TV Times - Is Joey Logano NASCAR's New Poster Boy?

Is Joey Logano poised to be the new poster boy in the NASCAR Cup Series? The way that the Speed Channel treated him and Joe Gibbs Racing, recently, gives us that impression.

NASCAR has been pushing for youthful personalities because that’s what attracts sponsors. If Logano is successful, he’ll help the ailing Chase Authentics, co-owned by ISC and SMI, to sell a lot of clothing and collectables just like JR did even though he suffered through his 10th season finishing 25th overall in the Cup. His worst year ever. In spite of all that, the sales of JR’s collectables accounted for 25 percent of the gross sales, according to reports. Chase Authentic sales, recently, were way off and the company is some serious difficulty. Consider that if it were not for JR’s sales the company may have done much worse in 2009.

We have to admit that the Speedway Motorsports Inc. managers know how to get the public’s attention. Chris Powell of Las Vegas Motor Speedway decided to give US President Barak Obama an invitation to come and see for himself what Glitter Gulch has to offer beside gambling. Powell wants Obama to come to the NASCAR weekend at LVMS on Feb. 28. Obama gave a recent speech and mentioned Vegas as a place for US citizens to blow money in the gambling casinos. That resulted in US Senate President Harry Reed to chide Obama for the insult to Las Vegas. In the same vein, last month the general manager of New Hampshire Motor Speedway flew to Charlotte Motor Speedway with a 20 lb. lobster gift for Danica Patrick. He was trying to convince her to include the late June Nationwide Series date at NHMS as one of her selected races obviously in an effort to sell more tickets to the event. She didn’t like the lobster so he was quoted as saying that he will probably buy her an expensive pair of designer high heels. Former SMI GM Humpy Wheeler of Charlotte Motor Speedway was always looking for ways to call attention to CMS over the years with promotions and publicity stunts. All this is nothing new for Bruton Smith’s managers nor for himself. Bruton has been known to head for events at his tracks, ISC owned venues and others, to hold court with the media on something that’s been bothering him or to float a few ideas. Smith knew full well that his words would get a lot of play in the national media.

While on the Danica subject, the consensus is that she did very well in her ARCA debut at Daytona. Not very many open wheel Indy Car drivers have been successful trying to crack NASCAR. But, she came through the high pressure ordeal with flying colors. Maybe she may take another crack at Daytona this Saturday in the Nationwide race? (editor’s note, this has been confirmed after the article was submitted)

ESPN will provide two weeks of comprehensive coverage of Speedweeks and the start of the NASCAR season at Daytona International Speedway across its multimedia platforms. Television coverage, highlighted by a Daytona 500 origination for ESPN’s flagship program SportsCenter, an expanded schedule for ESPN2’s daily news program NASCAR Now, coverage of NASCAR Media Day on ESPNEWS, and NASCAR Nationwide Series practice and qualifying, will culminate with the NASCAR Nationwide Series 300-mile race on ESPN2 on Saturday, Feb. 13.

Other TV highlights include NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series preview shows on ESPN2 and the airing of multiple past Daytona 500 races on ESPN Classic.

SportsCenter at Daytona airs Saturday, Feb. 14, at 4 p.m. on ESPN2, originating from the Fan Zone at Daytona International Speedway. SportsCenter is ESPN’s flagship studio show and television’s only nightly, one-hour sports news program. Offering in-depth reports on breaking news, creative highlights, features and in-depth analysis from award-winning journalists, SportsCenter is television’s most comprehensive and longest-running sports news show.

In addition to programming on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNEWS, which includes extensive coverage on SportsCenter, other ESPN platforms including ESPN.com, Jayski.com, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Classic and ESPN Mobile Properties also will surround the NASCAR Nationwide Series race telecast and the Daytona 500 with NASCAR-related programming and coverage.

ESPN2 is the home of the NASCAR Nationwide Series all season, with select races to be televised by ESPN and ABC. ESPN also will televise the final 17 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races of the season, with three on ABC.

Marty Reid will be the lead announcer for the Daytona race telecast, joined in the booth for analysis by 1999 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Dale Jarrett and two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crew chief Andy Petree. Pit reporters will be Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Dr. Jerry Punch and Vince Welch. Two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crew chief Tim Brewer will report from the ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage.

