Kentucky IndyCar race to sell out

UPDATE This rumor is downgraded to 'false' today. With 25 to 30% of the seats empty on race day it certainly didn't look anything like a sellout. Either that or a lot of people who paid money for a seat decided it was not worth watching. In fact they were probably free giveaways to people who could care less about racing.

08/07/08 Kentucky Speedway announces approximately 2,000 grandstand tickets remain for its Aug. 9 IndyCar Series “Meijer Indy 300 Presented by Pepsi and Edy’s" event.

Brisk sales have placed the venue on pace to entertain its first IndyCar Series capacity crowd. The official speedway grandstand capacity is 66,089 and the track has attracted an average crowd of 53,600 for its previous eight IndyCar Series events. The venue attracted its largest IndyCar Series crowd of 62,595 on Aug. 13, 2005. The figure marked the third time an IndyCar Series event eclipsed the 61,000 attendance plateau at the track. The 2007 series event brought 56,482 to the speedway.

The track set its all-time single-race attendance record at 73,195 earlier this season on June 14 for its eighth NASCAR Nationwide Series event. A capacity crowd Saturday also would mark the first time in speedway history that two race events sold out during the same season.

Kentucky Speedway Executive Vice President and General Manager Mark F. Cassis credits the sales surge to economic factors and an excellent weekend weather forecast.

“We’re ecstatic that IndyCar Series sales are exceeding expectations. Our team has done an excellent job and will continue to drive toward achieving our first IndyCar Series sellout through the next few days.

“Clearly, consumers are choosing to stay close to home this summer to utilize the great venues in our market. If the weather forecasts come to fruition, we’re in for a beautiful weekend in Sparta, Ky.

“We’ve enjoyed an excellent season to date and a sold out IndyCar Series event would provide a great closing note to our ninth season of operation," Cassis said.

The “Meijer Indy 300 Presented by Pepsi and Edy’s" field will feature defending event champion Tony Kanaan, two-time Indianapolis 500 winner and “Dancing with the Stars" champ Helio Castroneves, current series championship leader Scott Dixon, fan favorites Sarah Fisher and Danica Patrick as well as IndyCar Series legacies Marco Andretti and Graham Rahal.

Remaining tickets can be reserved online at www.kentuckyspeedway.com, by phone at 888-652-RACE (7223), through Meijer stores and by visiting Kentucky Speedway ticket offices located at 400 Buttermilk Pike, Suite 100, in Ft. Mitchell, Ky., next to the Montgomery Inn Restaurant or Sparta, Ky., Fan Center located off of Interstate 71 Exit 57 and Ky. Hwy. 35 North.