LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- When I saw the name "Speedway Slammer" trending, I did a double take.
An immigration detention center at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway? That would be news. And strange news, at that.
Turns out, it's neither.
The name is a creation of the Department of Homeland Security under the Trump administration, which announced this week that Indiana's Miami Correctional Facility — a former Air Force base turned maximum-security prison, 70 miles from the famous oval — will be used to house up to 1,000 detained immigrants. To promote the plan, DHS posted a digitally generated image of an IndyCar plastered with ICE logos, zooming in front of a prison-like facility. They branded it the "Speedway Slammer."
But they didn't run that branding by the folks who own the actual Speedway.
Penske Entertainment, which owns the IndyCar series and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, issued a statement saying it was "unaware" of the imagery and "communicating our preference" that its brand not be associated with the project.
To be clear, Penske isn't wading into immigration policy. But when a government agency uses your intellectual property to sell something you didn't authorize — and particularly when that something involves a politically charged issue — you're going to speak up.
You're also going to draw headlines. And in this case, a few raised eyebrows.
The image showed a white IndyCar with a "5" on the side — the number driven by Pato O'Ward, the series' most popular active driver and its only Mexican national. DHS insists the number is a coincidence. O'Ward, who was in Texas promoting a race when he saw the post, wasn't so sure.
"I was a little shocked,” he said. "I don't think it made a lot of people proud, to say the least."
White House border czar Tom Homan said he didn't name the facility but defended the mission behind it.
"I don't want the names taking over the great work they're doing," he said. "This is serious work, and it's dangerous work."
The Homeland Security response?
"An AI generated image of a car with 'ICE' on the side does not violate anyone's intellectual property rights," a DHS spokesperson said. "... DHS will continue promoting the 'Speedway Slammer' as a comprehensive and collaborative approach to combatting illegal immigration."
Legally, that's probably accurate. But when a government entity borrows from a well-known brand to sell something this sensitive — immigration enforcement — it crosses a cultural line, if not a legal one. It's like when a musician or band objects to their song being used at one party's rally or another.
This has quickly become a case study in political branding. The "Speedway Slammer" joins "Alligator Alcatraz" — the nickname for a Florida detention facility — in what seems to be a broader White House strategy of rebranding immigration enforcement with catchy, hardline nicknames. Supporters see it as a messaging win. Critics say it trivializes serious issues, including alleged abuse of detainees.
Penske wants no part of the messaging, period.
That's a tricky spot. The company and its chairman, Roger Penske, have long had cordial ties with President Trump, including a visit to the White House and receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2019.
But politics and PR are two different racetracks.
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The Last Drop
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