FOX Sports Rolls Out Its Most Ambitious Live Motorsports Production' Ever at IndyCar Freedom 250 GP in DC

A massive deployment of specialty cameras, graphics, and AR will showcase the nation's capital and offer viewers unique insights into the action

Although building racetracks in the center of major cities is nothing new for IndyCar, Sunday's Freedom 250 Grand Prix in Washington, DC, is - to put it mildly - an entirely different beast. For the first time in the city's history, cars will speed through the streets of the National Mall with the U.S. Capitol and other iconic landmarks providing a one-of-a-kind backdrop. It will be up to FOX Sports and IMS Productions to bring the event to viewers at home, and they will have more than 90 cameras and a wealth of technology at their disposal to do so.

I don't think you could have picked a more challenging municipality to do this in, says Mike Davies, EVP, technical and field operations, FOX Sports. But, at the same time, I don't know if you could have picked a more picturesque and iconic location than this. This is a truly special one, not only for FOX but for Penske, for IndyCar, and for the country.

In what the broadcaster is calling the most ambitious live motorsports production in FOX Sports history, Sunday's coverage will feature an onsite studio show on par with FOX's Big Noon Kickoff efforts, the debut of an Owl Cam 4D gimbal system mounted on a purpose-built bridge, a camera atop the Washington Monument, a 70-ft. camera crane in the middle of the National Mall, and aerial coverage providing views of the nation's capital, as well as all the bells and whistles that have become a signature of FOX's IndyCar coverage.

What Happens When Washington, DC, Is the Star of the Show

Although Penske Entertainment has designed dozens of tracks running through city streets, creating a course that crosses federal and municipal grounds presented a new level of difficulty. The course was the vision of Penske President Bud Denker and FOX Sports CEO/Executive Producer Eric Shanks; Penske VP, Operations, John Bailey and his team led the effort to make that vision a reality.

For the first time that I can remember, we TV folks definitely don't have the toughest job here, says Davies. It's the people designing and building the track, closing the streets, making the agreements, and dealing with endless logistics. The amount of work and regulatory gymnastics that had to be done just to get to this point - and the race hasn't even started - is pretty astounding. Bud, John, and their people have made the impossible possible.

The IndyCar Freedom 250 will be the first Indy street race in the nation's capital.The Freedom 250 Grand Prix circuit runs past the U.S. Capitol, down Pennsylvania Avenue, and along the National Mall. FOX Sports has scattered more than 90 cameras (for comparison, the network deployed roughly 70 cameras at the Indianapolis 500) throughout the monumental core and mounted them on IndyCars to provide views that sports events in the nation's capital have never delivered before.

Because the location is the star and the whole reason we're here, every single camera angle needed to be pored over and made perfect, says Davies. We are lucky enough to televise all the hard work that Penske has done; we just need to make sure that we put the cameras in the right place and cut the race in a way that doesn't obscure this amazing achievement. We're just the storytellers here, Penske is doing the heavy lifting.

Davies also credits FOX Corp.'s government-relations team - led by EVP Kristopher Jones, EVP Jamie Gillespie, VP Joanna Orlando, and VP Alex Dillie - for spearheading the logistical effort and clearing the various regulatory hurdles for FOX Sports.

Massive Specialty Arsenal: Owl Cam, Aerial Coverage, In-Car Systems

Headlining the camera complement is the new Owl Cam, a 4D gimbal with four-axis stabilization - enabling pan, tilt, roll, and vertical movement - mounted on a 60-ft. bridge spanning Pennsylvania Avenue near Sixth Street. The gyroscopic head travels the length of the bridge (built by PORTZAWA, with camera rigging by JITACam), providing an overhead view of cars as they pass beneath. The custom system affords fans a viewpoint down Pennsylvania Avenue, with the U.S. Capitol as a backdrop, as cars race past at their fastest speeds.

The starting line for the IndyCar Series Freedom 250 This camera was informed by what [was done] in the Formula 1 movie, as well as other racing movies and videogames, Davies explains. We were looking to have those quick pans that go underneath so you're able to follow the cars at full speed and get a very unconventional look.

We had to build the bridge here, he continues, but we're hoping this becomes something that we can do for other races where there are preexisting bridges. The beauty of Indy street racing is, it gives you the chance to create these totally new perspectives that people have never seen before.

The production also features a camera mounted on the top observation level of the Washington Monument - believed to be a first for a sports event - and a camera on a 70-ft. crane providing overhead crowd shots, as well as vantage points of the Capitol, the Monument, and other landmarks.

Coverage also originates from the air, which required clearance by the Secret Service, DHS, and FAA. FOX is being assisted by government resources for helicopter coverage, and additional aerial coverage provided by Beverly Hills Aerials will deliver overhead looks at the circuit against the Capitol, the National Mall, and the monumental core.

NEP Specialty Capture (formerly BSI) is supplying 15 in-car camera systems with three or four cameras apiece, a two-seater in-car system for VIP rides on track, an RF Steadicam, a Megalodon shallow-depth-of-field M VI rig, and two robotic pit cameras. FOX also has a variety of o

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