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Fox Sports
27-05-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Indy 500 Draws Biggest TV Rating Since 2008 in FOX Debut
INDYCAR Alex Palou wasn't the only big winner in the 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge last Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. FOX Sports attracted 7.05 million viewers in the Nielsen Fast National ratings for its first telecast of 'The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,' the most-watched edition of the race since 2008. The rating marked a 40 percent increase over last year's broadcast, which drew 5.02 million viewers. The broadcast reached a peak audience of 8.4 million viewers from 4:15-4:30 p.m. ET, when Palou drove his No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda to his first '500' victory in a thrilling finish and enjoyed a jubilant celebration on track and on the Victory Podium with his CGR teammates. INDYCAR and FOX Sports are in the first year of a broadcast partnership that is delivering dramatic gains in exposure for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and INDY NXT by Firestone. All 17 races in the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule are televised on FOX network, the only major premier motorsport in the United States with exclusive major broadcast network coverage for all its races. The next race is the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear on Sunday, June 1 on the streets of Detroit. Live race coverage starts at 12:30 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app. recommended
Epoch Times
27-05-2025
- Automotive
- Epoch Times
Spain's Alex Palou Wins Indy 500
INDIANAPOLIS—Alex Palou took the ceremonial swig of milk in victory lane at the Indianapolis 500. He allowed his wife to have a sip, she in turn gave a sip to their baby, and team owner Chip Ganassi ended up with the bottle and took a drink, as well. 'I have to tell you, it was the best milk I ever had,' Palou said. The first Spaniard to win 'The Greatest Spectacle in Racing' then took a victory lap with his entourage around Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the back of a pickup truck. At one point, Palou climbed onto its roof and raised his arms in triumph, the winning wreath draped around his neck. He briefly lost his balance and Ganassi instinctively reached out to grab his star driver. No need. Palou rarely makes a wrong move. Palou came to the speedway as the two-time defending IndyCar champion—he has three titles in four years—and had opened this year with victories in four of the first five races. It's the kind of start not seen since 1964, when A.J. Foyt won the first seven races of the season, including the Indy 500. Related Stories 5/24/2025 5/18/2025 But it was win No. 6 that Palou had circled on his calendar. Without an Indy 500 win, he said, his career would be incomplete. 'Like he said last week, if he was to go through his whole career and not win here at Indianapolis, it wouldn't be a complete career,' Ganassi said. 'I don't want to say his career is complete now—he's got a lot in him yet. Look at the last five, six races we've had. It's just incredible. He's on a roll.' Such a roll that IndyCar officials were trying to hustle along the postrace commitments for Palou to get him downtown to watch the Indiana Pacers play the New York Knicks in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals. Palou on Saturday wore a Tyrese Haliburton jersey in the Indy 500 parade. 'That's going to help some people in Indiana to know me,' Palou said. Palou was in fuel-saving mode over the closing laps, following former Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Marcus Ericsson. Palou got tired of staying put with 16 laps remaining and charged ahead—a move Ericsson said 'will keep me up at night. What I did and what I didn't do.' Palou was never challenged from there, taking the checkered flag as a crash brought out a caution. He stopped the car just beyond the Yard of Bricks, climbing out of it and nearly losing his balance as he raised his arms in triumph. Palou jumped down and took off in a run down the front stretch, pulling off his gloves and tossing them behind him, and ultimately was engulfed by his father, Ramon, and his team in a jubilant celebration. Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti both hugged him, a pair of former Ganassi Indy 500 winners welcoming him into their exclusive club. He wasn't sure what the win will do for him Spain, which celebrates Formula 1 drivers Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz Jr., but Palou said for the first time he can recall he saw throngs of fans with Spanish flags chanting his name at an IndyCar race. 'It makes it extra special that I'm the first Spanish driver to win it,' Palou said. 'But honestly, if I was the 50th Spanish driver to win, I would be as happy as I am now.' Meanwhile, Ericsson climbed from his car in pit lane and pressed his hands to his face, the disappointment of coming oh-so-close to a second Indianapolis 500 victory etched across his face. David Maluks was third for A.J. Foyt Racing. 'It's pretty painful,' Ericsson said of his second career Indy 500 runner-up finish. 'I need to look at it again. You replay it in your head a million times after the finish, wondering what I could have done differently. Second means nothing in this race.' Josef Newgarden's bid to win three consecutive Indy 500s ended with a fuel pump issue. He was trying to become the first driver to come from the back row to win because he and Team Penske teammate Will Power were dropped to the back of the field for failing inspection before the final rounds of qualifying. Power wound up 19th, the highest-finishing Penske driver on a miserable day for the organization owned by Roger Penske. He earlier this week fired his top three IndyCar executives for a second technical infraction in just over a year, and has had to defend the optics of his teams failing inspections when he also owns IndyCar, Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indy 500. Penske has won the Indy 500 a record 20 times. It was the sixth Indy 500 win for Ganassi, who has been on a dominating wave since hiring Palou before the 2021 season. Palou won the championship in his first year with the team, added two more titles, and now seems on pace for a fourth one. 