Prior to the 1:15 p.m. ET race telecast, Allen Bestwick will host NASCAR Countdown from the ESPN pit studio at noon, with analysis by 1989 NASCAR Cup champion Rusty Wallace, three-time NASCAR champion crew chief Ray Evernham and Brad Daugherty, a team owner in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

ESPN2 also airs live coverage of NASCAR Nationwide Series qualifying on Friday, Feb. 12, at 3 p.m., as well as NASCAR Nationwide Series practice coverage on Thursday, Feb. 11, at 11:30 a.m.

NASCAR Now, ESPN2’s daily news and information show totally dedicated to NASCAR, originates from Daytona with daily one-hour episodes the week of the Daytona 500. The Monday, Feb. 8, edition at 5 p.m. will feature a roundtable discussion with ESPN analysts Jarrett, Wallace and Ricky Craven hosted by Bestwick. The weekend edition of the program airs at 9 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 14, the day of the Daytona 500.

Mike Massaro and Nicole Briscoe will co-host ESPNEWS’ coverage of NASCAR Media Day on Thursday, Feb. 4, at noon, and conduct exclusive driver interviews from Daytona for the three-hour telecast. They’ll be joined for analysis by Craven.

ESPN2 airs season preview shows for both the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series on Tuesday, Feb. 9, starting at 2 p.m. ESPN Classic will have an airing of ESPN’s acclaimed original movie 3, based on the life and racing career of seven-time NASCAR Cup champion Dale Earnhardt, at 8 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 14.

ESPN’S MULTIMEDIA PLATFORMS SURROUND DAYTONA

SportsCenter at Daytona — SportsCenter will present a one-hour special from Daytona International Speedway on ESPN2 at 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13, the eve of NASCAR’s Daytona 500. Hosted by Allen Bestwick, with analysts Rusty Wallace, Ray Evernham and Brad Daugherty, SportsCenter at Daytona will preview the Great American Race with analysis, opinion, and interviews.

ESPN.com — Extensive coverage will originate from Daytona. Award-winning motorsports journalists Ed Hinton, Terry Blount and David Newton and ESPN.com motorsports editor K. Lee Davis will lead the reporting team, with additional contributions from NASCAR Insider Marty Smith as well as ESPN The Magazine’s Ryan McGee. Hinton, Blount, Newton and other ESPN reporters and personalities maintain and regularly update blogs with their insights, perspectives and more within the ESPN Insider premium content section. ESPN.com, along with Jayski.com, will feature extensive video, audio and editorial coverage of the 2010 NASCAR season, as well as providing multiple ESPN Fantasy games and content distributed to other emerging platforms such as Apple’s iTunes Store and Microsoft’s X Box Live.

ESPN.com RaceCast, ESPN.com’s enhanced, live race-day applications features a live animated graphic display, track information, lap leaders, race leaders, driver information and live in-race chat with ESPN announcers and reporters. NASCAR Surround features one-stop shopping for highlights, features, observations and stats of all races, running Friday-Monday. As part of ESPN.com’s integration with Jayski.com, veteran racing voice Mark Garrow returns as a frequent contributor this year, producing podcasts and hosting regular chats on ESPN.com.

Jayski.com — ESPN-owned Jayski.com is considered one of the most influential Web sites in the motorsports world. Jayski has gained a reputation for consistently breaking industry stories and serving as the ultimate resource and trackside companion for NASCAR fans. Jayski’s editorial content during Daytona Speedweeks will help NASCAR fans keep up with late-breaking news, including updating any on-track incidents and garage news. Jayski also helps NASCAR fans understand the qualifying procedure for the Daytona 500, and NASCAR’s Top 35 rule, with updates and scenarios. And Jayski’s popular paint scheme section helps fans stay abreast of the new looks for NASCAR race teams.

ESPNEWS – Coverage of NASCAR Media Day from noon – 3 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 4. Extensive reports and interviews during regular programming throughout Daytona Speed Weeks, including highlights from news conferences.

ESPN Radio – The Raceday program airs from 6 – 7 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 13, and Sunday, Feb. 14. Both programs will originate from Daytona with host Pat Patterson and include news, interviews and reports. In addition, ESPN Radio will have daily reports and interviews during other programming in the week leading up to the race.

