Zak Brown urges IndyCar to "slipstream" F1's proven product in FOX era

McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown extensively oversees the British outfit's work in motorsports. With his hands firmly placed in both F1 and IndyCar markets, the 53-year-old asserted how IndyCar should "slipstream" off F1's successful model by increasing its marketability value worldwide.

In the F1 realm, a major surge in the sport's popularity was derived from Liberty Media's takeover, which aided the series to enter into the entertainment world. Netflix's sports series, 'Drive To Survive' is one of the major reasons for the sport's ever-increasing marketability.

While IndyCar's counterpart '100 Days to Indy' was set up, it did not yield such results. Moreover, with the newly announced FOX Sports-IndyCar deal cracking through, Zak Brown explained how the American series could learn from F1's success and adapt its model heading into the future with FOX Sports (via Motorsport.com):

"I don't think it [IndyCar] slipstreams Formula 1 as much as it could. They kind of want to be their own thing, which I think is great but when you see how popular Formula 1 is -- I don't see Formula 1 and IndyCar competitive with each other. I think they [IndyCar] should slipstream on the back of Formula 1's success. I think they need to do more of that."

Arrow McLaren currently has three charters in the American premier open-wheel racing series. It is the most charters a team has tied with Chip Ganassi Racing.

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Zak Brown lamented the charter system in place in IndyCar

Zak Brown at the 108th Running of the Indianapolis 500 - Source: Getty

Zak Brown voiced his concerns about the charter system in September 2024. He was unhappy with the current way the charters worked and were allocated. The 53-year-old deemed the current system as inauthentic (via The Race):

"On the business side, I understand the desire for the newly developed charter system for IndyCar teams, but in my view, what's presented doesn't really move the dial. We need a structure that aligns the teams with the growth of the series, so perhaps we should look at evolving the charter system into a true franchise model, with a defined revenue-sharing stream that ensures long-term viability for the competitors.

Healthy teams mean better racing, and better racing means a better experience around the Americas for IndyCar fans," Brown said.

Apart from this, McLaren is doing well in various motorsport series. The British outfit is leading the championship in Formula E, while the IndyCar and F1 seasons are slated to start in March.

Arrow McLaren would field proven race winner Pato O'Ward, Christian Lundgaard, and Alexander Rossi as the team's lineup. The trio is expected to give tough competition to rival teams in the highly anticipated 2025 IndyCar season.