a tricky track and there have been some eventful races there in recent years,'Foster commented.'The main goal is to qualify well and stay out of trouble to keep our momentum going.' 'It's just, like, super bumpy,'he added. 'It's really short and narrow. For us to be on the limit and not end up in the wall, it just makes it very, very challenging. In some areas, it's very narrow. In others, you have different tarmacs in different corners, which makes it hard to feel the grip of the car.' 'Not only did Louis deliver one of the outstanding drives of the Indy 500 weekend,'said Marc Bircham, Director of 'but having spent time with him personally, I can say he's got a fantastic personality — every sponsor's dream. He has a great racing pedigree. He's the complete package.' Sebastian Murray: Rising Star Continues Indy NXT Journey In the INDY NXT by Firestone championship, Sebastian Murray will once again carry branding on the rear spoiler and nose wing endplates of his Andretti Cape Motorsports machine. As the youngest driver in the group, Murray's progression symbolizes the long-term vision for both and in supporting emerging motorsport talent and driver development. 'Sebastian represents the future,'said Marc Bircham. 'He's calm under pressure and has the talent to rise quickly through the ranks. We're excited to watch his journey unfold and to be a part of it.' 'Marc and I also had the pleasure of spending time with Sebastian over the Indy 500 weekend,'said Matthew McGahan, 'and he's not only a charming young man but an exceptional natural driver. There's no doubt he's one to watch.' Detroit Street Circuit: The Challenge Ahead Detroit's circuit is one of the most demanding in motorsport, with tight corners, changing surfaces, and limited overtaking zones that test both driver skill and race strategy. This marks the fourth major event in May, closing out the busiest month of the INDYCAR calendar. Broadcast Schedule (ET): Triple Sponsorship, One Global Vision This three-driver lineup exemplifies and investment in world-class motorsport to raise global brand awareness and fan engagement. From helmet design to car decals, the brands are front and center on one of the most watched racing series in the world. 'This is more than sponsorship — it's the start of a movement,'said Matthew McGahan. 'We're building long-term equity in the sports and entertainment verticals, and these partnerships are already delivering global brand recognition along with signaling to our shareholders that we are making strides to increase the value of our premium brand assets.' About The Inc. (NASDAQ: LTRY, LTRYW) family of brands — including Tinbu and WinTogether, comprise a unified ecosystem that integrates gaming, entertainment, and sports. Follow the Company on X, Instagram and Facebook. For more information, please visit or or contact our media relations team. Important Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains statements that constitute 'forward-looking statements' within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of present or historical fact included in this press release, regarding the Company's strategy, future operations, prospects, plans and objectives of management, are forward-looking statements. When used in this Form 8-K, the words 'could,' 'should,' 'will,' 'may,' 'believe,' 'anticipate,' 'intend,' 'estimate,' 'expect,' 'project,' 'initiatives,' 'continue,' the negative of such terms and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and assumptions about future events and are based on currently available information as to the outcome and timing of future events. The forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release or as of the date they are made. The Company cautions you that these forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the control of the Company. In addition, the Company cautions you that the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are subject to risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to, any future findings from ongoing review of the Company's internal accounting controls, additional examination of the preliminary conclusions of such review, the Company's ability to secure additional capital resources, the Company's ability to continue as a going concern, the Company's ability to respond in a timely and satisfactory matter to the inquiries by Nasdaq, the Company's ability to regain compliance with the Bid Price Requirement, the Company's ability to regain compliance with Nasdaq Listing Rules, the Company's ability to become current with its SEC reports, and those additional risks and uncertainties discussed under the heading 'Risk Factors' in the Form 10-K/A filed by the Company with the SEC on April 22, 2025, and the other documents filed, or to be filed, by the Company with the SEC. Additional information concerning these and other factors that may impact the operations and projections discussed herein can be found in the reports that the Company has filed and will file from time to time with the SEC. These SEC filings are available publicly on the SEC's website at Should one or more of the risks or uncertainties described in this press release materialize or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results and plans could differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Except as otherwise required by applicable law, the Company disclaims any duty to update any forward-looking statements, all of which are expressly qualified by the statements in this section, to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release. Photos accompanying this announcement are available at: This press release was published by a CLEAR® Verified individual. For more information, please visit or or contact our media relations team at [email protected].
