FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, July 22nd, 2015
NBC SPORTS GROUP CONTINUES FORMULA ONE COVERAGE WITH HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX SUNDAY AT 7:30 A.M. ET ON CNBC
CNBC and NBC Sports Live Extra Present Comprehensive Live Coverage of Practice, Qualifying and Grand Prix
IndyCar Averages 500,000+ Viewers for 3 Consecutive Races for First Time on NBCSN
NBC Presents Red Bull Global RallyCross Action From Detroit This Weekend
NBCSN and NBC Sports Live Extra Present Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship Washougal National
NBCSN’s NASCAR Coverage Continues This Weekend with Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series Races from Indianapolis
STAMFORD, Conn. – July 22, 2015 – NBC Sports Group continues its presentation of the 2015 Formula One season this weekend, as CNBC, NBCSN and NBC Sports Live Extra combine to provide comprehensive coverage of the Hungarian Grand Prix, with live race coverage airing Sunday morning at 7:30 a.m. ET on CNBC.
This marks the first F1 race since the British Grand Prix on July 5, when points leader Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) defeated teammate and rival Nico Rosberg for his second straight win at Silverstone, and third overall British Grand Prix victory. Hamilton (194 points) currently leads Rosberg (177 points) by 17 points in the standings, followed by Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel (135 points).
This year’s Hungarian Grand Prix marks the 30th consecutive running of the race, and all Hungarian GPs have been held at Hungaroring since 1986. Hamilton is a four-time winner in Hungary (2007, 2009, 2012 & 2013). Last year, Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo won the second race of his F1 career at Hungaroring, while Hamilton finished third and Rosberg was fourth.
NBC Sports Live Extra provides exclusive live coverage of all three practices, airing at 4 a.m. and 8 a.m. ET on Friday, and Saturday at 5 a.m. ET. CNBC will present live coverage of qualifying on Saturday morning at 8 a.m. ET, followed by an encore presentation of qualifying at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN. CNBC’s live coverage of the Hungarian Grand Prix begins Sunday at 7:30 a.m. ET, followed by post-race coverage at 10 a.m. ET. In addition, NBCSN will air an encore presentation of the Hungarian GP on Monday, July 27, at 12:30 p.m. ET.
Lead F1 announcer Leigh Diffey will call this weekend’s action, and will be joined by veteran analyst and former racecar driver David Hobbs, and analyst and former race mechanic for the Benetton F1 team Steve Matchett. F1 insider Will Buxton will serve as the team’s on-site reporter from Hungaroring in Hungary. Alex Jacques calls the GP2 race, which airs Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
In addition, Sunday’s pre-race coverage will feature a segment on Jules Bianchi, led by veteran motorsports essayist Sam Posey. Bianchi passed away last weekend from injuries suffered in an accident at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix.
INDYCAR AVERAGES OVER 500,000 VIEWERS FOR 3 CONSECUTIVE RACES FOR FIRST TIME ON NBCSN
NBCSN’s Saturday night Verizon IndyCar Series Iowa Corn 300 telecast averaged 541,000 viewers, marking the first time since NBC Sports Group acquired IndyCar cable exclusivity in 2008 that three consecutive IndyCar races on the cable network eclipsed 500,000 viewers. Saturday’s primetime telecast produced a 0.29 HH rating, while viewership was up 29% vs. last year’s race at Iowa (444,000), and surpassed NBCSN’s most recent IndyCar presentations from Milwaukee on July 12 (532,000 viewers) and Fontana on June 27 (512,000 viewers) as the network’s most-watched IndyCar race in four years (Sept. 4, 2011, 591,000, Baltimore). Click here for more ratings information.
| Date | IndyCar Race | 2015 Viewers | 2014 Viewers | % Increase from 2014 |
| Sat., June 27 | MAVTV 500 from Fontana | 512,000 | 280,000 | 83% |
| Sun., July 12 | ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 | 532,000 | 320,000 | 66% |
| Sat., July 19 | Iowa Corn Indy 300 | 541,000 | 444,000 | 29% |
Ryan Hunter-Reay (Andretti Autosport) won Saturday’s race for his first victory of the season. Graham Rahal (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing) took second place, and now stands in second place in the IndyCar standings, followed by 18-year-old rookie Sage Karam (Chip Ganassi Racing), as American drivers swept an IndyCar podium for the first time since the 2006 Indianapolis 500.
