SO FOX DIDN'T SEEM PREPARED FOR '500' RAIN DELAY ... NO EXCUSES

 Lots of Stuff … from holiday weekend … the good and the bad ...


THE BAD: Fox coverage of the Indianapolis 500 … 

So, the network was handed a curve ball when the 

start was delayed almost an hour by rain. So what? 

It’s happened before … like 14 times. No excuses … 

for DANICA PATRICK and TONY STEWART

former drivers, saying nothing of substance during a 

much-too-long time-killing segment that not even 

pre-race host CHRIS MYERS, one of the few 

seasoned talking heads hired by Fox to work the 

109thedition of the could save … SCOTT 

McLAUGHLINsuddenly lost control and wrecked 

on the pace lap. When the network then showed

 SCOTT DIXON, running alone, it was speculated 

immediately he had tangled with McLaughlin … 

although there was little to no evidence. Finally, Fox 

found a replay of McLaughlin, spinning out on his 

own. Wonderful … To think JAIME LITTLE, once 

they bothered to turn on her microphone on, earlier 

interviewed 2019 ‘500’ winner SIMON 

PAGENAUD, on hand to help McLaughlin from the 

pits. “Scott reached out to me to help him speed up 

the process of learning the Indianapolis Motor 

Speedway,” Pagenaud said. “He’s one of the best 

I’ve ever seen. Give him the tools, and he’s going to 

use it.” Oops!


The race started under caution … but the three-man 

booth of WILL BUXTON and ex-drivers

 TOWNSEND BELL and JAMES 

HINCHCLIFFE was already running full speed, 

motor-mouths of the worst kind … yapping non-

stop, like they were getting paid by the word … No 

sooner did Bell suggest the track didn’t

look slick than McLaughlin crashed … attempting to 

warm up his tires. (We almost forgot: The machines 

were lined up on the front stretch, the drivers already 

strapped in, when Fox suddenly realized it was 

running a graphic about the ‘500’ being held 

“tonight.”) … MICHAEL STRAHANdrove the 

pace car. So, naturally, Fox ran a feature on the 

former football player now featured on the network’s 

NFL studio show as well as ABC’s Good Morning 

America” entitled “WHAT IF MICHAEL 

STRAHAN WAS AN INDY CAR DRIVER? “I 

could have been a race car driver, but I grew out of 

it,” he said. “Too big.” … Then there was TOM 

BRADY, whose debut as NFL analyst on Fox was 

seriously panned by critics. Poor guy. Can’t get a 

break. There he was, being driven around the 2 1/2-

mile track by JIMMIE JOHNSON … and Bell 

thanked Brady for “throwing a football around 


backstage.” To which QB G.O.A.T, replied, “Hey, 

you’ve got better hands than I thought. I could have 

replaced you with Edelman.” … No, Tom, other way 

around … replace former Patriots’ receiver JULIAN 

EDELMANwith …. oh, never mind. You’re still 

making $37.5 million a year with Fox. 



THE GOOD: Talk about an about-face. The firm of 

Buxton, Bell and Hinchcliffe settled down and did a 

first-rate call … at least as best I could tell, not being 

as familiar with the Indy Car circuit as I was way, 

WAY back in the day … Buxton, who joined Fox 

after being a voice of Formula 1, was very good … 

He was spot on with immediate analysis of what led 

to KYLE LARSON’s premature end on lap 92 (of 

200). “He just lost it … That was a down shift he did 

not need,” Buxton said … Spinning out of control, 

Larson was clipped by [name of the year, any year]

 STING RAY ROBB, leading to a multi-car 

accident. Running 18th, the NASCAR regular was 

bidding to join Stewart as the only drivers to 

complete 500 miles at Indianapolis then 600 more at 

Charlotte Motor Speedway that night … Larson 

finished 27th (later bumped up to 24th when three 

drivers failed post-race inspection)then flew to North 

Carolina in time for Sunday’s 6 p.m., start of the race 

formerly known as World 600 … in which he came 

in 37th.



THE GOOD: KEN WILLIS, co-host of Daytona 

Motor Mouths podcast. I know, I know … I never 

heard of him either … but there he was, cool, calm 

and actually saying stuff, without fear (apparently) of 

retaliation from NASCAR … when he said: “There 

haven’t been many good short-track races,” and, no, 

he didn’t think North Wilkesboro should be added to 

the points race just because they had a classic, 

Classic event there this year … There is no guarantee 

of more of the same in 2026, Willis suggested. Why? 

For one thing, aging tracks continue to age. For 

another, Goodyear, which supplies tires, keeps 

changing compounds of rubber. Just because it hit 

the mark this time, chances were just as good it 

wouldn’t next time.



THE BAD: … news, that is, for the WNBA.

 CAITLIN CLARK suffered a left quadriceps 

injury that will sideline her for at least six games … 

and should have reminded everyone how much she 

has meant to interest in the women’s game … like a 

lot … For example, tickets for the Indiana-at-

Chicago game June 7 already have tumbled 71 

percent, from $86 to $25 … TV ratings will fall, too. 

Clark and the Fever vs. Chicago in the season-opener 

was the most-watched WNBA game all-time … 

averaging 2.7 million viewers on all of ESPN’s 

platforms.



THE GOOD: The cast of TNT/ESPN NHL studio 

playoff crew. It’s not so much what they say … as 

how much fun they seem to be having … Former 

tough guy PAUL BISSONNETTE, in particular, is a 

gem … taking shots at anything and everything as 

well as himself … His love of the Toronto Maple 

Leafs has been well-documented … so his cheering 

for them unabashedly made for different coverage 

that was well-taken, believe it or not.


Until next time …















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