Thread: Ticket sales cut off as 100th Indianapolis 500 is total sellout

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indianapolis Motor Speedway announced Wednesday morning that it has cut off sales of general admission tickets to the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500, making the event a total sellout.


IMS revealed May 6 that all reserved seats for the race had been sold for the first time in at least 20 years. Stronger-than-anticipated demand for general admission tickets for the spectator mounds that line the infield of the 2.5-mile oval prompted the track to end sales four days before Sunday's race (noon ET, ABC/WatchESPN).
With the event declared a total sellout, the local blackout on the live broadcast of the race will be lifted for the first time since ABC began live coverage in 1965.
"There's no event in the world like the Indy 500, and this sellout is a testament to the enduring legacy of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, the thrilling racing of the Verizon IndyCar Series and the bright future for both," said Mark Miles, CEO of track owner Hulman & Company.


"This unexpected development surprised us."


The crowd for Sunday's race is expected to be more than 300,000 people. Miles said the number of people expected to attend this year's race is "70,000 to 100,000 more than last year."


IMS, which is privately owned and does not release attendance figures or the venue's seating capacity, has been vague about when the race last sold out, saying only that it was "more than two decades ago."


It is believed that the facility has around 225,000 permanent seats. The Indianapolis 500 routinely sold out for decades, but the Indy car racing "split" of 1996 that broke the sport into two series for more than a decade caused the race's attendance to decline.


Attendance has been on the rebound since the unification of the IndyCar Series in 2008, and the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 has provided a much bigger spike this year than officials predicted.


"It's fair to say a lot of people thought we might sell out the reserved seats," Miles said. "But I don't think people anticipated getting to the place where we would have to say we really should not sell any more infield general admission tickets.
"We need to make sure those people have a great experience and make sure they want to come back."


100th Indianapolis 500 is total sellout

https://www.indianapolismotorspeedwa...info/live-grid

At least it won't clash with Monaco!

^ It should be a compliment to it. That and the Coca Cola 600 make for one bang up blockbuster motorsport weekend!

couldn't get more diverse forms of motor racing than Monaco and Indy 500

^ Exactly true! Throw in the NASCAR Coca Cola 600 that takes place after the Indy race and you have one mixed crazy marathon of motorsport.

^ I'm more a Knoxville Nationals man myself.

Originally Posted by VocalNeal

^ I'm more a Knoxville Nationals man myself.

WOW! I am blown away! I expected to get hammered on this thread.

Knoxville Raceway - Sprint Car Capital of the World!

Fun stuff this weekend enit. As a yank I had to google that one..

Man I grew up in a racing family we all turned wrenches on the sprint car. Love the dirt tracks. Working class heros mate.

Blood sweat and oil...

And I see a rookie was the winner of the driving in circles race.

Shows how easy it is eh?

Bit more exciting than F1 today in reality.

Sunday's race featured 54 lead changes, second most in the event's history, 13 different leaders and 850 passes throughout the field. It had eclipsed 500 passes just past the halfway point, boosted to that number by some of the most heart-shocking restart scrums the old Brickyard has ever seen.

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Shows how easy it is eh?

Dumbass. Only won by two other rookies.

Originally Posted by aging one

Bit more exciting than F1 today in reality.

Way more entertaining than that snooze fest but arry is hot for Hamiltons cock.

Yeah, driving in circles. Sooooooo hard.

The best motor sport entertainment is,, World Super Bike and Moto GP,, nothing compare's, you should watch it some time.

Originally Posted by Mozzbie47

The best motor sport entertainment is,, World Super Bike and Moto GP,, nothing compare's, you should watch it some time.

There was a belter over the weekend.