American motorsports fans are indeed spoiled for choice in auto racing series’. You have the almighty NASCAR still going strong with its long season, and then you have the IndyCar Series, which is in renaissance mode under the ownership of Roger Penske. But, ever since the US Grand Prix returned with the rise of COTA, Formula 1 has emerged as a different alternative.

This has resulted in a three-way battle, but this meteoric rise of Formula, especially among young audiences, can be concerning for IndyCar. After all, they are both an open-wheel racing series, thus allowing NASCAR to have a fan base and a community. It must be noted that NASCAR and F1 were keen on getting the ownership of the Long Beach Grand Prix. Now we all know that Penske Entertainment got hold of the iconic race event. But imagine how big of a deal it would’ve been for the F1 folks if they added a fourth event in the United States.

Although the friction and clashes between the two series are evident, McLaren CEO Zak Brown has an interesting take on this rivalry. And he seems to be leaning in favor of Formula 1.

Zak Brown believes that IndyCar should follow the blueprint F1 has for the US market

Brown does have his hands full with the task of overseeing both F1 and IndyCar racing programs. The Arrow McLaren team is a well-known name now, even for NASCAR fans, after Kyle Larson’s Indy 500 debut in 2024. Now, IndyCar certainly has stepped up its game when it comes to making a major overhaul of its racing product. They have signed an exclusive media rights deal with FOX Sports, brought in a charter system, and have plans for a new chassis for their race cars.

IndyCar wants to expand and come out of the shadow of the Indy 500. But that could lead to a conflict of interest with F1 given how they’ve managed to capture the US market. The 2024 F1 races in the US were averaging 1.2 million viewers per race. However, Zak Brown shared his perspective on how the two series can co-exist despite trying to target the same demography. “They kind of want to be their own thing, which I think is great, but when you see how popular Formula 1 is—I don’t see Formula 1 and IndyCar competitive with each other,” Brown said during the AutoSports Business Exchange in London.

Zak Brown did praise IndyCar’s new deal with FOX and how Eric Shank could learn a thing or two from F1’s coverage in the US. “Eric Shanks, the CEO of FOX Sports, is a huge IndyCar fan, so I think you got some real passion from the CEO, which will always help bleed through the organization. He worked very closely with David Hill when they were both at DirecTV. Obviously, David Hill had a huge role in what today’s Formula 1 broadcast looks like. So I think Eric will look at Formula 1 and not be afraid to learn from it.”

Well, if we are to go by IndyCar’s first few commercials on FOX, they certainly have brought something new to the game. The commercials focused on drivers Josef Newgarden and Alex Palou; even the NASCAR community is taking note of it. If anything, they are mad at FOX for not doing something this elaborate and special with their star drivers. Some ardent NASCAR fans called this blatant favoritism on FOX’s part after finding a new home.

Given how drastically things have shaped at the IndyCar level, let us briefly touch on the game-changing aspects before the new season begins.

Major offseason moves made by IndyCar

First and foremost is the massive TV rights deal with FOX. As mentioned before, the power-packed commercial celebrating their star drivers was a hint at how FOX is opening up to new audiences. The Tom Brady cameo and the commercial being targeted at NFL fans is more proof of IndyCar’s vision to expand beyond its traditional borders. Will Buxton’s inclusion from the F1 paddock is certainly going to bring in a fresh and new perspective. Not to forget, FOX has also said they will use drones for their race coverage, so they’ve got the package ready for the IndyCar fans in 2025.

Another big change for the 2025 season is that IndyCar will have a new full-time team, Prema Racing. Drivers Callum Ilott and Robert Shwartzman will lead the charge for the team, while former F1 driver Romain Grosjean will be the reserve driver for the team. Prema has its roots in European racing circuits in Formula 3 and has played an instrumental role in developing F1 drivers. This switch to IndyCar is indeed a massive undertaking for them, and it will be interesting to see if they can match strides with the rest of the competition.

Last but not least, the details about the development of the new car are also becoming more clear. Although the new machine isn’t expected to make a massive change to the current model, it is a lightly modified design. Going by the reports, the new car will be a spec vehicle with a design where components will be fixed to the car and cannot be modified.

Well, IndyCar has certainly upped its game when it comes to its racing product, marketing, and engagement. It will be interesting to see how all of the changes work together and how significant their impact is on the sport.