Cheating Scandal and Media Rights Battle Loom Large Ahead of Indy 500

The 108th running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday will be the sixth broadcast by NBC, the network that took over the rights after ABC’s 54-year run of showcasing “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” Whether NBC, whose contract expires after this season, will continue as the exclusive home of the IndyCar Series and the Indy 500 is currently unclear. 

NBC and Fox remain the two main suitors for the media rights, which, like the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, are part of Roger Penske’s business empire. It’s expected that over the next month, IndyCar will announce a new media deal—and, while a rights-fee bump is anticipated, money won’t be the only major factor. 

“The financial side is a piece of it,” a source with knowledge of IndyCar’s negotiations tells Front Office Sports. “But the second piece really is who can guarantee the most exposure? That would mean being on network [television] as much as possible.” NBC is paying $20 million annually under its current three-year deal that expires at season’s end, and IndyCar has seen audience growth with the network. 

The 2023 season was the most-watched IndyCar Series season since ’11 and last Sunday’s Indy 500 qualifying session where Scott McLaughlin secured the pole averaged 1.2 million viewers on NBC, Peacock, and NBC Sports Digital—a 38% bump over last year.

The Captain’s Dilemma

Team Penske (above, right) swept the top three qualifying slots, the second time a team claimed the front row for an Indy 500 start in race history after two Penske cars did it in 1988.

It was a rebound for the team that has claimed a record 19 Indy 500 victories after Penske suspended team president Tim Cindric and three others earlier in the month for their ties to a cheating scandal uncovered weeks after the season-opening race in St. Petersburg, Fla.

“To see us come back from some adversity here shows how good our team is and what a deep bench we have,” Penske said.

Two-for-One Special?

Weather could complicate 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champ Kyle Larson’s attempt to become the fifth driver to pull off competing in the Indy 500 and NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on the same day. The forecast in Indianapolis calls for a high likelihood of rain at the 12:45 p.m. ET start time Sunday and continues through the afternoon. His NASCAR team owner, Rick Hendrick, told Fox Sports that it would “be very disappointing” to pull Larson out of his Indy 500 ride to make it to the North Carolina track in time.