POSTED: Monday June 29th 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NASCAR Nationwide Series on ESPN in Prime Time from Daytona

Friday, July 3, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET with NASCAR Countdown - July 4, at 3 a.m. on ESPN2 and again at noon on ESPN Classic.

A high-speed, Friday night shootout in prime time is expected when the NASCAR Nationwide Series makes its second visit of the season to Daytona International Speedway this weekend. ESPN will have a live, high definition telecast of the Subway Jalapeno 250 on Friday, July 3, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET with NASCAR Countdown. ESPN2 is the home of the NASCAR Nationwide Series all season, with selected races on ESPN and ABC. The race re-airs Saturday, July 4, at 3 a.m. on ESPN2 and again at noon on ESPN Classic.

Also this weekend, live coverage of NASCAR Nationwide Series qualifying airs Friday at 1 p.m. on ESPN2, while coverage of final practice airs Thursday, July 2, at 5:30 p.m.

Dr. Jerry Punch will be lap-by-lap announcer for ESPN on ABC’s coverage, with analysis by 1999 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Dale Jarrett and two-time NASCAR champion crew chief Andy Petree. Reporting from the pits will be Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Mike Massaro and Shannon Spake, with two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crew chief Tim Brewer in the ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage.

Allen Bestwick will host the pre-race NASCAR Countdown program with analysis by Jarrett and Brad Daugherty, owner of a winning team in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, in the ESPN pit studio.

In other NASCAR-related programming this week, ESPN Classic airs the 1995 Save Mart Supermarkets NASCAR Cup race from California’s Infineon Raceway on Monday, July 6, at 6 p.m. In addition, ESPN Classic will air an episode of the award-winning series SportsCentury earlier that day at 8 a.m. The episode features NASCAR star Tony Stewart.

Craven, LaJoie, Newton on NASCAR Now Roundtable

ESPN NASCAR analysts Randy LaJoie and Ricky Craven and ESPN.com reporter David Newton will be panelists on NASCAR Now’s weekly roundtable discussion program airing Monday, July 6, at 5 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Allen Bestwick will host the edition of ESPN2’s daily NASCAR news and information program.

Mike Massaro slides into the host role for a half-hour episode of NASCAR Now airing Tuesday, June 30, at 5 p.m., while Nicole Manske hosts the remainder of the week, with shows Wednesday and Thursday at 5 p.m. and Friday at 7 p.m. Manske also hosts the one-hour weekend edition that airs Saturday, July 4, at 10 a.m. with a preview of that night’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Daytona International Speedway. Craven will join Manske on the set, while Massaro and Angelique Chengelis will report from the track. 

NASCAR Now originates from ESPN’s high definition studios in Bristol, Conn. Contributors include NASCAR Insiders Marty Smith and Angelique Chengelis, analysts Ray Evernham, Tim Brewer, Brad Daugherty, Boris Said, Ricky Craven and Randy LaJoie, and ESPN.com reporters Ed Hinton, Terry Blount and David Newton. The NASCAR on ESPN team event coverage team of Rusty Wallace, Dale Jarrett, Dr. Jerry Punch, Andy Petree, Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Spake and Vince Welch also make frequent contributions to NASCAR Now.

IndyCar Series Races at Watkins Glen Live on ABC

The IndyCar Series goes road course racing at one of America’s historic venues this weekend when it competes Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, N.Y. ABC will have live coverage of the event on Sunday, July 5, at 1 p.m. ET.

Watkins Glen has hosted the IndyCar Series annually since 2005, when Scott Dixon won the inaugural event and went on to win three consecutive years. Ryan Hunter-Reay scored an upset victory last year.

Marty Reid will call the race for ESPN on ABC’s coverage with analysis by former IndyCar Series star Scott Goodyear. Reporting from the pits will be Jack Arute, Brienne Pedigo and Vince Welch.

NHRA Programming Includes Classic Sonoma Event, Sportsman Series

Four hours of NHRA drag racing programming will air on ESPN Networks this week, including a classic event with the Full Throttle Drag Racing Series and three hours of action with the Lucas Oil Sportsman Series.

ESPN Classic airs highlights from the 2003 Fram Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., on Monday, July 6, at 1 p.m. ET.

Action from the recent event at Norwalk, Ohio, will be featured in an hour-long program of Lucas Oil Sportsman Series competition on Saturday, July 4, at 11 a.m. on ESPN2.

ESPN Classic airs two hours of Sportsman competition on Monday, July 6, at 2 p.m. The first hour features action from Baytown, Texas, while racing from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway airs at 3 p.m.

Featuring race vehicles that range from 5-second Top Alcohol Dragsters and Top Alcohol Funny Cars to 15-second Stockers, the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series is the premier Sportsman series in drag racing. Eight categories are included in the series, which is showcased at select NHRA national events. ESPN’s Dave Rieff will anchor the coverage from Norwalk.

Visit www.espnmediazone.com for ESPN’s latest releases, schedules and other news, plus photos, video and audio clips and more.

# # #

Keywords · ESPN · NASCAR Nationwide Series · Daytona International Speedway

Name: Andy Hall
Organization: ESPN
Email:
Phone: +1.407-566-2209
URL: http://espn.go.com/

Please refer all questions to the company listed above issuing the press release. SFC will not be able to assist you with any inquiries and disclaims any content in these press releases.