INDIANAPOLIS – Less than 10,000 tickets remain for Sunday’s 106th Indianapolis 500, according to Indianapolis Motor Speedway President Doug Boles.
He also announced that all front-straight, south chute and permanent grandstand seats in turns 1, 2, 3 and 4 have been sold.
Also, Pit Road Terrace and Tower Terrace seats are completely sold out.
The remaining tickets left for sale are the north chute grandstands between turns 3 and 4 with 6,000 tickets left. The others that have tickets left are Southwest and Northeast Vista with between 500 to 1,000 tickets left in those grandstands.
“If we don’t sell-out every single reserved seat between now and Sunday, it’s going to be pretty darn close,” Boles said. “This will be the largest attended Indianapolis 500 except the 100th Indianapolis 500 in 2016 in the last 20 years. For those of you who have been around for a number of years, it will feel like the Indianapolis 500 that you expect. It is going to be extremely crowded.”
Boles said the actual capacity of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is 233,000.
He expects to sell another 5,000 tickets before Sunday, which means there will be 3,000 to 5,000 seats leftover — all in the north and northwest vista.
Also, all reserved parking for the race has been sold-out in both the infield and the outside lots.
The rest of the parking will come in and around the town of Speedway, Indiana, which borders but does not include the actual Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Shuttles will bring between 5,000 to 7,000 fans from downtown Indianapolis and the Indianapolis Weir Cook International Airport to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Boles stressed for fans to come early, be prepared to know where to park and to remain patient.
“Patience is going to be a very big piece of this because no matter how much we plan and before you go through all of these zones, it is bringing what will be the second largest city in the state of Indiana through the gates at the same time,” Boles said. “When you get to the gates, expect to have all of your coolers and backpacks inspected.”
Boles also urged fans not to arrive in jackets because it will hold up the process of getting fans in and out of the gates while being searched and inspected.
Additional pre-race entertainment and videos are being planned for the early arriving spectators leading into the official pre-race show.
“The music talent we have this year is outstanding and we have a double flyover from the Air Force Thunderbirds, which is pretty impressive,” Boles said. “And you don’t want to miss those special 90 seconds, ‘Back Home Again in Indiana.’
“That’s perhaps my favorite 90 seconds of the year.”
Boles said there will be 21 pedestrian gates with 220 lanes, which will be updated on social media with real-time information on the length of the lines.
“If you do not have a parking pass already issued by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, please do not go to Gate 2 or Gate 10, because we will just move you along because we are sold out for parking,” Boles said. “The same goes for Carb Day. We are just really excited to have everybody back home again at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indianapolis 500 that began in 1911.”
“Ticket sales for the Indianapolis 500 continue to ride a surge of momentum as fans realize they can’t miss the full return of ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,’” Boles continued. “With one of the largest crowds in history, we know Race Day will be fantastic.
“With the expected crowd, it’s important for fans to arrive as early as possible with plenty of time to park and patiently make their way in through the gates. The earlier you can arrive, the better. There’s no shortage of things to do at the track, even several hours before the green flag. I hope everyone will treat this like the 100th Running and come out in the early morning hours ready for an epic day.”
Race fans coming “Back Home Again” are encouraged to “Plan Ahead” through IMS.com/PlanAhead, an interactive web page that serves as a home base for fans headed to the track this weekend.
The “Plan Ahead” page features detailed information about the entire fan experience at IMS, including directions, parking, schedule, gate regulations, digital ticket guide, ADA accessibility and much more.
Race fans are encouraged to download the IMS App and use brand new technology from NTT IndyCar Series title sponsor NTT and its Smart Solutions platform, which will update the IMS App every 30 seconds with wait time information at each gate to allow race fans smoother entry into the facility.
IMS is offering a whole morning of thrills and entertainment for ticket holders looking to beat traffic and avoid long lines by coming to the track early.
Gates open at 6:00 a.m. following the traditional infield blast.
Also, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is now cashless at all concession and souvenir stands, so plan on bringing another form of payment such as a credit or debit card.
There will also be more than 1,100 local police patrolling the grounds, including bomb sniffing dogs that can detect firearms. Anyone with a firearm will not be allowed entry into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
“We’re making it clear the 1,100 police officers are here to protect the 250,000 fans that are here,” Boles said.