Liberty Media plan to acquire IndyCar and turn it into an ‘American feeder series’ for F1

According to Peter Windsor, a respect F1 journalist, Liberty Media are looking into buying IndyCar - and turning it into an 'American feeder series' for F1.

Liberty Media plan to acquire IndyCar and turn it into an ‘American feeder series’ for F1

F1's owners, Liberty Media, are apparently looking to acquire IndyCar

Formula 1, at least in terms of ‘normal’ racing, is quite easily the most prestigious car racing series in the world. Of course, there is a lot of competition as well – like IndyCar, Formula E, or if you switch to ‘all’ racing series, then MotoGP. But most would agree, especially considering the popularity boom the sport has been experiencing in recent years, that it’s the ‘pinnacle of motorsport’, as it’s often called.

For many years, F1 was unable to truly crack the code of the USA. But in the past few years, with the introduction of Netflix’s ‘Drive to Survive‘, its popularity in America is booming. As a consequence of this, there will be three races held there in 2023. Still, however, there’s the challenge of an American F1 driver that can truly compete at the top, to engage fans. There’s Logan Sargeant, of course, but he’s currently toward the back end of the field.

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Perhaps to remedy this, Liberty Media, who own Formula 1, are apparently thinking of acquiring IndyCar. The series is very popular in the United States, and clearly the premier open-wheel series there. It also hosts the Indianapolis 500, which is considered to be one of the most prestigious racing events in the world. It would be quite a lucrative acquisition, except it aims to turn it into a ‘feeder series’.

FS Video

This is all according to Peter Windsor, a respected and popular F1 journalist. In a recent YouTube video, he said: “One of the things Liberty are looking at at the moment – and this is quite a good idea – is buying IndyCar to make it effectively an American feeder series for F1.” This could possibly solve the problem of the apparent lack of American drivers (or viewer interest in one) in F1, but it would definitely tank the prestige of IndyCar.

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Liberty Media to get rid of IndyCar’s ovals to make it more F1-like?

Peter Windsor says that Liberty Media want to turn IndyCar into a feeder series for F1
Peter Windsor says that Liberty Media want to turn IndyCar into a feeder series for F1

In addition, Peter Windsor reckons that Liberty Media could get rid of ‘some of the ovals’ in IndyCar, so that it would be more similar, and in turn, relevant, towards Formula 1. He said: “How they would do that, I don’t know – maybe get rid of some of the ovals and make it even more road coursey [sic], maybe make the cars a little bit more F1-like, maybe carbon brakes or whatever. Maybe that’s why Zak [Brown, CEO of McLaren] is there, I don’t know. That’s not a completely stupid idea.”

To Windsor, this acquisition would make a lot of sense. He added: “I think it’s quite a cool idea actually because it’s a place where you could put a lot of good, talented drivers who can’t make it into Formula 1 and then they go and do this American series. It makes sense to me to do that.” So, in a way, it would act as a feeder, but also as a Liberty-owned alternative to F1.

It’ll be interesting to see if this potential deal is a real thing, and if it would actually work out. IndyCar and F1 are often cited as competitors to each other, so acquiring the former would, so to say, break the back, of such comparisons. In theory, it may do much for F1’s popularity in the US, but, if IndyCar is turned into, or has the status of a ‘feeder series’, it may lose fans.

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