The Roar on the Lake Shore is no more.
For the first time since its inception in 1986, IndyCar Series’ annual downtown Toronto race will shift north to Markham, Ont., starting next year, officials announced Wednesday.
The open-wheel auto racing event, previously known as Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto, Honda Indy Toronto and the Molson Indy, saw many big-name Indy drivers come to the city over the years to tackle the 11-turn, 2.874-kilometre race around Exhibition Place.
Between Aug. 14 and 16 next year, drivers will race on a new temporary track in the eastern precinct of Markham’s downtown, between Kennedy Road, Enterprise Boulevard, the Unionville GO tracks and Highway 407, officials said. The course will be 3.52 kilometres long and feature 12 turns.
“We feel this event site, for our fans, provides a lot of great opportunity, whether it be sightlines or experiences we may not have had at our previous venue,” said Jeff Atkinson, president of the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham, during a news conference.
“It’s important to thank Exhibition Place and the City of Toronto for their 40 great years, but we’re here to create new memories here in Markham, Ontario. There’s activities we haven’t done, like music. We haven’t done an RV club ever in Toronto — and these are things we’re looking at here in Markham.”
Usually held in mid-July, the Indy race would’ve added to what will be a busy summer at Exhibition Place.
In June 2026, thousands of soccer fans will flock to BMO Field on the Exhibition grounds for six games of the men’s FIFA World Cup. Around that time, event officials would be beginning construction of the course for the race, which is one of the oldest on the Indy schedule.
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Atkinson said the World Cup was a “catalyst” in the decision to head to Markham, but it wasn’t the only reason.
“If you look at Exhibition Place, it’s a great property but they have a lot of development happening in the future,” he said.
“If we took a year off from Exhibition Place in Ontario, this event may never come back. We did not want to be on a series of one-year revolving contracts like we have been the last couple of years. We wanted to find a new home so we can make investments for the fans.”
Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti said the city’s agreement with Indy is for five years, and the race will be the largest professional sporting event in York Region, with more than 140,000 people expected to attend.
“Markham continues to be a city of global influence in the heart of all that this region has to offer,” he said.
“We are ready. We are excited to host this storied sporting spectacle, from the planning that is already well underway to the final checkered flag: buckle up, everyone, we’re off to the races.”
IndyCar is the highest class of open-wheel auto racing in North America, and its Ontario race is the only Indy event in Canada every year.
Mexico’s Pato O’Ward was this year’s winner of the Toronto Indy, which has seen drivers such as Scott Dixon, Josef Newgarden and Will Power, as well as Canadian racing legends James Hinchcliffe and Jacques Villeneuve, race around the track over the years.
Michael Andretti, son of legendary race car driver Mario Andretti, holds the record for the most wins at the Toronto Indy with seven — his first in 1989 and his last in 2001.
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