Autograph signs NFT deal with Penske for Indy500, Indianapolis Motor Speedway track

Sports non-fungible token (NFT) platform Autograph has signed an exclusive deal with motorsport brand Penske Entertainment that covers the auto racing IndyCar Series, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway track, and Team Penske.

Penske's intellectual property and historical archives will be used to develop a series of NFT collections as a starting point.

The first drop will take place at the 106th Indianapolis 500 race at the end of May.

Despite having a far lower worldwide impact than Formula One, Penske's IndyCar racing series is a direct competitor of the league.

Team Penske competes in the IndyCar Series, NASCAR Cup Series, and Xfinity Series, as well as endurance racing.

Jonathan Gibson, executive vice president of Penske Corp, noted that growing their engagement with their fans across the NTT Indycar Series, Team Penske, and Indianapolis Motor Speedway is one of their most important strategies.

He went on to say that the merging of sports and technology presents them with a slew of new options, including this new one with NFTs and digital collectibles.

Another option is to form alliances with individual series teams. NFTs have been launched by Formula One teams, such as McLaren and Red Bull's arrangements with Tezos. So there's room for, or other platforms, to progressively create a name in motorsport NFTs.

Autograph, which was co-founded last year by football great Tom Brady, has so far focused its NFT arrangements on individual athletes rather than leagues, but it just secured a contract with ESPN. In January, the business received $170 million in funding, which is used to scout rights.