Despite NBC's renewal offer said to have been higher than the offer they ultimately accepted, IndyCar opted to move in a different direction regarding broadcast rights following the 2024 season.
The 2025 season is set to be the first season in which Fox is the exclusive broadcast partner of the NTT IndyCar Series. The deal is said to be worth $25 million annually, which is more than the $20 million that IndyCar had been getting from NBC.
But IndyCar has already gotten far, far more than $25 million in value from its new partner, given the investment Fox has made in promoting its new property via popular commercials featuring Team Penske's Josef Newgarden, Chip Ganassi Racing's Alex Palou, and Arrow McLaren's Pato O'Ward.
And there is no reason to believe Fox won't continue that trend as the IndyCar season progresses.
NBC Sports had held the rights to IndyCar since 2009, though several races, including the Indy 500, were still produced by ESPN and shown on ABC from 2009 to 2018. But even when NBC was the exclusive broadcast partner of the series from 2019 to 2024, not all races were shown on network television.
From 2019 to 2021, races were split between NBC and NBC Sports Network, and from 2022 to 2024, they were split between NBC and USA Network, which replaced NBC Sports Network as the NBCUniversal-owned alternate channel throughout the season. In 2023 and 2024, multiple races were hidden behind the much-maligned Peacock Premium paywall as well.
But with Fox, all 17 races are set to be shown on network television, another major perk of the new deal. All IndyCar practice and qualifying sessions are also set to be shown on either Fox Sports 1 or Fox Sports 2, with Fox even scheduled to air a signifcant portion of Indy 500 qualifying weekend.
Will Buxton is the new lead announcer, and former NBC driver analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe have joined Fox to occupy the same roles.
Sunday's season opener, the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, is set to be shown live on Fox from the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida beginning at 12:00 p.m. ET. A full starting lineup can be found here. Start a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss any of the action throughout the 2025 IndyCar season!