IndyCar's St. Petersburg GP shatters viewership record as FOX hits the mark

IndyCar's first race of the 2025 season has reached a new 14-year viewership high. The Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 2, which defending champion Alex Palou won, averaged 1.4 million viewers, up 45% from last year's race at the same Florida circuit, which had a Total Audience Delivery (a metric that NBC used and FOX Sports doesn't) of 975,000 viewers.

According to FOX, the season opener's viewership peaked at 1.8 million viewers, and it became the most-watched non-Indy 500 race in 14 years. The 2011 season-opener was the most-watched race with 1.84 million viewers on ABC.

This viewership record is a culmination of FOX's phenomenal promotional boost for IndyCar. The American media giant went all out in creating innovative commercials, which began with the one centered around defending two-time Indy 500 winner, Josef Newgarden and a cameo by NFL legend Tom Brady. That promo was shown to 32.9 million viewers during the NFL Wild Card playoffs game between the Eagles and Packers in January.

The second commercial featuring defending champ Alex Palou was shown to an even bigger audience of 44.2 million viewers during the NFC Championship game between the Eagles and the Commanders. The third and final promo featuring Pato O'Ward, along with the first two, was aired during Super Bowl 59 between the Chiefs and the Eagles on February 9, which witnessed 127.7 million viewers tuning in to make it the most-watched Super Bowl ever.

FOX has been making full use of its NFL broadcasts to cross-promote IndyCar. The promos were also aired during the 2025 Daytona 500, which William Byron won.

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IndyCar's new lead commentator Will Buxton reacts to the viewership numbers for St. Pete

Will Buxton at the F1 Grand Prix of Japan - Source: Getty

IndyCar's new play-by-play commentator Will Buxton, who left F1 after a seven-year stint in 2025, reacted to FOX's viewership numbers on social media platform X. The Grand Prix of St. Petersburg was Buxton's first race as an IndyCar commentator.

The Briton replied to FOX's viewership post and promised how this is only the beginning of something bigger for the premier American open-wheel racing series.

"Phenomenal. Thank you all so much for tuning in. This is just the start. So much more ahead, from the broadcast, from the championship. Incredible tracks, incredible teams, incredible drivers. And every race, in one place. We’ve only just begun," he wrote in an X post.

Though FOX encountered several broadcasting hiccups during the St. Pete race weekend, it hit the ground running in the bigger picture. The second race weekend of the 2025 IndyCar season is up in three weeks with the Thermal Club Grand Prix from March 21 to 23. Last year, it hosted the $1 million Challenge and was a non-points-paying race.