ESPN (Sprint Cup, Nationwide), FOX (Sprint Cup practices, Nationwide practices, Camping World Truck Series, ARCA, Rolex Sports Car), NBCSN (Formula 1), and Univision Deportes are ready for motorsport fans to flock their way this weekend. ESPN and NBCSN have the main races, but you can't forget that Fox Sports 1 will carry the Camping World Truck Series and most of the Sprint Cup and Nationwide practices, and Fox Sports 2 will carry the ARCA race. Univision Deportes will carry the Formula 1 Spanish coverage, with UniMas simulcasting on Sunday. Here is your weekend racing schedule. This will be followed by the Press Releases from ESPN Media Zone and NBC Sports Pressbox outlining their coverage plans.
Friday, September 6
8 AM- Formula 1: Italian Grand Prix, Practice- NBCSN
9 AM- Nationwide: Virginia 529 College Savings 250, Practice- FS1
Noon- Sprint Cup: Federated Auto Parts 400, Practice- ESPN2
2:30 PM- Sprint Cup: Federated Auto Parts 400, Practice- ESPN2
4 PM- Nationwide: Virginia 529 College Savings 250, Qualifying- ESPN2
5:30 PM- Sprint Cup: Federated Auto Parts 400, Qualifying- ESPN2
7:30 PM- Nationwide: Virginia 529 College Savings 250- ESPN
Saturday, September 7
8 AM- Formula 1: Italian Grand Prix, Qualifying- NBCSN, UniDep
Noon- Camping World Trick Series: Iowa 200, Practice- FS2
7:30 PM- Sprint Cup: Federated Auto Parts 400- ABC
9 PM- ARCA: Prairie Meadows 150- FS2
Sunday, September 8
8 AM- Formula 1: Italian Grand Prix- NBCSN, UniMas, UniDep
2 PM- Camping World Trick Series: Iowa- FS1
5 PM- Rolex Sports Car Series: Laguna Seca- FS1
Motorsports This Week on ESPN and ABC
NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide Series in Prime Time at Richmond
The NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series will race under the lights at the .750-mile Richmond International Raceway this weekend with both races airing in prime time. ABC will have a live telecast of the 400-lap NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Saturday night, Sept. 7.NASCAR Countdown airs at 7 p.m. ET with the race’s green flag at 7:43 p.m. The NASCAR Nationwide Series races on ESPN on Friday night, Sept. 6, with Countdown at 7 p.m. and the green at 7:44 p.m. Also from Richmond, ESPN2 airs NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying at 5:30 p.m. on Friday as well as practice sessions at noon and 2:30 p.m. ESPN2 also airs Nationwide Series qualifying at 4 p.m. on Friday.
Saturday night’s Sprint Cup race is a key event as it’s the last race before the start of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and berths in the Chase will be on the line. All NASCAR programming on ESPN and ESPN2 is also available on computers, smartphones and tablets through WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app.
Announcers:
Booth: Lap-by-Lap announcer Allen Bestwick (Sprint Cup); Marty Reid (Nationwide Series); analysts Dale Jarrett, Andy Petree.
NASCAR Now Schedule
| Date | Time | Show | Host | Network |
| Tue., Sept. 3 | 2 a.m. | NASCAR Now | Todd Grisham | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Wed., Sept. 4 | 2 a.m. | NASCAR Now | Shannon Spake | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Thu., Sept. 5 | 2 a.m. | NASCAR Now | Shannon Spake | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Fri., Sept. 6 | 2 p.m. | NASCAR Now | Mike Massaro | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| 3:30 p.m. | NASCAR Now | Mike Massaro | ESPN2, WatchESPN | |
| 5 p.m. | NASCAR Now | Mike Massaro | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
NHRA Lucas Oil Series Action Airs Sunday
The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series has the weekend off but drag racing fans can watch action featuring the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series on Sunday, Sept. 8, at 5:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2. The program will include action from the recent U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis.
