Takuma Sato (75) leads a restart through the 109th Working of the Indianapolis 500 on Could 25, 2025, on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (Photograph by Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire through Getty Photographs)
Icon Sportswire through Getty Photographs
FOX Sports activities has taken its relationship as the published companion of IndyCar to a real enterprise partnership by buying one-third curiosity in Penske Leisure, together with the IndyCar Collection.
Since November 4, 2019, Penske Leisure owns the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the Indianapolis 500, IndyCar and IMS Productions.
The announcement that was made on July 31, sees a significant funding in IndyCar with FOX, as they’re now concerned in possession of Penske Leisure.
The announcement additionally features a multi-year extension of IndyCar’s media rights with FOX Sports activities.
“This partnership is constructed on long-standing belief and a shared imaginative and prescient for the longer term,” Roger Penske stated. “FOX sees the unbelievable potential throughout our sport and desires to play an lively function in constructing our progress trajectory.
“Lachlan Murdoch and his workforce, beginning with Eric Shanks, are dedicated to our success and can convey unbelievable power and innovation to IndyCar.”
It is a related transfer to Liberty Media buying Method One on January 23, 2017, however the main distinction is Liberty Media has a controlling curiosity in F1. FOX has a one-third partnership stake, however that may be extraordinarily helpful by way of infusing income and promotion into IndyCar.
Penske Leisure and Fox Company (“FOX” or the “Firm”) (Nasdaq: FOXA, FOX), the dad or mum firm of FOX Sports activities, take into account it an funding in the way forward for North America’s premier open-wheel racing collection, with FOX’s acquisition of a one-third curiosity in Penske Leisure, inclusive of IndyCar and the long-lasting Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The funding is predicted to supercharge a brand new period of progress for the NTT IndyCar Collection, maybe essentially the most aggressive and dynamic motorsport on the planet. This contains:
- Progressive and industry-leading racing and leisure occasions.
- A hyper-engaged digital technique and immersive content material focus.
- Enhanced promotion and star-building alternatives for NTT IndyCar Collection drivers.
FOX Sports activities acquired IndyCar’s media rights in 2025, bringing recent promotional assets and considerably bigger attain to the NTT IndyCar Collection.
This yr’s Indianapolis 500 on FOX averaged 7.01 million viewers, a 41 % enhance over the earlier version and a 17-year excessive. To this point, the 2025 NTT IndyCar Collection season is averaging a 31 % enhance in viewership year-over-year.
“We’re thrilled to affix the IndyCar possession group at such a pivotal time for the game,” stated Eric Shanks, CEO & Government Producer, FOX Sports activities. “IndyCar represents every little thing we worth in reside sports activities — passionate followers, iconic venues, elite competitors and year-round storytelling potential.
“This funding underscores our dedication to motorsports and our perception in IndyCar’s continued progress on and off the observe. We’re excited to assist elevate the game to new heights throughout all platforms.”
This information builds on wider momentum throughout the game, marked by rising attendance and file crowds at a number of occasions this yr, together with a sell-out of the Indy 500. IndyCar has invested closely in digital progress not too long ago, launching a brand new cell APP, website online and fantasy platform whereas additionally producing 1 million new social followers.
IndyCar can even add a brand new showcase to its calendar in 2026, racing via Arlington’s leisure district via a first-of-its-kind three way partnership with the Dallas Cowboys and Texas Rangers.
The NTT IndyCar Collection is the one premier motorsport in North America with each race on U.S. community tv. It options a global area of the world’s most versatile drivers who compete on superspeedways, brief ovals, road circuits and everlasting highway programs. The 2025 season continues with the Grand Prix of Portland on Sunday, Aug. 10 at 3 p.m. ET on FOX.
Additionally, a part of the Penske Leisure household, the world-famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway is yearly house to the most important single-day spectator sporting occasion on the planet, the Indianapolis 500. This yr’s “The Biggest Spectacle in Racing” featured a crowd of greater than 300,000 folks. The famed venue is steeped on greater than a century of racing heritage and has the most important seating capability of any sporting venue throughout the globe.
About Penske Leisure
Penske Leisure is a number one supplier of world-class sports activities and leisure, encompassing IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It’s a subsidiary of Penske Company, a carefully held, diversified, on-highway, transportation companies firm whose subsidiaries function in a wide range of {industry} segments, in retail automotive, truck leasing, transportation logistics {and professional} motorsports. Penske Company manages companies with consolidated revenues of greater than $45 billion, working in over 3,300 areas and employs greater than 73,000 folks worldwide.
About Fox Company
Fox Company produces and distributes compelling information, sports activities, and leisure content material via its major iconic home manufacturers, together with FOX Information Media, FOX Sports activities, FOX Leisure, FOX Tv Stations and Tubi Media Group. These manufacturers maintain cultural significance with shoppers and business significance for distributors and advertisers. The breadth and depth of our footprint permits us to ship content material that engages and informs audiences, develop deeper shopper relationships, and create extra compelling product choices.
FOX maintains a powerful observe file of stories, sports activities, and leisure {industry} success that shapes our technique to capitalize on current strengths and put money into new initiatives.
About FOX Sports activities
FOX Sports activities is the umbrella entity representing Fox Company’s big range of multi-platform US-based sports activities property. Constructed with manufacturers able to reaching greater than 100 million viewers in a single weekend, the enterprise has possession and pursuits in linear tv networks, digital and cell programming, broadband platforms, a number of web pages, joint-venture companies and several other licensing relationships. FOX Sports activities contains the sports activities tv arm of the FOX Community; FS1, FS2, FOX Soccer Plus and FOX Deportes. FOX Sports activities’ digital properties embrace FOXSports.com and the FOX Sports activities App, which offers reside streaming video of FOX Sports activities content material, on the spot scores, stats and alerts to iOS and Android gadgets. Additionally included in FOX Sports activities’ portfolio are FOX’s pursuits in joint-venture companies Huge Ten Community and the UFL and a licensing settlement that established the FOX Sports activities Radio Community.
FOX Sports activities brand on a digital camera. (Photograph by Ric Tapia/Getty Photographs)
Getty Photographs
