FOX Sports is one of the biggest sports media networks in the world, but even they can have a blooper moment once in a while. The only thing is that when something like this happens to a NASCAR program, the sport’s passionate fans hardly ever hold. That was the case recently when the network mixed up former Cup Series champion Chase Elliott and Ty Dillon on national television.

It must have been something that slipped the editor’s mind, which can happen to anybody, but the reaction to it was perhaps something no one expected. FOX Sports has been one of NASCAR’s most trusted media partners for several years now, and they will air a big chunk of the season under the new media rights deal worth $7.7 billion. But did they just make a blunder? Let’s find out.

Two completely different drivers, yet FOX mixed it up

The issue was pointed out by a NASCAR fan on their X handle. This happened when FOX Sports interviewed Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott, but in a video montage played along with the interview, there was clearly a shot of Truck Series driver Ty Dillon. The 31-year-old has taken part in several full-time Cup Series seasons with teams like Germain Racing, Petty GMS Motorsports, and Spire Motorsports. But how is he related to Elliott, right?

The recent off-season was a bit of a roller coaster ride for Dillon, as he was out of a seat in the Cup Series and his future was in doubt for a long time. However, he managed to land a full-time Truck Series role with Rackley WAR. His 2024 season started off with a lackluster P35 finish at the Daytona International Speedway.

Chase Elliott, on the other hand, has never had a more secure future before. The former Cup Series champion is Hendrick Motorsports’ golden boy, and one can expect big things from the 28-year-old. Last season was a disaster for a driver of his caliber, and he will be looking to make things right this year. His start to the season was decent, with a P14 finish in the Daytona 500.

So two completely different drivers with career trajectories that are poles apart. Yet FOX Sports managed to mix them up, and the vocal NASCAR community was quick to point out their mistakes in a public forum.

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Fans started slamming the media house as soon as they saw the interview blooper

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The comments under the post were pretty brutal. One fan wrote that there was no competency at the sports media house. “Zero competency at Fox,” they commented.

Another user thought that mistakes like these were the norm for the company, which is quite an embarrassing accusation, even if it’s just banter. “Average Fox quality,” they wrote.

Fans came down heavily on FOX Sports’s editing and production team for missing out on such a basic error. NASCAR fans expect the absolute best, and if they trust the company to properly broadcast their favorite sport and everything related to it, a slip-up will be heavily criticized.

“That’s how you can tell how bad FOX is at production,” one user commented. “This is why there’s an Oscar for editing,” they commented.

Another fan saw this opportunity to take the mickey out of the situation and suggested that Ty Dillon was a better driver than Chase Elliott sarcastically, which is why he got the screen time. “GOAT Dillon > Chase Elliott,” they wrote. Regardless of what went wrong, it certainly was a grave error, and someone in the company surely got into a whole lot of trouble.

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