Scott McLaughlin drops 3-word reaction as IndyCar scales 1.4 million viewership at St. Pete

IndyCar driver Scott McLaughlin, who took the pole position at the 2025 Firestone Grand Prix of St Petersburg, took to social media platform X and reacted to the viewership number of the race in Florida. FOX’s public relations account shared the number as the Team Penske driver praised the media group with a three-word reaction.

The 2025 Grand Prix of St Pete was the first IndyCar race broadcasted by FOX in partnership with the series. Penske Entertainment and FOX agreed to enter the partnership starting in 2025, giving the media group exclusive broadcasting rights, which NBC previously owned.

FOX’s PR team revealed that the 2025 Grand Prix of St Petersburg averaged over 1.4 million viewers across the FOX broadcast and streaming platforms with peak viewership figures of 1.8 million. This was a 45% increase in the viewership figures compared to the 2024 race, which averaged 975,000 viewers. FOX’s tweet read:

“OFF. AND. RACING! 🏁 FOX Sports opens the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES in a big way with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg scoring a 14-year high and peaking at more than 1.8 million viewers!”

“Only just started 💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻,” wrote Scott McLaughlin as he reacted to FOX’s tweet.

Scott McLaughlin took the pole position by over two seconds at the St. Pete GP. However, an early caution allowed the alternate tire runners to essentially get a free pitstop. Despite the disadvantage, McLaughlin managed to finish the race in P4, just 8 seconds behind the winner, Alex Palou.

FOX started promoting the IndyCar series as early as the 2024 holiday season and later released the promo featuring Josef Newgarden, Alex Palou and Pato O'Ward. Scott McLaughlin was among the drivers who hailed IndyCar's decision to partner with FOX and reacted positively to the promos.

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“It was perfect”: Scott McLaughlin hailed Josef Newgarden's FOX promo

FOX released the Josef Newgarden promo earlier this year in January, which portrayed the Team Penske driver as the hero in different situations. The promo also featured cameos from Alex Palou and NFL quarterback Tom Brady.

The promo received a positive response from the public, and Newgarden's teammate, Scott McLaughlin, also hailed it. Speaking on the Pit Pass Indy podcast, McLaughlin said:

"I thought it was perfect. It was great. They tapped into everything that is Josef and you know, the funny side as well. I thought it was awesome for the sport and thought Palou's cameo was great... It's edgy, it's fun, it's different, but it's exactly what we are as a sport." (7:40 onwards)

FOX brought part of the IndyCar promos to life at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, which included a booth for the Ethanol perfume in Newgarden's promo and a booth for the one-man boy band in Pato O'Ward's promo.