'I'll tell you what, that kid's a good driver. I think he's off to a good start,' Ganassi said. 'We're gonna have a good season. It might be OK. Yeah, might be okay. Might be looking at a championship.' Ganassi also vowed that winning the Indy 500 win 'is going to make Alex Palou's career. It is going to make his life.' Palou started the race tied with Pato O'Ward as the co-favorites, listed at +500 by BetMGM Sportsbook. O'Ward finished fourth—the fifth time in six career starts the Mexican has finished sixth or higher. Kyle Larson won't complete 'the double' after crashing out of the Indianapolis 500 before he headed to North Carolina to compete in the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR race. By Jenna Fryer
Boston Globe
27-05-2025
- Automotive
- Boston Globe
Indy 500 runner-up Marcus Ericsson penalized to rear for unapproved car modifications
IndyCar said the modifications made by Andretti Global were to the Energy Management System covers provided by Dallara, the company that provides the chassis for the series. The rulebook states that those parts must be used as supplied. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Ericsson and Kirkwood had to forfeit their prize money and championship points from their original finish, and instead will receive the money and points for their penalized finish. Each of the cars also was fined $100,000 and the competition managers for the teams have been suspended for the upcoming race on the streets of Detroit. Advertisement It was an incredibly costly swing for Andretti as the Indy 500 purse this year was a record $20,283,000, with winner Palou set to receive $3.8 million. Ericsson will receive $610,500 for finishing 31st when he could have earned up to a $1 million in second. Advertisement A dream realized. A legacy fulfilled. You are an — NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) Kirkwood initially was credited with a sixth-place finish, but once dropped to 32nd received $607,500. 'We had a great race, we came across the line in sixth,' Kirkwood said. 'We'll go through the [review] process and this team is built on sportsmanship, they are built on integrity and we'll try to do everything right in the future.' The disqualifications changed the podium finishing order, with David Malukas of A.J. Foyt Racing moving up to second and Pato O'Ward of Arrow McLaren moving up to third. For the Foyt team, combined with Santino Ferrucci's adjusted fifth-place finish, it marked the best Indy 500 finish in 25 years for the team. The No. 90 car of Callum Ilott also failed post-race technical inspection after it failed to meet the minimum endplate height and location specification. Prema Racing was handed the same penalties as Andretti Global, which means rather than 12th, Ilott will be credited with finishing last in 'The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.' 'Oh,' Ilott posted on social media after learning of the penalty. His payout was decreased to $155,300. 'I was at brunch and it was ruined.' Ilott's teammate at Prema, rookie Robert Shwartzman, was named top rookie of the race after becoming the first rookie to win the pole since 1983. Ilott joked he was almost late to the awards ceremony because he was searching for Shwartzman for a loan to pay the IndyCar fine. Prema said in a statement that Ilott's front wing endplate did not meet minimum height and passed technical inspection multiple times. 'The issue didn't lead to any performance gain, the car ended up being non-compliant with the rules at the end of the race, so the team accepts full responsibility,' Prema said. 'The team is currently investigating the root of the problem. We look forward to implementing the needed procedures to ensure improved control and avoid these kinds of issues in the future.' Advertisement Doug Boles, the president of IndyCar and Indianapolis Motor Speedway, said at the annual Monday night awards ceremony that Ericsson, Kirkwood, and Ilott were all given the opportunity to skip the event but showed anyway. 'To a man, Marcus, Kyle and Callum, all said 'We would not miss an opportunity to come to the victory banquet for the greatest race on earth,' ' Boles said. 'And that tells you the character of the drivers who are in the cars in the IndyCar Series.' Ericsson, already devastated by his second runner-up finish in the biggest race of the world, said the disqualification was another blow. 'I don't know the details enough, it's so fresh and the team is reviewing it all,' Ericsson said before the awards ceremony. 'It's obviously very harsh penalties, but if that's the rules, then that's the rules. We respect the integrity of the sport.' IndyCar's inspection process came under scrutiny a week before the race, when the Team Penske cars of two-time winner Newgarden and Power were unable to compete in the second round of qualifying, and instead had to start in the final row of the 11-row grid. Newgarden ended up having a fuel pump issue and finished 25th and Power finished 19th, though both of them will move up three spots following the penalties to Andretti Global and Prema Racing. Advertisement 'This is a moment that I think we all can use to move forward because in our most difficult times is when true character is shown,' Boles said. 'As a community, we're going to get stronger. We're going to get better. We're going to show everyone why we had 7 million viewers watch this Indy 500.' Sunday's race averaged averaged 7.05 million viewers on Fox, according to Nielsen. That is the largest audience since 2008, when Scott Dixon's win averaged 7.25 million on ABC, and a 40 percent increase from last year when the race averaged 5.02 million on NBC. The viewer numbers peaked at 8.44 million for the race's conclusion from 4:15-4:30 p.m.. It was also the first time since 2016, the 100th running of the Indy 500, that (AP Auto Racing Writer Jenna Fryer contributed to this report.)