ESPN International – ESPN International is NASCAR’s exclusive worldwide syndication agent outside of North America. NASCAR and ESPN are leveraging their combined resources to identify broadcast partnerships on a country by country basis to expand the scope and reach of NASCAR coverage. ESPN International is one of the world’s leading syndicators of sports programming and this relationship is helping maximize coverage of NASCAR and provide a solid base of distribution. Through a combination of sales and network programming, the 38 NASCAR Sprint Cup races and 35 NASCAR Nationwide Series races are now available to 113 countries and territories around the world.

ESPN Classic – To help get NASCAR fans fired up for the opening of the season, ESPN Classic re-airs episodes of its signature series SportsCentury featuring some of NASCAR’s greatest drivers during afternoons on Wednesday through Friday of race week. Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Tim Flock and Tony Stewart will be featured.

In addition, starting at 8 p.m. on Feb. 13, the eve of the Daytona 500 , ESPN Classic televises highlights of five of the best Daytona 500 races of all time – 1979, 1998, 1999, 2007 and 1976.

ESPN Deportes — ESPN’s 24-hour, Spanish-language sports network in the U.S. will carry the NASCAR Nationwide Series race on a tape-delayed basis beginning at 4 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 15. ESPN Deportes’ NASCAR commentator team will feature Andrés Agulla (play-by-play) and Alex Pombo (analysis). In addition to the telecast of the race, ESPN Deportes will have segments for its edition of SportsCenter.

ESPN Deportes Radio — The only around-the-clock national Spanish-language sports radio network in the U.S., and MRN Radio have an agreement that makes ESPN Deportes Radio the exclusive Spanish-language radio home of NASCAR racing’s premier events. ESPN Deportes Radio will provide up-to-the minute NASCAR news and information, highlighted with coverage of NASCAR’s three largest racing series – the NASCAR Sprint Cup, the NASCAR Nationwide Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

ESPN Mobile Platforms — ESPN’s multiple mobile platforms will give fans on-the-go access to all the racing action, news and developments. ESPN Mobile TV (available on MediaFLO and MobiTV and via Sprint) will deliver live mobile streaming of NASCAR Nationwide and Sprint Cup races throughout the season, as well as news, analysis and feature video programs. ESPN MVP on Verizon Wireless will feature race highlights from NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series races throughout the season, as well as all the latest news and information, ESPN.com columnists, in-progress race leader boards and customizable alerts. In addition, fans can find ESPN.com coverage of NASCAR on the ESPN Mobile Web site — the leading sports site on the wireless Web (and among the most-trafficked wireless Web sites in the world), with 9 million unique users per month — and real-time results on the ESPN ScoreCenter mobile app.

ESPN’S 2010 DAYTONA SPEEDWEEKS SCHEDULE
(all times Eastern)

