Insider Jenna Fryer called out FOX for simultaneously televising NASCAR and the IndyCar Series on Sunday. The opposition follows FOX's claim that the side-by-side broadcast would "help each series rise".
Last Sunday, FOX commenced the Straight Talk Wireless 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway and the Thermal Club IndyCar Grand Prix at 3:00 p.m. ET. Covering the open-wheel racing series is part of FOX taking over the broadcasting rights from NBC Sports.
Fryer slammed the decision to host the two series alongside each other on X (formerly Twitter).
"STOP. TELEVISING. RACING. HEAD-TO-HEAD," she wrote.
The Insider also shared what FOX Sports CEO Eric Shanks told her during the IndyCar Series' opening race weekend on the streets of St. Petersburg.
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"Eric Shanks told me in St. Pete that Fox having both NASCAR and IndyCar (and NHRA) can only 'help each series rise.' It took two races and pitting two series head-to-head to wildly disprove this theory," she added.
The Homestead-Miami Speedway race weekend saw Kyle Larson secure his first win of the 2025 NASCAR season. The Hendrick Motorsports ace beat teammate Alex Bowman to the line by 1.205 seconds, with Bubba Wallace completing the top three.
While FOX is slated to cover the entire IndyCar Series season, the company only hosts the NASCAR Cup Series until the All-Star Race in May. Prime Video will then take over the broadcasting duty, with TNT Sports, USA Network, and NBC Sports lined up for the latter races.
NASCAR and the IndyCar Series will coincide again on April 13. FOX will kick off the Bristol Motor Speedway race at 3:00 p.m. ET before the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach starts at 4:30 p.m. ET.
NASCAR signed $7.7B-worth media rights deal until 2031
NASCAR has commenced its $7.7-billion media rights deal with four media giants this year. FOX and NBC stay on the roster, while Amazon and Warner Bros. Discovery are joining the broadcasting crew until 2031.
For the 2025 season, FOX has spearheaded the broadcasting duty in the Daytona 500. Prime Video is next in line starting in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 25. The newcomer will also cover the inaugural Mexico City race in mid-June.
TNT Sports will take over at Atlanta Motor Speedway on June 28 before NBC covers the league from the Iowa Speedway race weekend in August to the season finale at Phoenix Raceway.
In addition, Max offers fans an onboard view of their preferred drivers with telemetry and radio. Bleacher Report and House of Highlights also have the rights to provide highlights to reach a younger audience.
The latest media right deal represents about a 40% increase compared to the previous one with FOX and NBC.
Over to the Xfinity Series, the CW Network is the sole broadcasting partner of the second-tier series for the entire season. Meanwhile, FOX covers the entire Craftsman Truck Series season through FS1.
