You’ve got to know when to hold ’em
Know when to fold ’em
Know when to walk away
And know when to run
You never count your money
When you’re sittin’ at the table
There’ll be time enough for countin’
When the dealin’s done
When IndyCar announced the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series schedule, Nashville Superspeedway’s date was confirmed for Sunday, July 19, so that the race broadcast on Fox could have a massive television ratings lead-in from the World Cup final match.
The reasoning was solid. The World Cup Final draws incredible viewership numbers every four years and did so again in 2026 with an average viewership just shy of 39,000,000 viewers and a peak viewership number of 51,685,000 during 5:45-6:00 p.m. ET.
The gamble was simple. If IndyCar could somehow retain just 5% of that peak viewership after the end of the World Cup as the Music City Grand Prix got underway, that would mean over two-and-a-half million viewers would see the start of the then-scheduled 300-lap race.
It was seemingly a guaranteed success. A massive viewership number looks great for companies looking to get into motorsport and exposes IndyCar to a massive television audience that might otherwise not channel hop and find it.
In theory, that’s solid reasoning, in theory.
However, there was one part of the equation that didn’t want to play nice: the weather.
The last time an IndyCar race was outright postponed for rain was in April of 2018 at Barber Motorsports Park. Persistent rain led to standing water and enough hydroplaning that Race Control called for the rest of the 90-lap race to be moved to Monday after 23 of those laps were completed.
It wasn’t ideal, but from a safety standpoint, there wasn’t anything IndyCar could’ve done to continue that race on Sunday.
Fast forward to July of 2026 and Spain and Argentina are deadlocked with no goals scored by either team. Two 15-minute periods of extra time are added on to help break the deadlock, further delaying IndyCar’s gamble.
That’s when the clouds started rolling in. Lightning strikes were visible from the ground and small sprinkles of rain began falling around the 1.33-mile oval.
Teams were instructed to bring their cars back to their spaces in the garage area and wait for further instructions. The rain got heavier, Spain finally scored during extra time and slowly but surely all hopes of The Gamble paying off were dashed away, leading to exasperated sighs of frustration between crew members, media, fans and IndyCar officials. Some wondered why the race had to wait; some wondered why not just go while the game was still on in the first place.
The series cannot be faulted for hitching this race to the World Cup Final broadcast for a ratings bump. The goal was simple: introduce the sport to a wider audience and get enough of them to stick around to see some exciting action.
Unfortunately, those hopes were blown away by Mother Nature.
As jet dryers were working on the track following a pause in rainfall, all of a sudden things didn’t look good again.
Three minutes after noticing the dark clouds overhead, it started raining again. Then it started pouring throughout the track.
Race Control had no choice. The race was postponed to Monday and shortened from 300 laps to 225 due to the extremely high temperatures.
This is when things got weird.
The race was scheduled for a 3:00 p.m. ET broadcast window on FOX, but several FOX affiliates around the country did not get the memo and showed various other programs instead.
Ratings bump? Hold that thought.
Many fans with infield passes received word that their access to the pit lane or the garage area would not be valid for Monday due to the schedule, but not every type of single-event, non-working pass was denied entry.
Confusing, right? Yeah, you’re not the only one, and it’s crazier to think that loyal IndyCar fans spent nearly $200 on pit/garage access for some to be told that those passes would not be honored.
Was that it? No. IndyCar Nation post-race victory lane photos were canceled, water refill stations underneath the grandstands were removed and water was still being sold at normal prices until cooler heads prevailed and water prices were slashed from their regular price of $4.50 to $1 despite heat indexes of over 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
An imperfect storm graced Nashville Superspeedway this past weekend and the off-target execution of Monday’s race day was evident for all to see. But what could have changed?
There needed to be clearer communication about infield passes. For those who had purchased said access and were now denied it, refunds or attempts to make things right should be made for those who believe they did not get what they paid their hard-earned money for.
As for the water refill stations, it’s possible that those were rented for the weekend and they had to be returned for Monday. However, more water needed to be available for spectators with temperatures as high as they were and with some concession stands running out of water early in the race.
To think that Iowa Speedway was handing out free bottles of water during their post-race concerts the last few years IndyCar raced at the track while water was hard to find at Nashville is mind-boggling.
Other than the competitors themselves, the number one priority for an event of this magnitude needs to be the fans and their experience. While progress was made in some areas (cooling stations and concessions in the infield, other concessions outside the track), the metaphorical ball was dropped when it came to how race day was handled.
It’s easy to pass judgment on fans going to a race from semi-air-conditioned accommodations, but those fans are what make IndyCar racing what it is. Those fans praise IndyCar when things go right and have every right to criticize when things go wrong with either the series or the venues it visits.
They don’t criticize because it’s fun or easy to do. Don’t get me wrong, it’s extremely easy to criticize, especially in this age of digital media we all live in. Those fans criticize the sport they love because they care and they want it to be better. They want new fans to have the same experiences that made them fall in love with one of the fastest forms of racing on Earth.
That’s why things need to be made right with the fans that went to the race. From the ones that paid for garage access and were denied to the ones who had IndyCar Nation perks that were paid for and denied, things need to be made right with your core fans, and it’s good to hear that Doug Boles has been reaching out to hear from those affected by the rain delay.
There were no winners this weekend outside of Alex Palou. IndyCar didn’t get the big ratings bump it was hoping to get from having a World Cup lead-in. Nashville Superspeedway didn’t have enough measures in place to help alleviate spectators from the intense heat and were getting tarred and feathered left, right and center.
The fans lost out from all of the logistical nightmares previously described and drivers lost out due to a green racetrack not having any rubber in the high groove and limiting side-by-side racing, which would have been even better for the fans in attendance.
Circumstances turned one of IndyCar’s biggest gambles of the year into a dismal result.
Every hand last weekend was a loser, but at least nobody died in their sleep.
Christopher DeHarde has covered IndyCar racing and the Road to Indy for various outlets since 2014. In addition to open wheel racing, DeHarde has also covered IMSA and various short track racing events around Indiana. Originally from New Orleans, DeHarde moved to the Indianapolis area in 2017 to further pursue a career as a motorsports writer.
Shows that NO ONE in Indy Car follows soccer. Teams play for a Zero-Zero tie, as the ultimate goal. Since it’s the final it can’t end in a tie. Also, Fox planned a four hour pre-game, so they needed at least a two hour post game show. Nice try, but ignorant at best.