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Today in History: May 30, Trump found guilty on 34 felony charges
Today is Friday, May 30, the 150th day of 2025. There are 215 days left in the year. Today in history: On May 30, 2024, Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex. Also on this date: In 1431, Joan of Arc, condemned as a heretic, was burned at the stake in Rouen, France. In 1911, the first Indianapolis 500 auto race was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway; driver Ray Harroun won the race with an average speed of 74.6 mph (120 kph). In 1922, the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., was dedicated in a ceremony attended by President Warren G. Harding, Chief Justice William Howard Taft and Abraham Lincoln's surviving son, 78-year-old Robert Todd Lincoln. In 1935, Babe Ruth played in his last major league baseball game for the Boston Braves, leaving after the first inning of the first game of a double-header against the Philadelphia Phillies. (Ruth announced his retirement three days later.) In 1937, ten people were killed when police fired on steelworkers demonstrating near the Republic Steel plant in South Chicago. In 1971, the American space probe Mariner 9 blasted off from Cape Kennedy on a journey to Mars. In 1972, three members of the militant group known as the Japanese Red Army opened fire at Tel Aviv's Lod Airport, now Ben-Gurion Airport, killing 26 people. Two attackers died; the third was captured. In 2002, a solemn, wordless ceremony marked the end of the cleanup at ground zero in New York, 8 1/2 months after the terror attacks of September 11th brought down the World Trade Center's twin towers. In 2012, former Liberian President Charles Taylor was sentenced to 50 years in prison after being convicted on 11 counts of aiding and abetting war crimes and crimes against humanity at a trial at The Hague. In 2023, disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes was taken into custody at the Texas prison where she was sentenced to spend the next 11 years for overseeing an infamous blood-testing hoax. Today's Birthdays: Actor Keir Dullea is 89. Actor Stephen Tobolowsky is 74. Actor Colm Meaney is 72. Country singer Wynonna Judd is 61. Musician Tom Morello (Audioslave; Rage Against The Machine) is 61. Filmmaker Antoine Fuqua is 60. Actor-singer Idina Menzel is 54. Rapper-singer Cee Lo Green is 50.
Chicago Tribune
7 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Today in History: 10 killed in Memorial Day Massacre of 1937
Today is Friday, May 30, the 150th day of 2025. There are 215 days left in the year. Today in history: On May 30, 1937, ten people were killed when police fired on steelworkers demonstrating near the Republic Steel plant in South Chicago. CLICK HERE to see the full Chicago Tribune front page from May 31, 1937 The history of the Southeast Side is instructive as students, others fight against General IronAlso on this date: In 1431, Joan of Arc, condemned as a heretic, was burned at the stake in Rouen, France. In 1911, the first Indianapolis 500 auto race was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway; driver Ray Harroun won the race with an average speed of 74.6 mph. In 1922, the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., was dedicated in a ceremony attended by President Warren G. Harding, Chief Justice William Howard Taft and Abraham Lincoln's surviving son, 78-year-old Robert Todd Lincoln. In 1935, Babe Ruth played in his last major league baseball game for the Boston Braves, leaving after the first inning of the first game of a double-header against the Philadelphia Phillies. (Ruth announced his retirement three days later.) In 1971, the American space probe Mariner 9 blasted off from Cape Kennedy on a journey to Mars. In 1972, three members of the militant group known as the Japanese Red Army opened fire at Tel Aviv's Lod Airport, now Ben-Gurion Airport, killing 26 people. Two attackers died; the third was captured. In 2002, a solemn, wordless ceremony marked the end of the cleanup at ground zero in New York, 8 1/2 months after the terror attacks of September 11th brought down the World Trade Center's twin towers. In 2012, former Liberian President Charles Taylor was sentenced to 50 years in prison after being convicted on 11 counts of aiding and abetting war crimes and crimes against humanity at a trial at The Hague. In 2023, disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes was taken into custody at the Texas prison where she was sentenced to spend the next 11 years for overseeing an infamous blood-testing hoax. In 2024, Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex. Today's Birthdays: Actor Keir Dullea is 89. Actor Stephen Tobolowsky is 74. Actor Colm Meaney is 72. Country singer Wynonna Judd is 61. Musician Tom Morello (Audioslave; Rage Against The Machine) is 61. Filmmaker Antoine Fuqua is 60. Actor-singer Idina Menzel is 54. Rapper-singer Cee Lo Green is 50.