Monday, Feb. 1 6 – 6:30 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Tuesday, Feb. 2 4 – 4:30 a.m. NASCAR Now (re-air) ESPN2
Tuesday, Feb. 2 5 – 5:30 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Wed., Feb. 3 3 – 3:30 a.m. NASCAR Now (re-air) ESPN2
Wed., Feb. 3 5 – 5:30 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Thursday, Feb. 4 Noon – 3 p.m. NASCAR Media Day Highlights ESPNEWS
Thursday, Feb. 4 6 – 6:30 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Friday, Feb. 5 2 -2:30 a.m. NASCAR Now (re-air) ESPN2
Friday, Feb. 5 5:30 – 6 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Saturday, Feb. 6 1:30 – 2 a.m. NASCAR Now (re-air) ESPN2
Monday, Feb. 8 5 – 6 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Tuesday, Feb. 9 1 – 2 a.m. NASCAR Now (re-air) ESPN2
Tuesday, Feb. 9 2 – 2:30 p.m. NASCAR Nationwide Series Preview ESPN2
Tuesday, Feb. 9 2:30 – 3 p.m. NASCAR Sprint Cup Preview ESPN2
Tuesday, Feb. 9 5 – 6 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Wed., Feb 10 1:30 – 2:30 a.m. NASCAR Now (re-air) ESPN2
Wed., Feb. 10 2 – 3 p.m. SportsCentury: Dale Earnhardt ESPN Classic
Wed., Feb. 10 3 – 4 p.m. SportsCentury: D. Earnhardt Jr. ESPN Classic
Wed., Feb. 10 5 – 6 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Thursday, Feb. 11 1:30 – 2:30 a.m. NASCAR Now (re-air) ESPN2
Thursday, Feb. 11 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. NASCAR Nationwide Series final practice ESPN2
Thursday, Feb. 11 2:30 – 3 p.m. SportsCentury: Jeff Gordon ESPN Classic
Thursday, Feb. 11 3 – 3:30 p.m. SportsCentury: Tony Stewart ESPN Classic
Thursday, Feb. 11 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Friday, Feb. 12 2 – 3 a.m. NASCAR Now (re-air) ESPN2
Friday, Feb. 12 2 – 3 p.m. SportsCentury: Tim Flock ESPN Classic
Friday, Feb. 12 3 – 4 p.m. SportsCentury: Richard Petty ESPN Classic
Friday, Feb. 12 3 – 6 p.m. NASCAR Nationwide Series qual. ESPN2
Friday, Feb. 12 6 – 7 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Saturday, Feb. 13 6 – 7 a.m. RaceDay ESPN Radio
Saturday, Feb. 13 12 – 1:15 p.m. NASCAR Countdown ESPN2
Saturday, Feb. 13 1:15 – 4 p.m. NASCAR Nationwide Series 300-mile race ESPN2
Saturday, Feb. 13 4 – 5 p.m. SportsCenter at Daytona ESPN2
Saturday, Feb. 13 8 – 10 p.m. 1979 Daytona 500 ESPN Classic
Saturday, Feb. 13 10 p.m. – mid. 1998 Daytona 500 ESPN Classic
Sunday, Feb. 14 1 – 3 a.m. 1999 Daytona 500 ESPN Classic
Sunday, Feb. 14 3 – 5 a.m. 2007 Daytona 500 ESPN Classic
Sunday, Feb. 14 3 – 5 a.m. NASCAR Nationwide Series 300-mile race (re-air) ESPN2
Sunday, Feb. 14 4 a.m. NASCAR Nationwide Series 300-mile race ESPN Deportes
Sunday, Feb. 14 5 – 7 a.m. 1976 Daytona 500 ESPN Classic
Sunday, Feb. 14 6 – 7 a.m. RaceDay ESPN Radio
Sunday, Feb. 14 9 – 10 a.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2
Sunday, Feb. 14 8 – 10 p.m. ESPN Original Movie 3 ESPN Classic
Monday, Feb. 15 5 – 6 p.m. NASCAR Now ESPN2

When the green flag drops this year in Daytona, it won’t only signify the start of the greatest race in all of motorsports, it begins FOX Sports’ 10th season of Emmy Award-winning NASCAR coverage.

FOX Sports begins its broadcasts during SpeedWeekand last Saturday and continues with live, flag-to-flag coverage of the 52nd running of “The Great American Race” – the DAYTONA 500 – this Sunday, February 14 (12:00 PM ET.)

FOX Sports airs 13 NASCAR Sprint Cup points races in 2010, featuring earlier and more consistent start times, part of the sport’s “back to basics” initiative. This season NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races in the Eastern and Central regions begin at 1:00PM ET, West coast events begin at 3:00 PM ET, and night races begin at 7:30 PM ET. The one exception is NASCAR’s longest night race, the Coca-Cola 600, which begins at 5:45 PM ET.

FOX’s 2010 NASCAR schedule is highlighted by races from Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, February 28; Bristol Motor Speedway on Sunday, March 21; Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, April 18; Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday, April 25; NASCAR racing from Dover, Delaware on Sunday, May 16 and the NASCAR on FOX season finale from Charlotte on Sunday, May 30 from Lowe’s Motor Speedway on Memorial Day weekend.

Before the action begins, NASCAR racing legend Darrell Waltrip and former crew chief Jeff Hammond join host Chris Myers on FOX NASCAR SUNDAY, live from the renowned Hollywood Hotel prerace set. Once prerace coverage wraps up, race announcer Mike Joy calls the action with analysis from former champion crew chief Larry McReynolds and Waltrip. Dick Berggren, Steve Byrnes, Matt Yocum and Krista Voda return to cover pit road.