Fox Sports
26-05-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Indianapolis 500 payout reaches all-time high for fourth consecutive year
When Álex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing won the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday for the first time in his career, he earned $3.8 million from a purse of $20,283,000 — the largest total purse of all time. It also continued a trend of the Indianapolis 500's total winnings reaching a new peak for the fourth consecutive year. This year's average payout for INDYCAR drivers was $596,500, which also exceeded last year's average of $543,000. In 2024, the purse for "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" was $18,456,000, and winner Josef Newgarden got a payout was $4.3 million, which included a $440,000 roll-over bonus from BorgWarner for earning back- to-back wins. In 2023, the purse was $17,021,500, and the winner, Newgarden, earned $3.7 million. In 2022, it was $16,000,200, and winner Marcus Ericsson earned $3.1 million. Prior to 2022, the largest Indy 500 purse was $14.4 million in 2008. "The Indianapolis 500 is the greatest race in the world, and winning this race makes history in more ways than one," INDYCAR and IMS president J. Douglas Boles said. "The Month of May featured a grandstand sellout crowd and intense on-track action. Àlex Palou adds Indianapolis 500 winner to his long list of growing achievements and takes home the largest purse in Indianapolis 500 history. There's no better way to end an epic month." Pole-winner Robert Shwartzman of PREMA Racing earned Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year honors for his performance during the Month of May. Shwartzman earned a $50,000 bonus for being named Rookie of the Year, adding to a total take-home prize of $327,300. The Indianapolis 500 purse consists of Indianapolis Motor Speedway and INDYCAR awards, plus other designated and special awards. Purse awards are presented annually at the Victory Celebration, which is being held this year at the JW Marriott in downtown Indianapolis on Monday night. The 2025 INDYCAR season will continue with the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix on Sunday, June 1 on the streets of Downtown Detroit. The race will be broadcasted live on FOX and the INDYCAR Radio Network at 12:30 p.m. ET. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily ! FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience NTT INDYCAR SERIES recommended Get more from NTT INDYCAR SERIES Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Japan Today
26-05-2025
- Automotive
- Japan Today
Indy 500 runner-up Ericsson, teammate Kirkwood penalized to rear for unapproved car modifications
Marcus Ericsson, of Sweden, waits for the start of qualification for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Saturday, May 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy) auto racing By DAVE SKRETTA Indianapolis 500 runner-up Marcus Ericsson was penalized to the rear of the 33-car field along with Andretti Global teammate Kyle Kirkwood on Monday after their cars were found to have unapproved modifications in the post-race inspection that could have helped their aerodynamic efficiency. Ericsson finished second to Alex Palou on Sunday when he was unable to make a winning pass in the closing laps. He now will be credited with a 31st-place finish while Kirkwood, who had finished sixth, has been relegated to 32nd. IndyCar said the modifications made by Andretti Global were to the Energy Management System covers provided by Dallara, the company that provides the chassis for the series. The rulebook states that those parts must be used as supplied. Ericsson and Kirkwood had to forfeit their prize money and championship points from their original finish, and instead will receive the money and points for their penalized finish. Each of the cars also was fined $100,000 and the competition managers for the teams have been suspended for the upcoming race on the streets of Detroit. The No. 90 car of Callum Ilott also failed post-race technical inspection after it failed to meet the minimum endplate height and location specification. Prema Racing was handed the same penalties as Andretti Global, which means rather than 12th, Ilott will be credited with finishing last in 'The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.' IndyCar's inspection process came under scrutiny a week before the race, when the Team Penske cars of two-time winner Josef Newgarden and Will Power were found to have had unapproved modifications to the rear shock-absorbing attenuator. Newgarden and Power were unable to compete in the second round of qualifying, and instead had to start in the final row of the 11-row grid. Newgarden ended up having a fuel pump issue and finished 25th and Power finished 19th, though both of them will move up three spots following the penalties to Andretti Global and Prema Racing. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