Indianapolis Star
8 hours ago
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
Fox's Indy 500 broadcast hit 17-year high. What happens next is important for IndyCar's growth
INDIANAPOLIS — IndyCar's TV ratings smash success for this year's Indianapolis 500, the first time the average audience for a broadcast of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing has topped 7 million since 2008, is premier evidence that a sport that has in many ways been on slow but consistently downward-trending spiral since "the split" 30 years ago can once again rise to national prominence. But the Month of May showed, too, that bold, radical change — not the sport's historically business-savvy, penny-pinching mindset that has helped keep it afloat or riding minuscule single-digit gains of late — are needed to get it there. Michael Andretti, publicly and privately scolded for his bold, on-the-record quotes 15 months ago that the sport needed a $100 million influx in funding to tackle IndyCar's myriad issues, didn't then, and doesn't now, seem so far off. Because after my rewatch this week, Fox's broadcast of the Indy 500 was most successful in its moments where it felt the most different to editions in recent years: the pre-race show. It felt at times as if I had time-traveled to a cool, fall Saturday morning set of ESPN's "College Gameday," featuring multiple intricate sets, a deep cast of knowledgeable on-air talent with diverse backgrounds and specialties, a raucous, sometimes seemingly unending crowd flanking them and sprinkles of both live, in-person interviews and pre-taped feature pieces that ran the gamut of emotions. It was everything Fox's Super Bowl pre-game show was earlier this year, with the benefit of being a reasonable length that someone actually might want to sit all the way through and absorb. It was subtly educational — from features on fans and the blue envelopes to drones flying all over and showing just how stinkin' big the place is — without dumbing down the content. It spoke to and highlighted, either in short live hits, segments of thematic features or full-blown profile segments — well over a dozen drivers, some of them at enough length that had you not known them at all before, you might have reason to root for them now. Was it all a slam dunk? With the over-the-top spots with Gronk, the multiple messed up row-by-row factoids and the unnecessary AI "Michael Strahan the racecar driver" segment, certainly not. But for those not at the track that morning, it made you feel as if you were right in Pagoda Plaza, told stories that kept a variety of levels of race fans engaged and helped build both the tension and the pageantry that showed full and well why the 500 is regarded as the biggest race in the world. It properly set the stage in a way that made someone like me who's so deeply ingrained in the sport that this show was for a sport that for years now has only fielded $20 million to $25 million annually in rights fees and one that through five previous races in 2025 had only two draw average audiences on network TV above 715,000. And with a pre-race audience that neared 3 million, it helped build a base that saw this year's 500 finish with an audience of 7.087 million — one that topped the corresponding year's Daytona 500 (albeit one that featured a rain delay of more than three hours) for just the second time in 30 years and drew the largest U.S. motorsports audience in more than two years. That audience figure, too, represented 40% growth year over year, the type of leap in audience the 500 has seen only two other times in more than 20 years: 2005, for Danica Patrick's rookie race (60% increase, 6.08 million to 9.74 million); and 2021, for the post-COVID-19 race (53% increase, 3.67 million to 5.63 million). And for a race that hadn't sniffed an average of audience above 6 million since 2016 and that saw just an 11% year-over-year audience increase from ABC (2018) to NBC (2019) that delivered a much less-radical broadcast overhaul, Fox's all-out blitz, from its promotional plan that began last fall to its out-of-the-park pre-race show can be the only thing that would reasonably explain such a leap. More 500s like this in the future will undoubtedly represent notable, impactful paydays for IndyCar teams from a sponsorship standpoint. Indy 500 partner programs that might've required budgets from $1.2 million to $1.5 million, or even $2 million for teams not overly looking to run an extra car, could transform over the next few months as budgets are prepared for 2026 and, for the first time in several years, teams might be able to seek higher sponsorship dollars for reasons other than covering steeply rising costs. But until the rest of the calendar and the sport can transform in the ways in which IndyCar seemingly did for more than six hours Sunday, it will continue to fall short of its potential. Outside a home run of a season opener that drew more than 1.4 million viewers across Fox's race broadcast, IndyCar had yet to reach even 920,000 (Barber was second highest at 914,000) until the 500 in a season that, heading into Sunday, was riding a 15% year-over-year boost almost entirely attributed to that big-hit season opener and a Long Beach broadcast that only barely topped a dismal 550,000, but came in the wake of one a year prior broadcast on cable (NBC's USA Network) that only marginally even topped 300,000 and that in 2023 surpassed 1 million on NBC. In short, its gains from one truly notable win, along with another couple marginal wins and notable losses had painted an uncertain picture as to where exactly the sport's momentum was