Despite a rain-shortened Daytona 500 in 2009, “The Great American Race” reaffirmed its status as one of the premier annual events in sports. Last year’s average audience of 16.0 million viewers puts the Daytona 500 ahead of such major events as the NCAA Final Four (+19%, vs. 13.5 mill), 2008 Summer Olympics (+5%, vs. 15.2 mill), 2009 NBA Finals (+12%, vs. 14.3 mill), Kentucky Derby (+36%, vs. 11.8 mill), final round of The Masters (+12%, vs. 14.3 mill), and the final round of the US Open (+125%, vs. 7.1 mill.)

FOX Sports commands the well-earned distinction as television’s most innovative sports broadcaster, and ranking high among the network’s achievements are honors for its NASCAR coverage. NASCAR on FOX has garnered 13 Emmy Awards for its coverage including three for Outstanding Sports Series (2001, 2005, 2007), three for Outstanding Live Event Audio Sound (2002, 2005, 2006), one for Outstanding Graphic Design (2001), five for Outstanding Technical Team Remote (2001, 2003-05, 2007) and one for Promotional Announcement Episodic (2008).

NASCAR on FOX 2010 Schedule

Date Track Event Coverage Begins

Sat. Feb. 6 Daytona Int’l Speedway Daytona 500 Qualifying 1:00 PM

Sat. Feb. 6 Daytona Int’l Speedway Budweiser Shootout 8:00 PM

Sun. Feb. 14 Daytona Int’l Speedway Daytona 500 12:00 PM

Sun. Feb. 21 California Speedway NASCAR Racing from Fontana 2:00 PM

Sun. Feb. 28 Las Vegas Motor Speedway NASCAR Racing from Las Vegas 2:00 PM

Sun. March 7 Atlanta Motor Speedway NASCAR Racing from Atlanta 12:00 PM

Sun. March 21 Bristol Motor Speedway NASCAR Racing from Bristol 12:00 PM

Sun. March 28 Martinsville Speedway NASCAR Racing from Martinsville 12:00 PM

Sat. April 10 Phoenix Int’l Speedway NASCAR Racing from Phoenix 7:00 PM

Sun. April 18 Texas Motor Speedway NASCAR Racing from Fort Worth 2:00 PM

Sun. April 25 Talladega Superspeedway NASCAR Racing from Talladega 12:00 PM

Sat. May 1 Richmond Int’l Raceway NASCAR Racing from Richmond 7:00 PM

Sat. May 8 Darlington Raceway NASCAR Racing from Darlington 7:00 PM

Sun. May 16 Dover Int’l Speedway NASCAR Racing from Dover 12:00 PM

Sun. May 30 Lowe’s Motor Speedway NASCAR Racing from Charlotte 5:00 PM

All times Eastern; Schedule subject to change

ESPN2’s coverage of the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series for 2010 will feature the 50th anniversary of one of the circuit’s top events, the first-ever “four-wide” action and consistent scheduling with finals telecasts from 18 of the 23 events in Sunday night viewing times.

With exclusive coverage of the NHRA for the 10th consecutive season, ESPN2’s season begins Feb. 13-14 with the 50th annual Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals from Pomona, Calif. ESPN2 will have coverage of qualifying and finals rounds from all 23 events in the series, with more than 10 hours of expanded coverage from drag racing’s biggest event, the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis. All coverage is produced in high definition.

The final six events, beginning with Indianapolis, comprise the “Countdown to 1” in the NHRA’s “Countdown to the Championship.” Finals from the last five races all will air in the 7-10 p.m. time slot on Sunday nights.

The March 27-28 event at zMax Dragway adjacent to Charlotte Motor Speedway will be known as the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals and will see the NHRA’s professional classes running four across in qualifying and eliminations action, a first in the NHRA.

ESPN2’s drag racing coverage team returns in 2010 led by Paul Page, who became lead announcer in 2006. The award-winning Page has worked in motorsports broadcasting since 1974 and served as lap-by-lap announcer for the Indianapolis 500 on either radio or TV for more than 25 years.

Former drag racer Mike Dunn, a 22-time winner in NHRA competition and one of only three drivers to have scored more than 10 wins in both the Top Fuel and Funny Car classes, returns for his ninth season as ESPN’s drag racing analyst. Gary Gerould and Dave Rieff return as pit reporters for the full season, with motorsports television veteran John Kernan joining them as a third reporter for 10 events.

