Roger Penske is more than just a NASCAR team owner. He fits the description of the motorsports mogul, who not only competes for trophies in NASCAR but also lashes against the very series with his IndyCar. Back in 2019, Penske took over the ownership of the IndyCar series, and the coveted Indy 500 race, and since then he has been on a mission to take the American open-wheel racing to new heights.

Apart from the major revamp of the Indianapolis 500 facility and the new race car for the next decade, the biggest power move by Roger Penske was the FOX TV deal. Yeah, the same FOX which has been NASCAR’s long-term partner since the turn of the new century. But, with the current reshuffling of broadcasting partners at NASCAR, FOX was in search of a new home, which they found at IndyCar. And if we are to go by Penske’s admission, he seems content with the results that they’ve had so far.

FOX is living up to its billing after signing an exclusive deal with Roger Penske’s IndyCar

Grand Prix of St. Petersburg garnered 1.417 million viewers, which is the most-watched IndyCar event (excluding the Indy 500) since 2011. Unlike NASCAR, all 17 IndyCar races are being aired on big FOX, and the impact has been a positive one for the entire sport. At a time when both NASCAR and Formula 1 are competing for the same viewers, this is a major win for Penske’s racing series, and he’s following the progress carefully.

“I’ve never seen a partner that has weighed in the way FOX has to support the partnership. We’re up approximately 25 percent [through four races] over where we were before with the past relationship. But what’s most important is that this 18-to-34 age group has been up almost 60 percent, which is key.” Roger Penske shared in an interview with FOX.

Right from the commercials of Josef Newgarden and Alex Palou to aggressive campaigns on social media. FOX has managed to position IndyCar in front of the right audience, but this progress hasn’t been without hiccups. The race at Thermal Club saw FOX run into technical difficulty with their production truck, and the action was cut out for 10 minutes. But, Roger Penske isn’t looking back at the hiccup; rather, he’s focused on building this momentum going into the 109th running of the Indy 500.

“I think the attendance at the key races has been outstanding. Obviously, Thermal was a little bit of a different focus, different type of race, but we had a commitment there and obviously we carried on… Palou, I give him a triple-A for the job that he’s done. He’s blown us off. I told Ganassi that he should wait for us at Indy, because we’re going to focus on you guys there. It’s going to be a terrific race. And when you look at the series and the tracks that are getting more attendance, something’s going on positively.” He added.

It’s not just the TV ratings that are up for the IndyCar, in another major boost, the series is reporting that the 109th running of the Great Spectacle in Racing is going to be a sellout.

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The Good Old Days are returning to IndyCar

According to IMS and the IndyCar President Doug Boles, only a few hundred reserved grandstand tickets are available for the Indy 500. Even those are expected to be sold out by the conclusion of the qualifying rounds. This will be the first sellout since the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 since 2016, and it goes to show the auto racing series turning a corner for good under Roger Penske’s ownership.

“Having a sellout is emblematic of this beautiful thing we have now in INDYCAR, FOX Sports and a lot of hard work from people pushing this sport in the right direction. We got the Penske deal down, we got the FOX deal done, we got the race sold out, now let’s get back to huge crowds here for Pole Day.” Team owner Chip Ganassi said in a release. And as it turns out, Penske and his team are on the verge of another historic achievement.

Josef Newgarden is chasing history to win the Indy 500 three years in a row as a Team Penske driver, a feat that hasn’t been achieved yet. To add to the prestige and grandeur of the event, we even have Kyle Larson looking to complete his “Double” with the Arrow McLaren team. All in all, the FOX effect is visible, and it is expected to reach new heights as the season progresses.