Honda Indy Toronto removed from schedule for second straight year because of COVID-19
Will Power, of Australia, takes the checkered flag as he crosses the finish line to win the Honda Indy Toronto in Toronto on Sunday, July 17, 2016. The Honda Indy Toronto has been cancelled for the second year in a row because of COVID-19. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Mark Blinch May 14, 2021 - 5:07 AM
TORONTO - The Honda Indy Toronto has been cancelled for the second year in a row because of COVID-19.
The City of Toronto announced Friday it is cancelling major in-person events through to Labour Day, ending hopes for the July 9-11 race.
The Toronto race has been an annual event running through the Exhibition grounds since 1986.
The event has not been on the schedule only twice since starting last year and in 2008 following the reunification of Champ Car and the Indy Racing League.
Racing legend Bobby Rahal won the inaugural race in 1986, then called the Molson Indy.
It was called the Steelback Grand Prix of Toronto when the Molson sponsorship ended in 2007 and then was renamed the Honda Indy upon its return in 2009.
Toronto s Paul Tracy is the lone Canadian to have won the race, taking the checkered flag in 1993 and 2003.
At the peak of its popularity, the Toronto event attracted more than 70,000 fans on race day in the early 2000s.
Honda Indy Toronto cancelled for second time due to COVID-19 pandemic
Josef Newgarden races past the Princes Gate during the third practice session of the Honda Indy Toronto in Toronto on Saturday, July 14, 2018. (Tijana Martin/CP) | May 14, 2021, 8:13 AM
May 14, 2021, 8:13 AM
TORONTO The Honda Indy Toronto has been cancelled for the second year in a row because of COVID-19.
The City of Toronto announced Friday it is cancelling major in-person events through to Labour Day, ending hopes for the July 9-11 race.
The lone Canadian race on the IndyCar schedule joins the RBC Canadian Open golf tournament in Toronto and Canadian Grand Prix Formula One race in Montreal as major annual sporting events called off for the second year in a row.