Will Buxton set for IndyCar on FOX debut broadcast in St. Pete

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The track may be the same and the drivers are still fast. However, there is one giant difference at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg this year: how you watch the race.

"I always say if you get somebody to watch an IndyCar race once, you've got them hooked for life," said IndyCar on FOX broadcaster Will Buxton.

With the entire IndyCar season coming to FOX 13, a new voice will be charged with bringing you the sights, sounds and stories of IndyCar.

That voice is Buxton's, as the longtime motorsports journalist and commentator shocked race fans around the world by leaving his role as a reporter for Formula 1 and crossing the pond to lead FOX's IndyCar broadcast booth.

Will Buxton says he's ready to be the voice of IndyCar on FOX.

What they're saying:

"It's the fastest racing on Earth and when this opportunity came up it was just something I just couldn't turn down," Buxton said.

Buxton isn't new to North America's open wheel racing series, however, after previously serving as a pit lane reporter for the series with NBC Sports.

"I've always loved IndyCar," Buxton said. "It has been a passion of mine, more as a fan, than professionally."

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But just because Buxton has a past covering the sport doesn't mean he hasn't had to give himself a crash course in all things IndyCar.

"This deal came about around Christmastime," Buxton recalled. "I had to use my Christmas money from my mum to go out and buy a few. I say a few, but I've actually got about 15 books behind me."

But Buxton isn't just bringing his passion for motorsports history to the broadcast booth, but is bringing along his unique and candid brand of storytelling that has endeared him to race fans around the world.

And thanks his regular appearances on the Netflix docuseries Drive to Survive, fans around the world got to see Buxton's Candor first hand, even if those appearances gained Buxton a bit of a unique reputation.

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"I have to embrace it because my daughter calls me a meme," Buxton joked.

Meme or not, Buxton's passion for racing is what he is looking forward to bringing to the broadcast booth and to the streets of St. Pete.

"I care deeply about this championship and this season and about doing a good job for the fans around the world and for the fans we hope to bring to the championship as well," Buxton said.

If you can't make it in person to the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, you can watch live coverage on FOX 13 beginning at noon on Sunday, March 2.

The Source: Information for this story was gathered by FOX 13's Sean Barie.

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