Motorsports on Other ESPN Platforms
ESPN.com — RacingLive! on ESPN.com is a live blog where fans can engage in debate and discussion with ESPN.com writers and editors during the NASCAR Sprint Cup races. On Saturday night, Sept. 7, RacingLive! Richmond will coincide with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway. Fans can join ESPN.com’s NASCAR experts in dissecting every aspect of the race live at http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/.
ESPN Radio — Each weekend morning, ESPN Radio’s RaceDay starts its engines at 6 a.m. ET with host Pat Patterson anchored from the site of that weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race. On both Saturday and Sunday mornings, ESPN Radio’s RaceDay listeners get an hour of news, previews and analysis, as well as profiles and interviews with NASCAR’s biggest names and newsmakers and the involvement of listeners via calls and e-mails. RaceDay also features interviews with newsmakers from the IZOD IndyCar Series from correspondent Bruce Martin.
Click HERE for the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series schedules on ESPN.
Click HERE for the 2013 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule on ESPN.
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Media Contact: Andy Hall, 386-492-2246 or andy.hall@espn.com
NBCSN PRESENTS 15 HOURS OF MOTORSPORTS COVERAGE THIS WEEK, HIGHLIGHTED BY FORMULA ONE ITALIAN GRAND PRIX
Racing Legend Mario Andretti Joins NBCSN’s Italian Grand Prix Telecast
“The level of talent is probably unprecedented.” – Andretti on Today’s Formula One
Live Race Coverage Begins at 7:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN
STAMFORD, Conn. – Sept. 4, 2013 – NBCSN’s 15 hours of motorsports action this week will be highlighted by live coverage of the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday starting at 7:30 a.m. ET, with racing legend and 1977 Italian Grand Prix winner Mario Andretti joining the live telecast as a guest analyst.
NBCSN’s comprehensive coverage of the Italian Grand Prix begins on Friday morning with live coverage of practice at 8 a.m. ET. Qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix will also air live on Saturday morning at 8 a.m. ET. Live pre-race coverage of the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday begins at 7:30 a.m. ET, with the race slated to begin at 8 a.m. ET. F1 Extra, NBC Sports Group’s half-hour post-race show, will air immediately following the conclusion of the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday.
Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) cruised to victory in the Shell Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps on Aug. 25, increasing his lead atop the F1 Points Standings over Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) to 46 points with eight races left in the 2013 campaign. Vettel and Alonso have each won the Italian Grand Prix twice; Vettel won in 2008 and 2011, while Alonso took the checkered flag in 2007 and 2010. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) currently sits in third place (139 pts) in the F1 Points Standings, and took first place at the Italian Grand Prix last year.
In addition to its live coverage of the Italian Grand Prix, NBCSN’s motorsports schedule will also include TRANSLOGIC and Mobil 1 The Grid.
| Date | Coverage | Network | Time (ET) | |
| Thur., September 5 | TRANSLOGIC: Green Garage Gods | NBCSN | 11 p.m. | |
| TRANSLOGIC: DeLorean DMC-12 | NBCSN | 11:30 p.m. | ||
| Fri., September 6 | Mobil 1 The Grid | NBCSN | 12 a.m. | |
| F1 Italian Grand Prix – Practice | NBCSN | 8 a.m. | ||
| TRANSLOGIC: Green Garage Gods (Encore) | NBCSN | 7:30 p.m. | ||
| Sat., September 7 | TRANSLOGIC: DeLorean DMC-12 (Encore) | NBCSN | 12 a.m. | |
| F1 Italian Grand Prix – Practice (Encore) | NBCSN | 12:30 a.m. | ||
| Mobil 1 The Grid (Encore) | NBCSN | 2 a.m. | ||
| F1 Italian Grand Prix – Qualifying | NBCSN | 8 a.m. | ||
| Sun., September 8 | F1 Italian Grand Prix – Qualifying (Encore) | NBCSN | 12:30 a.m. | |
| F1 Italian Grand Prix | NBCSN | 7:30 a.m. | ||
| F1 Extra | NBCSN | 10 a.m. | ||
| F1 Italian Grand Prix (Encore) | NBCSN | 1 p.m. | ||
| F1 Extra (Encore) | NBCSN | 3:30 p.m. | ||
COMMENTATORS: NBC Sports Group’s IndyCar and Formula One play-by-play voice Leigh Diffeywill be joined by former race car driver David Hobbs and former race mechanic for the Benetton F1 team Steve Matchett will also provide analysis. F1 insider Will Buxton will serve as the team’s on-site reporter from the Autodromo Nazionale Monza in Monza, Italy.
