Netflix Drive to Survive and F1 TV star Will Buxton eyed for shock new broadcast role
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Will Buxton could land a new TV role in IndyCar which would limit his Formula 1 coverage in 2025. Fox Sports has landed the US broadcast rights for the IndyCar Series and will take over from long-standing rights holders NBC from this year. It makes the open-wheel series the only motorsport with its full season being shown free-to-air in America.
And the broadcaster is keen to put together a strong presenting team in order to capitalise on its investment. According to the Sports Business Journal, Buxton is being considered thanks to his reputation and popularity among motorsport fans, particularly in the US.
Buxton has been an F1 broadcaster for more than a decade, having started off working for US channels Speed and then NBC Sports. In 2018, after the latter lost the rights to show F1 in the States, he joined F1 TV and has been the lead presenter for the sport's own broadcast coverage since.
But the main reason why the 43-year-old is instantly recognisable to most F1 fans is because of his role as an on-screen narrator and analyst on the popular Netflix programme Formula 1: Drive to Survive, which is credited with bringing millions of new fans to the sport since it became an international hit during the Covid pandemic.
The Race reports Buxton has yet to make a decision over his plans for the 2025 season. But if he were to accept the IndyCar presenting role, it would significantly limit his F1 TV appearances and the amount of time he can spent in the Formula 1 paddock this year.
There will be 17 IndyCar races held this season, with the season beginning on March 2 with the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in Florida. That curtain-raiser would not clash with the F1 season which begins on March 16 with the Australian Grand Prix, but between March 23 and August 31, when the IndyCar season ends, there are no fewer than eight direct clashes between the two series.
