The Big Machine Music Grand Prix Presented by Gainbridge® shattered records from the prior three years. From September 13 – 15, the event welcomed over 160,000 fans and cemented its place as the most successful event in the race’s history.
The NTT INDYCAR 2024 SERIES CHAMPION was crowned on September 15 at the Nashville Superspeedway, as fans saw Alex Palou (Chip Ganassi Racing) win his third season championship with 525 points. Colton Herta (Andretti Global/Curb-Agajanian) claimed victory in his hometown, coming in first place in the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix.
“The Big Machine Music City Grand Prix team and I are thrilled to see the enthusiasm for INDYCAR in Middle Tennessee! We had fans in attendance from all 50 states, and they showed up in a big way to celebrate with us, delivering the biggest Big Machine Music City Grand Prix weekend to date,” exclaims Proprietor and CEO of the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix, Scott Borchetta.
With fans standing shoulder to shoulder from 5th to 3rd Avenue on Friday night, Big Machine Label Group artists including Brian Kelley, Mae Estes, Chase McDaniel, Noah Hicks, Mackenzie Carpenter and Shaylen gave the crowd an electric night of high-energy performances before Brantley Gilbert took the stage for the World’s Largest Album Release Party for his new album Tattoos, rocking everybody “off the rails.” Brantley’s set also included surprise appearances from Colt Ford (marking his first performance since suffering from a life-threatening heart attack earlier this year), his “Over When We’re Sober” duet partner Ashley Cooke, Gary LeVox, Demun Jones and Struggle Jennings.
On race day, patrons experienced drivers on the track, 3-wide at speeds approaching 200mph. Fans saw 653 total on-track passes, 237 passes for position, 117 in the top 10, and 42 within the top 5, setting new records for the INDYCAR SERIES at this track. Four different drivers overtook one another down to the final five laps, with some of the most competitive racing all year—it proved to be the punctuation point on a historic weekend.
Alex Palou, the 2024 NTT INDYCAR Champion, commented, “I think they (Big Machine Music City Grand Prix Team) did an amazing job with the event here this year. Like, the atmosphere was amazing. We had the best driver introductions we had all year, apart from the Indy 500 obviously. The energy was up. I think, hopefully was a great show for the fans, what we did on track. I don’t mind finishing here next year.”
The Fan Experience was unmatched all weekend, with the most extensive, most interactive Fan Zone in the Race’s history and wall-to-wall music featuring national headliners from Daughtry, Riley Green, Diplo, and many more.
A packed crowd gathered to watch Riley Green close out race day with performances of his laundry list of hit songs including “There Was This Girl,” “Different ‘Round Here” and “I Wish Grandpas Never Died.” He also brought out Lily Pearl Black, the daughter of Clint Black, to lend her voice to Black’s 1999 hit “When I Said I Do” and Green’s CMA Award-nominated smash “you look like you love me.”
The 2024 Big Machine Music City Grand Prix Race Champion, Colton Herta commented, “Weekends like this make me proud to be an INDYCAR driver. The whole effort from everyone at the Borchetta group and everyone who put on the Big Machine Music City GP presented by Gainbridge was top-level. The race was one of the most intense and thrilling races of the year. I can’t wait to come back next year and try to retain the title of Music City GP champion!”
“NTT INDYCAR believes in what we are doing, as does Governor Lee, Commissioner Ezell, and our friends with Tennessee Tourism; because of their support and the fans’ support, we are thrilled to be coming back next year, Biggest, Louder and Faster, as it will mark the 20th Anniversary of Big Machine Records – this will be a Labor Day Weekend you won’t want to miss!” furthered Borchetta.
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