Motorsports

A support series race has been announced for IndyCar's Freedom 250 Grand Prix. The International Race of Champions (IROC) will hold a race on the street circuit in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 22, a day before the historic IndyCar race on the National Mall.

IndyCar legends and Indy 500 champions Tony Kanaan, Helio Castroneves and Dario Franchitti will compete in the race alongside NASCAR Cup Series champions Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, Bobby Labonte, Rusty Wallace and Bill Elliott. The drivers will pilot IROC Pontiac Firebirds that the series used from 1996 to 2006.

IROC was created in 1973 by IndyCar owner Roger Penske, former NASCAR senior vice president of operations Les Richter and Mike Phelps. The stock car series typically ran four races per year and served as the North American equivalent of an auto racing all-star game, with most of IndyCar's legends from the 1970s and 1980s competing.