Rieff and Dunn continue as hosts of NHRA RaceDay, a news and information program airing on Sunday morning of all NHRA Full Throttle event weekends on ESPN2. NHRA RaceDay sets up the day for fans at home with must-see matchups, interviews with stars of the sport, driver features, news and analysis, a review of qualifying and what to look for during the finals action. The show originates from NHRA’s Nitro Alley, allowing fans attending the race to watch and participate in the show.

Qualifying coverage from Pomona airs Saturday, Feb. 13, at 11 p.m. ET, with finals coverage airing the next day at 8 p.m. RaceDay airs from Pomona at 10 a.m.

The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series will be featured on ESPN through 2016 as part of a five-year, multimedia rights agreement extension forged between the NHRA and ESPN in 2009. The NHRA has appeared exclusively on the ESPN networks since 2001. By the end of the extended agreement, the partnership will have been in place for 16 years.

ESPN2 also will continue its coverage of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, the premier sportsman series in drag racing and, for many aspiring racers, serves as a stepping stone for the future stars of the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

New this year will be coverage of the 10-event NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Series. With body styles ranging from ’41 Willys to ‘53 Corvettes, ’57 Chevys to ’70 ‘Cudas, and first-generation Camaros and Firebirds to profiles as racy as the latest Dodge Viper along with show-quality themed paint jobs, Pro Mods have been crowd-pleasers at NHRA events for several years as an exhibition and were elevated to a national series for 2010. Both the Sportsman and Pro Mod series will air on a tape-delay schedule.

NHRA coverage also is distributed internationally by ESPN International to 131 countries and territories, representing 19 million international households. The NHRA also will continue to have a presence on ESPN360.com in 2010.

2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series TV Schedule
(all times Eastern, all on ESPN2)

Feb. 13 Pomona Qualifying 11 p.m. – 1 a.m.
Feb. 14 Pomona Finals 8 – 11 p.m.
Feb. 21 Phoenix Qualifying 2 – 4 a.m.
Feb. 21 Phoenix Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
March 14 Gainesville Qualifying Midnight – 2 a.m.
March 14 Gainesville Finals 6 – 9 p.m.
March 27 Charlotte Qualifying 7 – 9 p.m.
March 28 Charlotte Finals 5 – 7:30 p.m.
April 10 Houston Qualifying 11 p.m. – 1 a.m.
April 11 Houston Finals 8 – 11 p.m.
April 17 Las Vegas Qualifying 6 – 8 p.m.
April 18 Las Vegas Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
May 1 St. Louis Qualifying 9 – 11 p.m.
May 2 St. Louis Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
May 15 Atlanta Qualifying 8 – 10 p.m.
May 16 Atlanta Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
May 22 Topeka Qualifying 8 – 10 p.m.
May 23 Topeka Finals 9 p.m. – midnight
June 5 Chicago Qualifying 11 p.m. – 1 a.m.
June 6 Chicago Finals 4 – 7 p.m.
June 12 Englishtown Qualifying 11 p.m. – 12:30 a.m.
June 13 Englishtown Finals 4 – 7 p.m.
June 19 Bristol Qualifying 7 – 9 p.m.
June 20 Bristol Finals 4 – 7 p.m.
June 26 Norwalk Qualifying 7 – 9 p.m.
June 27 Norwalk Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
July 10 Seattle Qualifying 11 p.m. – 1 a.m.
July 11 Seattle Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
July 17 Sonoma Qualifying 11 p.m. – 1 a.m.
July 18 Sonoma Finals 6 – 9 p.m.
July 24 Denver Qualifying 6:30 – 8 p.m.
July 25 Denver Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
Aug. 14 Brainerd Qualifying 11 p.m. – 1 a.m.
Aug. 15 Brainerd Finals 10 p.m. – 1 a.m.
Sept. 5 Indianapolis Qualifying 10 – 11 a.m.
Sept. 5 Indianapolis Qualifying 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Sept. 5 Indianapolis Qualifying 5 – 7 p.m.
Sept. 6 Indianapolis Finals 1 – 6 p.m.
Sept. 18 Charlotte Qualifying 10:30 p.m. – midnight
Sept. 19 Charlotte Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
Sept. 25 Dallas Qualifying 10:30 p.m. – midnight
Sept. 26 Dallas Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
Oct. 9 Reading Qualifying 10:30 p.m. – midnight
Oct. 10 Reading Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
Oct. 30 Las Vegas Qualifying 10:30 p.m. – 12:30 a.m.
Oct. 31 Las Vegas Finals 7 – 10 p.m.
Nov. 13 Pomona Qualifying 10:30 p.m. – 12:30 a.m.
Nov. 14 Pomona Finals 7 – 10 p.m.

