IndyCar News: Detroit Grand Prix signs new contract through 2028

The Detroit Grand Prix is coming back for 2026 and beyond, according to Christian Romo of the Detroit Free Press.

As confirmed by Penske vice president of community and government affairs Letty Azar, the Grand Prix has signed a three-year contract with the Detroit City Council, with an option for a fourth year. That should keep the Grand Prix on the streets of Downtown Detroit through 2028 (and possibly 2029) on the current deal.

In 2021, Detroit GP officials agreed to a contract with the Detroit City Council to hold the GP in Downtown Detroit for three years starting in 2023.

It marked a return to a downtown street course that the Grand Prix started with in 1982 before moving to Belle Isle for stops and starts between 1989 and 2022.

One potential issue surrounding the future of the race is the uncertain fate of the Renaissance Center, which currently has plans to have two of its buildings demolished. Grand Prix president Bud Denker says the RenCen’s potential deconstruction creates a situation that is still “TBD” for the Grand Prix. Detroit Free Press.

The Grand Prix draws more than 100,000 people each year to downtown Detroit, according to the organizers.