President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump took an honorary lap around the track ahead of the IndyCar Freedom 250 Grand Prix in Washington, D.C., on Sunday.
The president and the first lady were in the Beast as the motorcade was making its way around the track before the green flag dropped. IndyCar fans greeted the president’s motorcade with cheers as he took the lap.
The president was expected to wave the green flag to get the race started.
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He was seen talking to some of the drivers before he got back into the Beast.
FOX Sports’ Jamie Little asked the president what he was looking forward to the most as he took in his first IndyCar race.
“Just that everyone’s safe and they have a good time,” Trump said. “I want everyone to be safe. I want everyone to have a good time.”
He also said he told the drivers, “Good luck, have fun.”
It’s been a full weekend of racing as IndyCar and the International Race of Champions (IROC) series came into town. The events were held in D.C. as part of the celebration of America’s 250th anniversary.
The race is set to begin at 1 p.m. ET. The 1.7-mile track will have drivers zooming near the U.S. Capitol and around the National Mall for 147 laps in what is expected to be one of the best spectacles in racing.
Álex Palou was on the pole for the race. He was leading the IndyCar series standings after putting up six wins during the 2026 season. He’s 133 points ahead of Kyle Kirkwood and 137 points ahead of David Malukas.
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Palou was one of the drivers who attended the unveiling of the track course earlier this year. He spoke about what it was like to be in the Oval Office and to meet the president.
“Incredible,” he said. “Honestly, that’s the only word that comes to mind. I remember the visit we did a month ago when I got invited to the White House. I was like, ‘Really? For real?’ I was going to be able to go inside and just see how the Oval Office is, and just knowing the history that it has.
“I know I’m not from this country, but this country has given me so much. Just the opportunity to be here as an IndyCar driver, a winner, a champion, and to create a family and build a family here in the U.S. It’s been incredible.”
Palou even had a moment where he got sprayed with the president’s cologne.
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“Just being able to be with the President and his team, being at the Oval Office. We got sprayed with Presidential cologne, which was pretty funny,” he said. “Just an incredible experience. An experience I’ll be able to tell not only my kids, but hopefully one day my grandkids and stuff.”
Fox News’ Scott Thompson contributed to this report.
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