Cindric and George were chosen from a ballot of 14 nominees by a national panel of more than 150 journalists, participants, and historians, and their induction will be celebrated at a ceremony and dinner presented by Shell and supported by The National Bank of Indianapolis on May 26.
In addition to the inductees, Marlyne Sexton will be recognized for her contributions to the success of the Museum, supporting the racing community, and the 500 Festival organization.
All proceeds from ticket sales for the event will benefit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum, a 501c3 non-profit organization that “aims to celebrate the cultural and historical significance of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway through storytelling and educational programs.”
Cindric grew up working with his father, Carl, who was an Indy car engine builder for IMS Hall of Fame member Herb Porter. He was a basketball standout and a Hall of Fame member of Pike High School (Indianapolis) and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, where he recently received an honorary doctorate in engineering after graduating in 1990 with a BSc in Mechanical Engineering.
After graduation, Cindric began his career with the TrueSports IndyCar team as a design engineer, then served as team manager for Team Rahal prior to joining the Penske organization as president in the fall of 1999. He has overall management responsibility for Penske's racing operations which includes teams in IndyCar, NASCAR Cup, IMSA and and the World Endurance Championship.
Cindric’s 24-year career with Team Penske includes more than 375 victories and 27 championships. His successes at the Speedway include eight of Penske’s 18 Indianapolis 500 wins, eight IndyCar victories on the IMS Road Course, a Brickyard 400 win, and two NASCAR Xfinity Series victories.
In addition, Cindric served as race strategist for Helio Castroneves’s first three Indianapolis 500 wins and currently serves in this capacity for two-time IndyCar champion Josef Newgarden.
Tony George began his tenure as president and CEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation in 1989, continuing the work his grandfather, Anton “Tony” Hulman, Jr. started when he purchased the Speedway at the end of World War II. He served in this role until 2009. George joins his grandfather, grandmother, Mary Fendrich Hulman, and his mother, Mari Hulman George, in the Hall of Fame.
Under George’s leadership, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway underwent significant changes. Before George assumed the role, the Speedway traditionally only had one race, Indianapolis 500. Determined to bring more events and different racing styles to the Speedway, George announced the addition of a NASCAR race, The Brickyard 400, which debuted in 1994.
Continuing to grow the events and programming, George also helped bring Formula 1 back to America by hosting the United States Grand Prix in 2000, an event which ran through to 2007. Hosting an F1 race involved the construction of the road course inside the oval which became home to a MotoGP round from 2008 through 2015. The road course continues to be used for IndyCar and NASCAR events, among others, throughout the racing season.
George also oversaw the construction of the current iteration of the nine-tier Pagoda at IMS, which contains state-of-the-art facilities for race control, safety, timing and scoring, and radio broadcast booths. In addition, George’s tenure included the construction of the current media center, and the rebuild of the tower terraces and the suites behind Tower Terrace south.
George’s desire to improve safety conditions for drivers also entailed him enlisting the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to develop a new wall barrier for racetracks to reduce driver impact in the event of an accident. The Steel And Foam Energy Reduction Barrier (SAFER Barrier) was installed at the Speedway in 2002, and its technology is still used and installed at numerous other racetracks.
