Broadcasters' 'Fast Friday' INDYCAR practice rewind videos draw viewers

INDYCAR and FOX Sports spent May 15 turning a practice day into on-demand qualifying setup for Indianapolis 500 fans. The series posted a full “Fast Friday Practice Rewind” on YouTube and a separate 40-minute highlight package on its official site, while FOX Sports published qualifying coverage information tied to the same weekend buildup. INDYCAR described the video package as the final two hours of Fast Friday practice, with teams “turn up the boost” ahead of qualifying weekend. After rain wiped out Saturday qualifying, those practice videos became one of the clearest official windows into which cars looked quick before the field-setting runs. ### Which videos were posted, and when did they go up? May 15 is the date attached to INDYCAR’s official “Fast Friday Practice Highlights: 2026 Indianapolis 500” video on IndyCar.com. The series said the package featured “extended highlights” from Fast Friday practice as teams topped 240 mph entering qualifying weekend. The INDYCAR YouTube channel also posted a “2026 Indy 500 Fast Friday Practice Rewind” stream covering the final two hours of the session. (youtube.com) The description said drivers were chasing “blistering speeds” ahead of qualifying weekend for the 110th running of the race. FOX Sports, for its part, published a May 16 guide to qualifying that pointed viewers to the television and streaming windows for the weekend. (indycar.com) That story said drivers had practiced Tuesday through Friday, with Friday carrying the extra boost used to prepare for qualifying. ### Why did Fast Friday matter more than a normal practice session? (youtube.com) Friday’s session is the one INDYCAR and FOX both tied directly to qualifying trim. FOX Sports said drivers get “the extra boost Friday to prepare for qualifying,” and INDYCAR’s own highlight description emphasized that speeds climbed above 240 mph before pole weekend. (foxsports.com) Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s event schedule also placed Fast Friday prominently on May 15, listing the practice session and a same-day highlights package before the qualifying sessions scheduled for May 17. That sequencing made the rewind videos more than routine recap clips; they were effectively official preview material for the order-setting runs that followed. ### How much audience did the rewind draw? (foxsports.com) The INDYCAR YouTube posting showed 25,947 views about 11 hours after it was streamed. The same page showed the video was published by the NTT INDYCAR SERIES channel and labeled as a live rewind with chat replay available. That figure offers only a snapshot from the time the page was crawled, but it shows the practice rewind drew an audience quickly on the eve of qualifying. (indycar.com) The official site also carried a separate 40-minute highlights edit, giving fans both a condensed package and a longer replay-style option. ### What changed after rain pushed qualifying back? FOX Sports reported on May 16 that heavy rain wiped out Indianapolis 500 qualifying on Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (youtube.com) The network said all 33 drivers needed to post a time Saturday for the opening round to be complete, but the track was never dry enough to finish that work. Sunday’s revised format condensed the process into three sessions, according to FOX Sports and INDYCAR. (youtube.com) FOX said the first qualifying session would start at noon ET on FS2, with FOX television coverage beginning at 4 p.m. ET for the Top 12 and a Fast Six round at 6 p.m. ET, while INDYCAR’s event page listed a 9:30 a.m. practice, noon all-cars qualifying, 4 p.m. Top-12 qualifying and 6 p.m. Firestone Fast 6. (foxsports.com) ### Where can fans watch the next step? Sunday, May 17 is the next key date on the Indianapolis 500 schedule. INDYCAR’s event page lists Practice 6 at 9:30 a.m. ET, qualifying for all cars at noon ET, Top-12 qualifying at 4 p.m. ET and the Firestone Fast 6 at 6 p.m. ET. FOX Sports said the noon session will air on FS2, with the later rounds on FOX. The race itself is scheduled for Sunday, May 24, with INDYCAR’s YouTube page and FOX Sports both listing a 10 a.m. (foxsports.com) ET start to race-day coverage. (youtube.com) (indycar.com)