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SPEEDWAY, Ind. — The possibilities for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway are endless as Roger Penske has been handed the keys to the world’s greatest racecourse.

Since the announcement was made in November that Penske would be buying the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he has been getting familiar with his acquisition and figuring out what his plans are for the venue moving forward.

The deal between him and Hulman and Company closed on Monday. He is now the fourth different owner in the track’s 110-year history. 

“Monday we wrote the check for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the affiliated companies. It’s amazing,” Penske said to WISH-TV. “It’s thanks to a lot of hard work.”

It will likely never be known how much Penske spent on the seemingly priceless racecourse. But he does say he plans to spend “several million dollars” on improvements between now and when the green flag drops on the Indianapolis 500 in May.

“What I’m looking at is what can we do to make the guest experience better,” Penske said. “Then there are things we can do outside the track from an entertainment perspective, as well as inside. Can we have a Formula One race, a 12-hour race, a six-hour race, things like that.”

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Penske plans to lay out a list of improvements and possible new events at the speedway in mid-February. Lights for night races are something Penske says he and his team are looking at but right now there are no immediate plans for lighting to be put in.

He said if they were to put lights in running the Indianapolis 500 at night would be out of the question. But, in a push to get other racing series to come to the track, he did hint at the idea of a Formula One night race or a NASCAR night race. Again, mostly ideas with nothing set in stone, but Penske appears to be leaning towards having some sort of event going on at the track several weekends out of the year and not just on race weekends like Memorial Day or Fourth of July.

Penske said the fact the Indianapolis Metro area is prospering economically puts IMS is a perfect position to grow. 

(PHOTO: Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)