World Rally Championship promoter North One is targeting the United States and Russia for the future development of the sport.North One was appointed Championship promoter by the FIA late last year in a move to improve the overall World Rally product and extend its reach into new markets.

“I think the difficulties that the automotive, media and motorsport industries – in particular rallying – have gone through have brought everyone a lot closer together,” North One chairman Neil Duncanson told SportBusiness International yesterday at the WRC season launch in Paris. “Maybe there is a virtue in the problems we’ve had because it has made us wake up to the fact we need to come to an agreement to move the sport forward so it can become something bigger.

“We also want to go to new territories that will appeal to manufacturers to sell cars into but to also get the attention of fans who we haven’t got to yet. For example in countries like the United States and Russia there is a huge car-buying public but also an untapped reservoir of potential WRC fans.”
According to figures from TNS Sport, WRC saw its number of television viewers per rally increase by 13 per cent in 2009. Duncanson put this down to the success of an “experimental” television deal with US network Discovery. North One also announced a series of television deals – including five-year agreements with MTV3 in Finland and Network Ten in Australia – and a new WRC computer game franchise which will be released in Autumn for the first time in five years.
This came from SportsBusinessInternational.

The year 2010 marks 75 years of the Jaguar name on both road and race cars. As a continuation of this great heritage, Jaguar can confirm it will return to the famed Le Mans 24 hours. With a total of seven wins at Le Mans 24 hours between 1951 and 1990, Jaguar is the single most successful British make in the race’s history. Jaguar will return to its favourite hunting ground and will line up on the starting grid on 12th June 2010 with an XKR GT2 run by JaguarRSR.

Paul Gentilozzi, Principal Partner, JaguarRSR commented: “We are delighted the ACO has granted us entry in the prestigious 24 hours of Le Mans. It is a race that is held dearly in the hearts of motorsport fans across the world and for Jaguar to be racing again is something special.

“We are fortunate to bring an international line up of the world’s finest driving talent including Scott Pruett and Marc Goossens as our pilots for this race.”

Gentilozzi, who is also set to drive the JaguarRSR XKR GT2 in the 2010 American Le Mans Series (ALMS) added, “Spirits will be high around Jaguar’s return to Le Mans but we must remember the incredibly high level of competition – a podium place will not fall into our hands. That said, I can guarantee 100 per cent commitment from JaguarRSR and urge fans of Jaguar and Britain’s racing heritage to support the team whole heartedly.”

C.J. O’Donnell, Global Marketing Director of Jaguar Cars said: “Motorsport has always been important to the Jaguar brand. Our domination of Le Mans in the 1950s was a foundation on which the company was developed. It was twenty years ago that Jaguar last won Le Mans with a TWR Jaguar Sport entry driven by John Nielsen, Price Cobb, Martin Brundle. Returning to Le Mans will reignite excitement for the marque across the globe, all the more poignant in our 75th year.”

“With the introduction of the new XK, XF and XJ, the Jaguar brand has advanced cutting-edge technology, stunning design and our ‘R’ performance driving experience. We now return to motorsport to demonstrate this achievement and the prowess of the Jaguar XKR.”

In 1951, the C-type won Le Mans at its first attempt, with a further victory in 1953. The D-type took Le Mans wins in 1955, 1956 and 1957 while this racing success was followed in 1988 with the Jaguar XJR-9LM, a V12-powered Group C car. Another outright victory would follow in 1990 with the Jaguar XJR-12.

To see what else is happening on the tube this week and into the weekend check RaceFanTV.com because there’s extensive coverage of Daytona on Speed, TSN, TSN2 and Showtime. Also there are other listings for non-NASCAR events on HD Theatre and Speed which are too numberous to mention. In fact it all goes beyond overload. So pick whatever you want to watch carefully. (END)

NOTE: INFORMATION FOR THIS COLUMN CAME FROM VARIOUS REFERENCED SOURCES, PRESS RELEASES, NOTES AND OTHER SOURCES.