Indy 500 will be held at 25 percent capacity, air live in Indianapolis market for just fourth time ever

There are normally over 275,000 fans that attend the iconic race

Indianapolis Motor Speedway will only be filled at 25 percent fan capacity for the Indianapolis 500 on Aug. 23. Indianapolis Motor Speedway made the announcement on Tuesday as part of an update for those who plan to attend the event. At 25 percent capacity, that would mean that there would only be around 87,500 people attending the iconic race this year, according to the Indy Star.

IMS also announced that everyone attending the event will need to wear a face covering.

"We will welcome fans back, and we have an aggressive plan in place, which has been developed through collaboration with national, state and local health experts," Penske Entertainment Corp. president and CEO Mark Miles said in a press release, the Indy Star reported. "Our outdoor facility is mammoth, and with attendance of about 25%, it will certainly look different this year.

"We want to demonstrate that even under current circumstances, people can gather with carefully planned procedures in place so we don't have to go back to shutting down our country and our community."

In June, Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials announced that the race would allow 50 percent fan capacity. That percentage changed after they began planning with national, state and local health experts.

Another massive change with this year's Indy 500 is that is will be shown to central Indiana residents on live television. That's something that has only been done on three other occasions, according to WTHR 13. It is usually blacked out in the local TV market and aired on a tape delay. Race officials decided to broadcast the race live due to the fact that so many fewer fans than usual will be attending the race.