A staple of parades, events, and a hilarious sight out in the wild, there are six Oscar Mayer Wienermobiles currently in operation. They might not be known for their blistering speed, but all six of those purpose-built Wienermobile machines hit the track for the first time in history to prove which one was fastest in the strangest prelude to the Indy 500 we’ve ever seen: the inaugural Wienie 500.
The green flag dropped on May 23rd, 2025, kicking off the odd (and strangely wholesome) race between the six Wienermobiles. Each hot dog-shaped racer represented a different regional sausage. Chi Dog repped the Midwest, New York Dog raced for the East, Slaw Dog carried the Southeast, Sonoran Dog cooked for the Southwest, Chili Dog had the South, and Seattle Dog represented the Northwest. Drivers and codrivers were given custom Hotdogger racing suits, and, of course, the winner would head straight to the “Wiener’s Circle” to celebrate.
The No. 4 Wienermobile lunged to an early lead, showing the way for the rest of the dogs as they filed into a six-sausage freight train. The drivers pushed that wiener a little too hard, though, and it suffered a mechanical failure with smoke pouring from the engine compartment.
That opened the door for the No. 1 dog to slide into the lead, although they were pressured by the No. 3, Slaw Dog, heading into the final two corners. Slaw Dog swung low, overtaking the leader in a photo finish that came down to a sausage-length gap. Slaw Dog’s top speed was clocked at just over 60mph.
Check out the full replay of the Wienie 500 race below, starting at around the 14:55 minute mark.
“The Indy 500 marks the unofficial kickoff of summer and the start of hot dog season,” said Kelsey Rice, Brand Communications Director at Oscar Mayer. “As a brand known for sparking smiles in disarmingly delightful ways, it’s only fitting that we bring a race of epic proportions to the Speedway and celebrate a timeless tradition: delicious meats and a little friendly competition to kick off a summer of wieners.”
Comments
Well, hopefully none of them touched each other.
So who actually won? I thought it was preferable to finish last?
Looks like he won by a tip. I’m surprised they top out at 60 and can’t do 69.
Congrats to the winner, he let it all hang out.
You should have been on the commentary team, you’re killing me 😂😂😂💀
You spelled “wiener” wrong! 😉
Great comments John.
The crowd must have loved this race. Most folks would have never seen one of these, let alone 6. I remember “back in the day” when true Custom Vehicles were very prevalent. Great creativity and talent back then. The Show Circuit was riddled with really wild custom vehicles. It was great.
Great vehicles and great music from the late 60s, 70s and into the 80s. I miss all that since new vehicles and todays music is very, very bland and all the same. Boring.
Oh how the mighty have fallen…badly!
Remember when only Indy Cars were allowed to race on this venerable track?
What’s next – another NASCAR dirt race – this time at IMS?? 🤦♂️👎
You must be fun at parties.