Also joining the pre-race, race and post-race coverage is racing legend Mario Andretti, who won at Monza in 1977. Andretti’s distinguished list of awards and accomplishments include Driver of the Century honors by both the Associated Press and RACER Magazine, and over 100 victories during his five-decade career. Andretti also clinched the 1978 Formula One World Championship at Monza in his native Italy.
Andretti on joining NBCSN’s Formula One telecast: “I’m flattered to have been asked, and I’m looking forward to joining NBCSN’s iconic team of Formula One announcers. I hope they don’t expect too much because I’m a real rookie – I’ve only done one or two races, and I was paying attention to my son (former Formula One and IndyCar driver) Michael most of the time.”
Andretti on personal significance of Italian Grand Prix: “The Italian Grand Prix has particular significance and importance for me, being Italian and having seen my very first Formula One race right there at Monza. At that point, I can say my real dream of becoming a race car driver began.”
Andretti on the state of Formula One: “Formula One is really enjoying its glory days. It’s probably as well-positioned and interesting as ever. You have five world champions competing at the same time, all young enough to have long careers. The level of talent is probably unprecedented.”
FORMULA ONE ON NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA: NBC Sports Live Extra — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets — will provide live comprehensive streaming coverage of the Italian Grand Prix, as well as practice and qualifying in the days preceding the race . Coverage will be streamed via “TV Everywhere,” the media industry’s effort to make quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms.
For desktops, NBC Sports Live Extra can be accessed at NBCSports.com/liveextra. The NBC Sports Live Extra app for mobile devices and tablets is available at the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, and on select Android handset and tablet devices within Google Play.
Coverage airing on NBCSN will live stream to PCs, mobile devices and tablets through NBC Sports Live Extra, and to the digital platforms of participating cable, satellite, and telco services, via “TV Everywhere,” which is available on an authenticated basis to subscribers of participating MVPDs.
Click here for the participating cable/satellite/telco companies offering NBC Sports Live Extra:
MOTORSPORTSTALK: MotorSportsTalk (@MotorSportsTalk) on NBCSports.com brings racing fans up-to-the-minute news, video and information on the IZOD IndyCar Series, Formula One, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and all other motorsports racing from around the world. The site also serves as the destination for all news, analysis and video from NBC and NBCSN productions of IndyCar and F1, including contributions from on-air commentators.
MotorSportsTalk’s content is provided by top racing journalists and expert analysts, including:
- Keith Collantine (@KeithCollantine), editor and creator of the F1Fanatic blog;
- Luke Smith (@LukeSmithF1) creator of the F1 site RichlandF1.com;
- Tony DiZinno (@TonyDiZinno), who has written for RACER Magazine and has covered IndyCar and NASCAR since 2006;
- Writer Christopher Estrada (@estradawriting) who has written for the Boston Globe, FoxSports.com, created the Indy Racing Revolution blog and is a contributor to IndyCar’s IndyCar Nation blog.
To explore the site, please visit MotorSportsTalk.com.nbcsports.com or www.NBCSports.com.
SOCIAL: Follow @MotorsportsTalk, @F1onNBCSports and @NBCSN on Twitter and “like” Facebook.com/NBC Sports for the most up-to-date news, videos and commentary about Formula One on NBC Sports and NBCSN.
For more information about NBC Sports Group shows and properties, including press releases, photos, talent and executive bios and headshots, please visit NBCSportsGroupPressBox.com.
– NBC Sports Group –
