​IndyCar viewership continues its upward trajectory in 2026, with Sunday’s Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio marking another strong example. Fox attracted 1.344 million viewers for the road course race, representing a 73% increase from last year when the broadcast drew 775,000 viewers. The peak audience came between 2:30 and 2:42 p.m., when 1.541 million viewers watched Pato O’Ward clinch his first win of the season. Overall, IndyCar is averaging 1.979 million viewers this year, up 18% from 2025.
Eight of IndyCar’s 11 races so far in 2026 have surpassed one million viewers, and 10 events have drawn at least 900,000 viewers. Fox’s second year carrying IndyCar, and its first full year since acquiring a one-third stake in the series, has been largely successful.
The next race on the calendar is the Music City Grand Prix, scheduled for July 19. The green flag is tentatively slated for around 5:40 p.m. following Fox’s coverage of the World Cup final. Pre-race coverage for the Music City Grand Prix will air on FS1 at 4:30 p.m., leaving only a brief gap between the start of the broadcast on the network and the green flag.
IndyCar and Fox are aiming to convert World Cup viewership into sustained interest that could rival the interest in the Indianapolis 500, which drew 6.635 million viewers this season. For historical context, the 2022 World Cup final drew 25.8 million viewers in the United States.
Zion Brown is IndyStar’s motorsports reporter. You can follow him at @z10nbr0wn. To get IndyStar’s motorsports coverage delivered directly to your inbox, subscribe to our Motor Sports newsletter. You can also follow IndyStar TV on YouTube for behind-the-scenes perspectives and expert analysis on IndyCar.
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