'The Fastest Motorsport': When a Dragster Driver Takes on FOX and IndyCar

"Welcome to the fastest racing on Earth" was the catchphrase at the end of each of the three commercials that FOX aired before and during the Super Bowl in February. The Rupert Murdoch-run network acquired the television rights to theIndyCar starting with the 2025 season. The American network therefore wanted to highlight this new property, with results since the first round of the season in St. Petersburg attracted 45% more viewers than last year.

All this did not go down well with Bob Tasca III, a Funny Car driver in the NHRA, the major drag racing championship in the United States. After a qualifying run, he did not mince his words about FOX, which he felt had decided to dishonestly promote IndyCar when drag racing machines can easily exceed 500 km/h, all in 400 meters.

“I should talk about my run, but I really have to call out FOX Sports. All winter I’ve heard about the fastest motorsport on the planet, and I haven’t seen my Mustang in those ads, or even a drag car! It’s an insult to our fans and drivers to say on TV that the fastest motorsport in the world is IndyCar. I didn’t know the fake news network was FOX!”

Statements made on the microphone of… FOX Sports, and which did not fail to get people talking across the Atlantic. It is not impossible that the American driver will have to apologize, the NHRA counting heavily on its television rights, and the exposure it gains from being broadcast on the FOX group channels throughout the season.

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