NASCAR Rumor: Will Honda quit IndyCar when it enters NASCAR?

Sports Business Journal reports that NASCAR is “very close” to adding Honda to the mix of manufacturers, indicating that the latest “rumor” in a long line of Honda rumors should be taken with more than just a grain of salt.

Whether it happens in 2027 or 2028, one clue may be that Honda’s contract with IndyCar expires at the end of 2026, and they have yet to renew.

IndyCar could become a single engine (Chevy) series. The series is so worried it has delayed it new chassis and engine formula from 2027 to 2028 to give Chevy time to design and build enough new engines for the entire grid.

IndyCar has begged every other car manufacturer to enter the series, but so far none see much value in doing so.

Roger Penske owns Cosworth, who design and build the Chevy IndyCar engine. He also owns the entire series, the Indy Speedway, the Indy 500, all IndyCar equipment and pays the salaries of the race officials and other IndyCar staff.

In a nutshell, he owns everything, so supplying engines for the entire series would keep his monopoly stronghold on his pet business.

If some teams cannot afford to replace the current antiquated 16-year-old Dallara IndyCar chassis in 2028, perhaps Mr. Penske, who is extremely wealthy, will buy all new 2028 ‘spec’ chassis’ for all the teams, who could then race them for another 16 years until the next generation of ‘spec’ chassis gets approved.

June 9, 2025

NASCAR is “very close” to securing the entry of a fifth manufacturer following Sunday’s news that Ram will join the Truck Series in 2026.

NASCAR is already working hard to get another OEM onboard, with EVP John Probst revealing that talks are in an advanced stage with another brand.

Asked if the wait for the fifth manufacturer won’t be as long as the 20-year-old wait for Ram, Probst told SBJ: “Well, I hope it does because I’ll probably be retired if it’s 20 years again/

“But I feel like — we have said this 900 times to you guys and until today I didn’t have any breakthrough news to announce and today we’re proud to welcome Ram back into NASCAR.

“I don’t want to jinx ourselves, but I would say we are very close with one other; can’t speak for them – obviously it’s their decision to make – [but] we would love for them to decide to come into NASCAR.

“And even with that, there’s one or two others that we’re a little bit earlier in the discussions [with] but also looking pretty positive.

“But we also know an OEM deciding to come into NASCAR — it’s a big commitment for them, and it’s not something they take lightly.”

Both Honda and Hyundai are widely rumored to be evaluating a foray into the NASCAR Cup Series.

Honda did not deny it was in talks with NASCAR when queried on this subject.

“I am not in a position to speculate as to what Mr. Probst was referring to,” Chuck Schifsky, manager of Honda and Acura Motorsports, told SBJ.

“I can say that — Honda continues to explore multiple options for our future endeavors in U. S. motorsport. We have no news to share at this time.”

If Honda does join NASCAR, it is strongly rumored they will exit their IndyCar program.

June 7, 2025

NASCAR has scheduled a “major NASCAR partner announcement” for 1:00pm/et Sunday at Michigan International Speedway. The announcement is expected to be the return of Dodge Ram to the Truck Series. See Announcement

March 8, 2025

Another sign pointing towards Dodge returning to the NASCAR Truck Series has been found in the promotional packet local dealers are issuing to partners and employees.

For example, Wisconsin Dodge dealer Jerry Brickner is under the impression Dodge is indeed returning to the Craftsman Truck Series after attending a virtual ‘go to market’ meeting with corporate this week. In an email shared and screen shot by someone in the loop and passed onto Sportsnaut, Dodge dealers are anticipating a RAM activation to include its participation in the division next season.

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Dodge would then target a return to the Cup Series by 2028 with NASCAR working through several options to incorporate various engine platforms under a BOP style regulation system. (Update: This would be done through torque sensors, which have since been added to the 2025 rule book for test sessions in advance of this possible solution to incorporating various power plant types.). More at Sportsnaut

February 20, 2025

The latest scuttlebutt says that Honda will exit IndyCar after the 2026 season and enter NASCAR in a big way, presumably starting in 2027.

