If there were a NASCAR record of a broadcaster agitating the fans, FOX would lead it by a mile. Through the years, they have managed to gain criticism from fans in the most creative ways possible. Up until last year, it was the driver caricatures on their graphics, and now, it seems even more terrible. It is as if the AI takeover has spread to NASCAR’s broadcasting side, and no one is happy with it.

FOX’s new NASCAR ad: Genuine error or AI?

FOX is known for its experiments with NASCAR’s broadcasting. But more recently, they were questioned for a very specific frame visible in one of their new advertisements. Kyle Larson’s #5 Chevrolet. Nothing odd, right? Except for when the internet army took a closer look.

The front was definitely the Next-Gen car, but the wheels had 5 lug nuts. The rear seemed to be from a completely different road model car. All of that paired with the weird graphics? Many labeled it as generated through artificial intelligence.

Lately, there has been far too much AI-generated content spreading on the internet, and it has not sat well with most users. They feel that this is taking away artists’ jobs and replacing them with a soulless recreation. And when FOX attempted to get away with it in their NASCAR advertisement, fans caught it almost instantly.

It seems FOX never fails to anger its fans. When it’s not their booth for the Cup Series races, it was the weird graphics that they used up until last year. And then, of course, it was the sloppy camerawork during races and the consistent advertisements.

Moreover, this wasn’t the first time that the broadcaster was questioned for using AI-generated content. Earlier in January, they released a promotional clip for the 2026 Daytona 500. Several elements in the promotional clip, including crashes inspired by real-life incidents, were recreated using AI.

Safe to say, FOX was under the radar for a long time, even before the season kicked off, and their recent advertisement blew the steam for fans.

Fans target FOX for AI-generated clip

“That’s some greedy sh*t right there, it wouldn’t hurt to hire a freakin artist for once. All the 50 year olds in the FOX HQ must be going gaga thinking they are so smart and kids will like. Well BS on THAT FOX, it’s just the dumbest thing that cheapens your product, You’ve become an AI slop network.”

Understandably, the internet was rather furious. Interestingly, this was also the reaction when other popular brands like Coca-Cola released their AI-generated promotional videos. The fans claim that this takes jobs away from artists and that big companies do it for cost-cutting, when they could be paying real artists for much better advertising. The same flow went on with the NASCAR ads, too.

Apart from the obvious, many also went into the details of the ad, calling out the weird mix of the Gen 6 and the Gen 7 car showcased in the advertisement. As mentioned, there were a few little mistakes that the fine eyes could see.

“Its an ugly b*stard child of a Gen 6 & 7 lol. Ai slop probably,” wrote a fan, “Gotta have those 3 exhausts, 5-lug wheels, no interior, and a broken hood[…]oh and it’s on fire too,” mentioned another, pointing out the inconsistencies of the car showcased.

Some of the fans also pointed out the car’s rear, which should have looked like the Chevy Camaro that is used in the NASCAR Cup Series. However, it appeared similar to a completely different road car: “the back of the car is literally a civic lol.” Nonetheless, the Civic is quite admired by the automobile community, so they might have let this one slip for once. But the inconsistency was hard to miss.

It is quite understandable why the fans were disappointed with FOX Sports. Being one of the biggest sports broadcasters globally, they also set the example for others in the industry. And if they’re more focused on AI-generated content, then it might be sooner rather than later that it becomes the industry standard.

“FOX be like: “Friendship ended with cartoon comic book graphics, now AI renderings are my new best friend,” joked a user.

However, the backlash from NASCAR fans also serves as a strong reminder that they want the broadcasters to work harder for the content they serve on live television. This backlash did work for the caricatures that were earlier used, and it might as well work for the AI-generated content.