ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) — The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg came to a close this afternoon with fans having a jam-packed day full of racing at this season-opening event for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.
“It’s more real, more exciting. You can feel the cars come by. You can’t get that from just watching it on TV,” Scott Wetterling said.
Fans like Wetterling took in the sights and sounds of the final day of the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Pete.
“It’s the sound, the smell, the rubber, the fuel burning,” Gary Armstrong explained. “Especially at the start, coming off a yellow flag when they’re all ganged up, and they’re all gunning for that same corner.”
“It’s amazing,” he concluded.
The event is held on a 1.8-mile, 14-turn temporary street course that runs through Downtown St. Pete.
A unique track that takes plenty of planning to build.
“We start planning tomorrow for next year’s race,” Green Savoree Racing Promotions President Kevin Savoree said. “As the calendar progresses, those meetings get more and more frequent and more and more intense.”
Savoree said that planning pays off not only for the event but also for the local economy.
“Last year, they commissioned an economic impact study — $61 million of economic impact for this city,” he said.
This year, fans celebrated a special anniversary for the three-day event. 2024 marked two decades of the Firestone Grand Prix in St. Petersburg.
“20 years, what does that mean to you?” News Channel 8 reporter Nicole Rogers asked.
“It’s such an accomplishment,” Savoree said. “I always tell everyone this city and what we do is the greatest example of a private, public partnership.”
“St. Pete, over 20 years, is just such a different place now,” he continued. “It’s just busy every day, so we just work so hard with the city to stay out of everyone’s way.”
