IndyCar: Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix Preview

This weekend, the NTT INDYCAR Series moves to the streets of downtown Detroit, Michigan, for the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix.  The 1.645-mile, nine-turn temporary street course with plenty of non forgiving concrete walls will provide a much different scenery than the 2 1/2-mile oval in Indianapolis.

Bud Denker, Chairman and President of the event, spoke about the $4.5 million in renovations to the city and streets that took place before this race.  He compared this circuit to the temporary circuit in Long Beach.  Almost the same length as the track, Long Beach has seven manhole covers, while Detroit has 250.

The race is expected to generate $100,000 in revenue for the city.  Unique to this circuit is that several viewing areas, nearly half of the track, are available at no cost for fans to watch IndyCar, Indy NXT by Firestone, and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship cars race around the tight track.

Hometown Pride 

Nolan Allaer, driver of the No. 11 HMD Motorsports entry in the Indy NXT, was born and raised in Detroit.  His helmet is a tribute to the NFL team, the Detroit Lions.  His actual race car will feature all four of the local teams represented: the Lions, the Red Wings, the Tigers, and the Pistons.

Autoracing1 spoke with the American today, and we asked how he got the local teams’ support for his race car.

“It was basically just a chain events of working with each of the organizations. My Dad used to work for the Red Wings for the longest time.  I grew up as a Red Wings fan. I was given the honor of throwing out the first pitch for the Tigers not too long ago, and it wasn’t exactly a strike, but it was still a lot of fun. And then obviously, we had the promotion with the Lions last year.

“So it’s gonna all come together. Now I’m excited to do something for the major sports organizations in the area.”

Activites start on track tomorrow on the streets of downtown Detroit.

Lucille Dust reporting live from Detroit