Wasted money to design and build purebred 2.2-liter twin-turbo V6 engines and support 16-18 entries each year for the Indy 500 got nixed in the 11th hour because Roger Penske’s Chevy Engines (he owns Ilmor) were not ready really irked Honda.

The continued absence of a new initiative to reduce the eight-figure yearly costs is a concern. And a third engine manufacturer never materialized. Meanwhile the IndyCar grid has expanded putting more pressure on Honda to supply engines

In April 2024, Team Penske Chevy drivers Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin were heavily penalized for illegally using the push-to-pass system. Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) President David Salters was not happy. He said at the time, “Having that in the background is not helpful, is it?”

February 12, 2025

NASCAR President Steve Phelps said there’s legitimate reason for optimism in adding a fourth carmaker to the sport.

“We are having robust discussions with a number of [original equipment] partners that someday, if I had to guess and were a betting man, something is going to hit. I just don’t know with whom or the timing of that,” Phelps said. “I know that’s an answer I’ve given repeatedly over the last five years, but they’re facts. There’s no BS in the comment I just made.”

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Asked what’s been the toughest part in closing the deal with a fourth, Phelps said it’s been multifaceted, but pointed out that some carmakers don’t make V-8 engines, which NASCAR uses, and that the investment is massive. Entering NASCAR would likely require a nine-figure commitment, industry executives have estimated. Sports Business Journal

May 7, 2024

According to Toyota Executive Ed Laukes, both Honda and Hyundai are eyeing a possible entry into the NASCAR Cup Series if Hybrid engines are adopted.

Hybrids are in favor with consumers

Sales of hybrids, plug-in hybrids and battery-electric vehicles made up 18.9% of all new light-duty vehicle sales in the U.S. last year, according to S&P Global Mobility, up from 12.3% in 2022 and 8.5% in 2021. A total of 1.6 million EVs were sold in the U.S. in April, which was down 25% compared to April 2023.

Signs of trouble with the EV sales are not hard to find. Most consumers feel they are too costly, too heavy, and their range is an issue. And with reports they pollute the environment more that ICE powered cars, consumers begin to question their viability.

Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports in NASCAR, has a unique point of view because he’s in racing and one of the largest car dealers in America. He told the Robb Report publication that his dealerships in Northern California have a waiting list for Lexus hybrid cars but have to “put big discounts” on Lexus EV cars.

“The customer is going to dictate what you build,” Hendrick told the publication. “I’ve been in the automobile business for almost 50 years, and you can’t force customers to buy what they don’t want. We were too aggressive with the EV market.”

Ed Laukes, a former senior executive of Toyota Motor North America, told Adam Stern of SBJ, the rise in hybrids presents an opportunity for NASCAR to move away from its outdated engine technology and get its product back to being more relevant to carmakers. NASCAR uses an eight-cylinder gas engine that is not compatible with those used in the new cars that Americans drive, limiting the marketing potential of current manufacturers in the sport and making it more difficult to bring in additional ones, analysts say.

“Relevance to the industry has always been at the forefront for all the [carmakers in racing],” said Laukes, who consults for Joe Gibbs Racing. If NASCAR allowed the carmakers to soup up one of their road car engines into a NASCAR engine, “now you have relevance and you bring your cost way down because you’re already working on that type of driveline,” he added.

Prospective car companies have told NASCAR they will join only if NASCAR can offer a compelling narrative for consumers with hybrid cars or sustainable fuels, according to a person familiar with the matter per Adam Stern of SBJ.

Car companies play outsized roles in racing relative to other sponsors. For example, Toyota was the biggest national TV advertiser during NASCAR races in 2023 at $3.8 million, according to iSpot.tv. NASCAR has been in discussions with Honda to persuade the Japanese giant to become its fourth manufacturer, joining Chevrolet, Toyota and Ford, and Laukes mentioned Hyundai as another brand that could see NASCAR as a viable marketing platform.