trending. Insider: He played hooky to attend the Indy 500, owns a bar outside IMS and leads Fox's coverage At-race attendance for several years now has been trending upwards at several of the sport's biggest races — indicative of both a growing diehard fanbase as well as more casual fans willing to give IndyCar a shot when it rolls through town — but with average network TV audiences largely stagnant over the course of the NBC-only era, the latter suggested the sport wasn't doing enough to create buzz and give an increasing number of fans a reason to make the sport a weekly priority. If IndyCar was the only thing on, or it was the opener, or a finale, or a race with a great lead-in or the first at a new track, you could count on solid returns. But up against stiff competition and without a pressing reason to tune in — or a marketing campaign that ever really broke into mainstream culture, until this year — there continued to be far too many races that suggested in those instances it was for little more than its aging diehard fanbase. Not that IndyCar need expect any other race to even sniff 500 numbers, but other races making, and holding onto, year over year, similar annual increases is where this sport has an opportunity turn the corner and be one where teams aren't merely grinding to break even. And what does that look like? Fox's game plan of practice and qualifying on cable TV, along with incorporating IndyCar into the core of its news, sports and entertainment programming is a notable start, but it's more than that. Each race needs to feel like an event, like something special. You can't have a 17-race schedule where half of them feel as if they're a Wednesday stop on a concert tour. 'Come on man': Indianapolis 500 viewers aren't happy with the amount of commercials on Fox If you ask me purely as a viewer of both, Formula races continue to pretty consistently out rate IndyCar broadcasts because each and every one feels big and important, from the length of pre-race shows to the grid walks, the storytelling and the extensive post-race broadcast that makes the achievement of the winning team and driver and their podium-mates feel grand. And in between, the broadcasts are proactively finding the battles on track and creating storylines. Not only is the timing and scoring technology a storytelling tool in and of itself, but its … reliable. And elsewhere in The CW's fresh take on the NASCAR Xfinity series and Amazon Prime's debut with the Cup series' Coca-Cola 600, the broadcasts have felt fresh, sleek and grandiose. In IndyCar, this looks like far more tentpole events on the calendar, beyond the addition of next year's Grand Prix of Arlington. It means Mexico City and Denver and perhaps a rethink of IndyCar's stops in central California or the Pacific Northwest. It means a race at a major venue in the northeast. It means more ovals that come with even a quarter of the importance that Sunday's 500 came packaged with. It means nighttime oval races in primetime, like the one we're getting in two weeks at World Wide Technology Raceway, but one that notably wasn't scheduled until it became clear IndyCar was struggling mightily whenever it faced NASCAR competition. It means a wholesale new car completely redesigned with the future in mind, ideally one not only capable of holding onto Honda but attracting a third manufacturer that has visions of longevity in the sport and a history of motorsports success, even if the price tag is high. Together, all of that contributes to a sport that's far more exciting than the current product on track and one that feels important and grandiose off of it, which leads to a growing fan base that triggers increased sponsorship interest and eventually a flywheel that feeds itself. Because even Sunday, as many people clearly felt the Indy 500 was worth tuning into, represented a largely uneventful back half of a race with miniscule amounts of passing up at the front — most notably a lead pack of drivers with the fastest cars in the field underneath them who couldn't pass the 14th- and 15th-place challengers that had qualified 18th and 22nd and survived a race that featured exceedingly high levels of attrition. And so 8.4 million fans, both diehard and exceedingly casual, were drawn to a down-to-the-wire 500 finish that featured as little drama as the race has seen in years, in many ways because of a car that has received piecemeal updates for 14 years. How many of them were so compelled by what they saw that they'll make Sunday's Detroit Grand Prix appointment viewing? Perhaps a better question: How many times, if ever, was the next race on the calendar plugged? I'll be happy to be told I somehow missed several instances, but none immediately come to mind. After all, how successful, ultimately, is a restaurant's highly publicized grand-opening that featured commercials and fliers and social media ads and a live band out front to coronate the occasion, if the food alone isn't good enough to pack the place for weeks to come? Without question, this Indianapolis 500 lived in another stratosphere than it's occupied, outside his 100th running, than any in recent memory. From sold-out trendy, high-quality pieces of merch from mainstream brands to a Carb Day crowd that may never have been so big to the grandstand sellout and the historically high TV numbers, the 109th Indy 500 should be seen as nothing other than evidence IndyCar can go to battle with its rivals. And though it took an ill-timed February storm to do it, the fact more folks made the IndyCar's 500 appointment TV than NASCAR's is something that can't and shouldn't be ignored.
