FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, April 1st, 2014
13 RACES, TWO DOUBLEHEADERS & NEW ADDITIONS TO BROADCAST TEAM HIGHLIGHT NBC SPORTS GROUP’S 2014 VERIZON INDYCAR SERIES COVERAGE
Former IndyCar Champion Paul Tracy Joins Booth as Analyst for Six Races This Season; Kelli Stavast Joins as Pit Reporter for All Races on NBCSN and CNBC in 2014
Coverage Begins with Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on April 13 at 4 p.m. ET on NBCSN
NBCSN to Serve as Home of Indy Lights Beginning with St. Petersburg 100 on April 4 on NBCSN
All IndyCar Races Airing on NBCSN and CNBC to Stream Live on NBC Sports Live Extra Via “TV Everywhere”
STAMFORD, Conn. – April 1, 2013 – NBC Sports Group’s extensive coverage of the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series will feature 13 races, doubleheaders in Houston and Toronto, the season finale from Fontana, and two new members of its broadcast team, including decorated former IndyCar, and CART and Champ Car driver Paul Tracy. Coverage begins with the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on Sunday, April 13 at 4 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
Tracy joins NBC Sports Group’s Verizon IndyCar Series coverage as an analyst for six races over the course of this season, beginning with the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, where Tracy won four times, including the first of his 31 career victories in 1993. Tracy brings more than 20 years of experience to the broadcast booth, including a second-place finish at the 2002 Indianapolis 500.
NBC Sports Group’s lead motorsports play-by-play commentator Leigh Diffey returns for his second consecutive season calling the IndyCar on NBCSN. IndyCar driver Townsend Bell,who has raced seven times in the Indianapolis 500, and won the GT Class at this year’s Rolex 24 at Daytona,returns for his second season as an analyst. Wally Dallenbach Jr. returns as an analyst for select races during 2014. Dallenbach Jr. is cutting back his workload in order to focus on the start of his daughter Kate’s stock car racing career.
In addition, Kelli Stavast joins NBC Sports Group’s Verizon IndyCar Series broadcast team this season as a pit reporter, and will be on-site for all race telecasts this season. Stavast has previously handled reporting duties for numerous NBC Sports Group motorsports events and shows, including NASCAR AMERICA, NBCSN’s new 30-minute daily show. Stavast will work alongside pit reporters Marty Snider, Jon Beekhuis and Kevin Lee, as well as Verizon IndyCar Series reporter Robin Miller, who all return for the 2014 season.
NBC Sports Group motorsports analysts David Hobbs and Steve Matchett, and play-by-play voices Bob Varsha and Brian Till,will also work select races during the course of the 2014 IndyCar season.
2014 VERIZON INDYCAR SERIES: NBC Sports Group’s coverage of the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series grand prix schedule begins on April 13 with the Grand Prix of Long Beach, and concludes with the MAVTV 500 on August 30 in Fontana, Calif. Coverage includes two doubleheader events – the Shell and Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston and the Honda Indy Toronto – with two races from each location. NBC Sports Group’s race coverage also features the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, the Firestone 600, the Pocono IndyCar 500, the Iowa Corn Indy 300, the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio, the ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 at the historic Milwaukee Mile, the oldest operating motor speedway in the world, and the GoPro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma.
In addition, NBCSN will air coverage of qualifying for all Verizon IndyCar Series races airing on NBCSN and CNBC this season
2014 NBC SPORTS GROUP VERIZON INDYCAR SERIES SCHEDULE
| Date | Coverage | Network | Time (ET) |
| Sun,, April 13 | Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach | NBCSN | 4 p.m. |
| Sun., April 27 | Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama | NBCSN | 2:30 p.m. |
| Sat., June 7 | Firestone 600 | CNBC | 8 p.m. |
| Sat., June 28 | Shell and Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston – Race 1 | NBCSN | 3 p.m. |
| Sun., June 29 | Shell and Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston – Race 2 | NBCSN | 3 p.m. |
| Sun., July 6 | Pocono IndyCar 500 | NBCSN | Noon |
| Sat, July 12 | Iowa Corn Indy 300 | NBCSN | 8 p.m. |
| Sat., July 19 | Honda Indy Toronto – Race 1 | NBCSN | 3 p.m. |
| Sun, July 20 | Honda Indy Toronto – Race 2 | NBCSN | 3 p.m. |
| Sun., August 3 | Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio | NBCSN | 3 p.m. |
| Sun., August 17 | ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 | NBCSN | 3 p.m. |
| Sun., August 24 | GoPro Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma | NBCSN | 4 p.m. |
| Sat., August 30 | MAVTV 500 IndyCar World Championships | NBCSN | 9 p.m. |
INDY LIGHTS: NBCSN will serve as the television home of the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires, the third step on the Mazda Road to Indy ladder, presenting 10 race telecasts during the 2014 season, beginning on Friday, April 4 at 4 p.m. ET on NBCSN with the St. Petersburg 100. The majority of NBCSN’s Indy Lights telecasts will air immediately preceding or following live Verizon IndyCar Series coverage to provide maximum visibility to the Indy Lights series.
Indy Lights is the premier ladder series for drivers and teams striving to compete in the Verizon IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500. Run in conjunction with the Verizon IndyCar Series, the Indy Lights schedule features races on road courses/street circuits and ovals, including the famed 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
In addition to its Verizon IndyCar Series and Indy Lights coverage, NBCSN will present coverage of Carb Day and the Indy 500 Parade, beginning on Friday, May 23 at 11 a.m. ET.
2014 NBC SPORTS GROUP INDY LIGHTS SCHEDULE
| Date | Coverage | Network | Time (ET) |
| Fri., April 4 | St. Petersburg 100 | NBCSN | 4 p.m. |
| Sun., April 13 | Indy Lights Streets of Long Beach | NBCSN | 2:30 p.m. |
| Sun., April 27 | Legacy Indy Lights 100 | NBCSN | 5:30 p.m. |
| Fri., May 23 | Freedom 100 | NBCSN | Noon |
| Sat., May 24 | Grand Prix of Indianapolis | NBCSN | 12:30 a.m. |
| Sun., July 6 | Indy Lights Pocono Raceway | NBCSN | 4 p.m. |
| Sun., July 20 | Indy Lights Streets of Toronto | NBCSN | 6 p.m. |
| Sun., August 3 | Indy Lights Mid-Ohio | NBCSN | 6 p.m. |
| Sun., August 17 | The Milwaukee Mile | NBCSN | 6 p.m. |
| Sun., August 24 | Indy Lights Sonoma Raceway | NBCSN | 7 p.m. |
*Dates and times subject to change
MOTORSPORTSTALK: MotorSportsTalk (@MotorSportsTalk) on NBCSports.com brings racing fans up-to-the-minute news, video and information on the Verizon IndyCar 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:
- 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.
- Veteran NASCAR reporter Jerry Bonkowski (@JerryBonkowski) brings more than 30 years of experience. He has contributed to USA Today, Yahoo! Sports and other websites over the course of his career.
To explore the site, please visit MotorSportsTalk.com.nbcsports.com or www.NBCSports.com.
SOCIAL: Follow @MotorsportsTalk and @NBCSN on Twitter and “like” Facebook.com/NBC Sports for the most up-to-date news, videos and commentary about the Verizon IndyCar Series on NBC Sports and NBCSN.
— NBC Sports Group —
