Photos: Inside D.C.'s loud, patriotic Freedom 250 Grand Prix
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Kyle Kirkwood zooms by. Photo: Roberto Schmidt/ AFP via Getty Images
Military flyovers buzzed above the National Mall. Race cars roared past the Capitol at 180 mph. President Trump waved the green flag.
Why it matters: The Freedom 250 Grand Prix brought a loud, patriotic spectacle to some of D.C.'s most hallowed spaces.
Zoom in: On the ground, the National Mall felt like a giant national picnic.
- Fans sprawled across the grass and packed shaded tents between games of cornhole and ladder golf.
- American flags were everywhere — on shirts, cowboy hats, shorts, jorts and overalls — alongside racing jerseys and heavy metal tees.
- Lines snaked through the fan zone. Some visitors told Axios they waited an hour and a half for chicken tenders.
Only in Washington: Inside the National Archives, a fan wearing Mexican driver Pato O'Ward's jersey inspected the first printing of the Declaration of Independence before the race.
State of play: Trump took an honorary lap around the track in the Beast.
- The crowd cheered when Trump and first lady Melania Trump appeared on the big screens.
- Seven flyovers thundered overhead, including a low-flying Air Force One — shaking the ground.
- Interior Secretary Doug Burgum gave the command to start the engines. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy waved the checkered flag.
Reality check: Amid all the spectacle, actually following the race could be surprisingly difficult.
- Away from the main fan zone and corporate suites, there was little to tell fans what was happening on the track.
- Walking along the course, spectators pressed their phones against the fencing to catch a flash of action and feel the visceral, motorized buzz — but there was no sound to narrate the event.
The bottom line: The race to mark America's 250th birthday got an American winner.
- Driver Kyle Kirkwood, of Florida, celebrated alongside a ceremonial bald eagle.
- He thanked Sam's Club and Honda.
