Grand Reopening of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum

Last week I spent three days at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum documenting grand reopening events and it’s absolutely GORGEOUS!

At first glance of the exterior, the facade of the building looks the same as when it was built in 1976. But when you step inside, you can see everything is sleek and modern. It’s looks like as much of an art museum as it does a racing museum.

The events I photographed were a VIP Donor reception on March 31; a preview for museum members on April 1; and the Grand Reopening and ribbon cutting on April 2.

For this post, I’ll blend the three events together to make a walking tour of the newly renovated museum.

Gasoline Alley

The exhibits begin with The Heritage Group Gasoline Alley Gallery. The bricks on the floor at the start are molded from the ones in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway itself.

There are 7 garage bays featuring cars, tools, and artifacts from the various eras of racing at the IMS, each across from display cases packed full of Speedway memorabilia.

Starting Line Experience

Entering the Starting Line Experience at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum, you cross a replica of the famous start/finish line of bricks.

Three cars sit behind it where a giant screen rises from the floor, up over visitors heads.

A media presentation plays that simulates the experience of the start of the Indianapolis 500, taking visitors from pre-dawn at the track to the green flag signaling the start of the race.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum Winners Gallery

The next spot you’ll see walking through is The John H Holliday Family Indianapolis 500 Winners Gallery.

The yellow #32 car in the middle is the 1911 Marmon Wasp, winner of the first Indianapolis 500.

Behind it sits the Borg-Warner Trophy, which features each winning drivers face sculpted in sterling sliver. It’s a MASSIVE trophy sitting at about 64-inches (163 cm) tall and weighing 153 pounds (69 kg).

You can see cars from every era of the Indianapolis 500 up close and from every angle. The cars along the wall are raised and sitting at an angle which is great for photos.

A new feature of the IMS Museum is the mezzanine, which gives you an overview of the winners gallery below while also providing space for interactive displays, trophies, drivers’ suits and other items.

The Penske Gallery

For me, the best spot to photograph was the Penske Gallery. The lighting design is amazing! It also has cool visual features like helmets from Indy 500-winning drivers and a display case of drivers’ suits from various eras.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum Penske Gallery features a collection of memorabilia from Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Roger Penske.

Team Penske has the most wins of any team in the history of the Indianapolis 500 with 20 victories.

There are 6 Penske race-winning cars and a display case of championship rings. And the wall of engines looks great, too!

The photo above is one of my favorites from an artistic perspective. Through the windows at the back of the gallery, I could see the famous pagoda of the IMS, so I photographed it with a trophy out of focus in the foreground, which is what gives the photo those blurred light spots.

The glass of the trophy case reflects a wall display with a driver standing on top of a car celebrating a win.

One of my favorite details is that some of the recent winners’ helmets were completely uncleaned after the race.

Not only can you see all the track dirt, but there is milk splashed across the visors from the traditional winner’s celebration!

Racing Simulators

There’s a whole room of interactive exhibits including a wall of racing simulators where guests can try to qualify for the Indy 500.

Lower Level Galleries

Originally, the lower level of the IMS Museum was closed to the public. But now, it’s open to the public and full of great artifacts and galleries.

There’s a rotating gallery currently is showing some of NASCAR’s history at the track, including the winning car from the first Brickyard 400 race in 1994, Jeff Gordon’s famous rainbow-decal Dupont car (above, right).

The Chip Ganassi Gallery features an exhibit titled Best of the Best: The Four-Time Winners. It features the only four drivers to win four times: A.J. Foyt, Al Unser Sr., Rick Mears, and Hello Castroneves.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum Opens to the Public

On April 2nd, 2025, race fans and dignitaries gathered in front of the IMS Museum to cut the ribbon and officially open doors to the public.

Above, members of the Indianapolis 500 Gordon Pipers perform.

Joe Hale (center, black coat, tan pants) leads the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Guests include (from the right of Hale) Roger Penske, Indiana Governor Mike Braun; Indiana First Lady Maureen Braun; IMS & IndyCar President Doug Boles; and Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson.

Related Posts

For more of my racing photography and stories, check out this post documenting a weekend of races at the IMS and this post of photos from the Indy 500 and a race week event.

You can get more info for your visit to the IMS Museum on their website here.