I’ve been coming to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since 1970, when I was 8 years old. I took a break for about 20 years, but this past weekend’s race was my 19th in a row. The Speedway has always been a special place for me, and I have many fond memories of my time spent here.
This year, I was invited to participate in a press conference about Shell’s collaboration with the NTT IndyCar Series. Starship 3.0, powered by a Cummins X15N natural gas engine, will be hauling IndyCar's Pennzoil Tech Inspection Trailer for the remainder of the 2025 season. This will really put the truck into freight hauling service with tight delivery schedules and high expectations on sustainability.
Normally, we don’t associate racing with sustainability since cars whip around the track at fast speeds, burning fuel. But, since there was already a connection to sustainability, I decided to do a little digging to see what else Penske Corp.—which owns the Indianapolis Motor Speedway—might be doing for the planet.
In fact, I learned that they are doing a lot.
Here’s a sampling of some of the things they are doing to make the Speedway and IndyCar racing more sustainable.
In 2023, Shell introduced a 100% renewable-sourced racing fuel that it says reduces greenhouse gases by at least 60%. The NTT IndyCar Series is the first North American racing series to use 100% renewable racing fuel. And it is making renewable diesel fuel available for the vehicle haulers that transport Indy race cars from one race to the next. The goal is to reduce emissions from race operations by 50% by 2030.
See also: Shell puts its Starship 3.0 to work for IndyCar
Since 2022, the track has used Freightliner eCascadias to transport Firestone tires used in practices and at the races. And the tires themselves are part of the sustainability story. The Firestone Firehawk tires are made of a drought-resistant, heat-tolerant, woody desert shrub native to the American Southwest and will be used on all four-street course races this year.
Penske is also tracking emissions using a platform that it says streamlines data collection. The data will be used to guide decisions and measure progress on sustainability goals. NACFE knows the value of good data, so I was pleased to learn of this effort.
This year, IndyCar also introduced a carbon-fiber and magnesium recycling program, which will recycle and repurpose damaged race vehicle parts and prevent additional contributions to landfills.
But I learned that the track’s sustainability efforts don’t stop with fueling and vehicles. IndyCar is working toward implementing recycling and composting at all its events by 2030. It plans to implement waste diversion programs where they do not currently exist.
The IndyCar sustainability site outlines all the efforts taking place as IndyCar is “racing toward zero.”
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway holds a special place in my heart, so I was pleased to learn that some of the steps it is taking are aligned with the sustainability work I have been doing for NACFE for the past 15 years. It’s kind of cool that my professional and personal lives have overlapped.
As I heard the well-known call to drivers to “start your engines,” I was especially thrilled now that I am aware of all the things being done to make IndyCar racing more sustainable.
