McLaren CEO Zak Brown reacts to Fox’s massive IndyCar deal with Penske Entertainment

F1 Grand Prix of Belgium - Source: Getty
Zak Brown F1 Grand Prix of Belgium - Source: Getty

The McLaren CEO Zak Brown recently reacted to Fox Corporation buying a stake in IndyCar's parent company, Penske Entertainment. He shared a tweet about the same.

Ad

On Thursday, July 31, IndyCar announced that Fox Corporation had purchased one-third of the interest in Penske Entertainment. This move not only secures their exclusive broadcasting rights but also helps in promoting the races and drivers.

Brown shared his feelings about this partnership via his X account, and he put out a tweet along with a few pictures of himself at the races, press conference, and the teams cars. Zak Brown wrote,

Ad
"A big step forward for @IndyCar today as @FOXSports deepens their investment in the series. This kind of commitment shows just how much potential our series has for long-term growth, and I’m looking forward to this partnership taking things to the next level."
Ad

The news about the partnership broke out after Fox signed a deal with the NTT series to extend their exclusive rights to broadcast. This marked their first season broadcasting the series, and they have seen a 31% spike in viewership of the races. The Indianapolis 500 saw a 41% spike in viewership as compared to the last Indy 500 broadcasted by NBC.


Zak Brown talks about changes in IndyCar's financial structure

Zak Brown recently spoke about Team Penske owner Roger Penske having sole ownership of the IndyCar Series. The matter was brought up after the scandal at the Indianapolis 500 held earlier this year in May.

Ad

During the race two of the three Team Penske cars were found violating the technical rules for illegal modifications. Brown also highlighted how, with the right amount of resources, IndyCar can gain the same amount of popularity as Formula One.

While talking to RACER, the McLaren CEO showed interest in becoming a stakeholder at IndyCar alongside Penske and helping in popularizing the sport. Additionally, he also spoke about how IndyCar can benefit from a franchise system like Formula One.

Ad
“I would love to see a true franchise system. If you think about NFL, MLB, NBA, F1 kind of – technically, they're not equity owners, but the way it's set up, I'd love to see that, because I think that then means the teams share and can take the same view. My annual P&L is one thing, but [if] the value of my IndyCar team has gone up, then you also have everyone rowing the same direction because everyone's sharing in the growth of the sport. It’s not my decision, but personally, I'd love to see that.” he said

Zak Brown has been the most prominent factor in the turnaround of the McLaren Formula One team over the past few years. He managed to get huge sponsors like Google Chrome and DP World on board.

Stay updated with the 2025 IndyCar schedule, standings, qualifying, results today, series news, and the latest IndyCar racing news all in one place.

Edited by Tushhita Barua
Sportskeeda logo
Close menu
WWE
WWE
NBA
NBA
NFL
NFL
MMA
MMA
Tennis
Tennis
NHL
NHL
Golf
Golf
MLB
MLB
Soccer
Soccer
F1
F1
WNBA
WNBA
down arrow icon
More
bell-icon Manage notifications