NEWHD Sports

‘I Don’t Understand!’ NASCAR Fans Rip FOX Sports After Stunning IndyCar Makeover

Fox Sports is the new home of the IndyCar Series after acquiring the rights in a $25 million deal. The network has shown it’s serious about winning over IndyCar fans — but NASCAR fans aren’t happy, slamming Fox for ignoring their long-standing complaints about NASCAR coverage.

NASCAR Fans Blast Fox Sports After IndyCar Coverage Gets a Facelift

Fox posted on X to show off their upgraded IndyCar coverage. The refreshed graphics featured new driver headshots, an updated HUD, and larger, more informative pointers. But what the social media team probably didn’t expect? NASCAR fans hijacking the post.

No leak this time! Check out these updated @IndyCar on FOX graphics that you’ll see starting this weekend at The Thermal Club.

*New Headshots
*Redesigned HUD
*Larger more informative Pointers pic.twitter.com/AyrZysutF1

— INDYCAR on FOX (@IndyCarOnFOX) March 20, 2025

Fans flooded the comments, furious that IndyCar was getting changes NASCAR fans had been begging for — and still hadn’t received.

“One race and they cave to the complaints about the cartoons. NASCAR fans have been complaining about them for 2 years and they triple down,” one fan wrote.

“How come this can’t be done in NASCAR?” another asked.

“I don’t understand why a racing series far less popular and draws less ratings has more pull on FOX than NASCAR does,” a frustrated fan added. “I seriously wish @FOXSports would ditch us, most unserious sports network in the business, not just for racing.”

This frustration isn’t new. Fans have been calling out Fox’s NASCAR coverage for a while now, pointing to awkward production choices and sloppy errors. A perfect example came during the NASCAR Cup Series race at Gateway in June 2024.

Viewers were locked in as Ryan Blaney and Christopher Bell battled for position. But Fox bizarrely cut to a double box shot and later focused on a Blaney fan and a Bell fan sitting together — all while the race action was heating up.

Post-race, the mistakes kept coming. Fans spotted incorrect names on the ticker, adding to the confusion. Errors like these have become too common and are driving some fans away.

In 2024, NASCAR’s regular season saw only a 1% year-over-year increase, averaging 3.13 million viewers. The 2025 Daytona 500 pulled 6.76 million, while the Ambetter Health race drew 4.586 million — decent numbers, but proof Fox needs to do more to keep fans engaged.

NASCAR, for its part, is making moves. The sport secured a $7.7 billion media rights deal starting in 2025, and running through 2031. New partners like Amazon Prime Video, TNT Sports, and The CW are coming aboard, joining Fox and NBC. NASCAR hopes the shake-up will expand its audience and improve coverage.

Still, Fox seems slow to change. Some fans on Reddit even accused the network of using AI-generated graphics in its NASCAR coverage — pointing out that a “Drivers Off to Slow Starts” graphic at COTA featured what looked like an AI-created stock car.

With the 2025 NASCAR season already drawing criticism, Fox faces mounting pressure to fix these issues fast. If not, they risk falling further behind — no matter how great their IndyCar coverage looks.