NBC PRESENTS RED BULL GLOBAL RALLYCROSS ACTION FROM DETROIT THIS WEEKEND
NBC continues its coverage of the 2015 Red Bull Global RallyCross Championship with a presentation of this weekend’s doubleheader action from Detroit. Race 1 airs Saturday at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, prior to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series coverage at 3 p.m. ET, followed by Sunday’s coverage of Race 2 at 4:30 p.m. ET.
Ken Block (Hoonigan Racing Division, 181 points) holds a 31-point advantage over Sebastian Eriksson (Olsbergs MSE) in the driver championship standings, following his win at MCAS New River on July 5. Through four races this season, Block boasts two victories and a second place finish.
Toby Moody (play-by-play) will call the action, alongside NBC Sports Group motorsports analyst Anders Krohn, and reporters Kristen Kenney and Will Christien.
LUCAS OIL PRO MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP WASHOUGAL NATIONAL – SATURDAY AT 6 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
NBCSN and NBC Sports Live Extra will present six hours of Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship coverage this weekend from Washougal National in Washington, with live coverage airing on NBCSN on Saturday at 6 p.m. ET. Minnesota native Ryan Dungey swept the 450 Class at the Budds Creek National last week to take a commanding lead in the 450 Class points standings, while Cooper Webb notched his first win of the season in the 250 Class.
Coverage begins on NBC Sports Live Extra with practice at 1:30 p.m. ET, followed by pre-race coverage on Live Extra at 3 p.m. ET. Moto 1 coverage begins on MAVTV at 4 p.m. ET, followed by live Moto 2 coverage on NBCSN at 6 p.m. ET.
Veteran play-by-play voice Jason Weigandt, analyst and two-time AMA Pro Motocross Champion Grant Langston, and pit reporter Georgia Lindsay will call the action from Washougal National in Washougal, Wash.
NBC SPORTS GROUP’S NASCAR COVERAGE CONTINUES THIS WEEK WITH SPRINT CUP AND XFINITY SERIES RACES FROM INDIANAPOLIS
As released earlier today, NBC Sports Group continues its coverage of the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series this weekend from Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with live coverage of Saturday’s XFINITY Series Lilly Diabetes 250 at 3 p.m. ET on NBC, followed by Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Racing from the Brickyard Presented by Golden Corral at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Click here for more information about this week’s NASCAR coverage on NBC and NBCSN.
Following is this week’s Motorsports schedule on NBC, NBCSN, CNBC and NBC Sports Live Extra:
| Date | Program | Time (ET) | Network |
| Thurs., July 23 | NASCAR America | 5 p.m. | NBCSN |
| NASCAR Whelen Modified Series – New Hampshire** | 6 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR K&N Pro Series East – New Hampshire** | 7 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Fri., July 24 | F1 Hungarian Grand Prix – Practice 1 | 4 a.m. | NBC Sports Live Extra |
| F1 Hungarian Grand Prix – Practice 2 | 8 a.m. | NBC Sports Live Extra | |
| XFINITY Series Practice – Indianapolis | Noon | NBCSN | |
| Sprint Cup Series Practice – Indianapolis | 1 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| XFINITY Series Final Practice – Indianapolis | 2:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Sprint Cup Series Final Practice – Indianapolis | 4 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR America | 6 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| F1 Hungarian Grand Prix – Practice 2* | 7 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Sat., July 25 | F1 Hungarian Grand Prix – Practice 3 | 5 a.m. | NBC Sports Live Extra |
| F1 Hungarian Grand Prix – Qualifying | 8 a.m. | CNBC | |
| XFINITY Series Qualifying – Indianapolis | 11:30 a.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR America | 1 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Sprint Cup Series Qualifying – Indianapolis | 1:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Washougal – Practice | 1:30 p.m. | NBC Sports Live Extra | |
| Red Bull Global RallyCross – Detroit* | 2 p.m. | NBC | |
| F1 Hungarian Grand Prix Qualifying (Encore)* | 3 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| XFINITY Series Race – Indianapolis | 3 p.m. | NBC | |
| Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Washougal – Pre-Race | 3 p.m. | NBC Sports Live Extra | |
| Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Washougal – Moto 1s | 4 p.m. | MAVTV | |
| GP2 – Hungary* | 4:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Washougal – Moto 2s | 6 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Sun., July 26 | F1 Hungarian Grand Prix | 7:30 a.m. | CNBC |
| NASCAR America Sunday | 2 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Sprint Cup Countdown to Green Pre-Race Show | 3 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Sprint Cup Series Race – Indianapolis | 3:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Red Bull Global RallyCross – Detroit* | 4:30 p.m. | NBC | |
| Sprint Cup Series Post-Race – New Hampshire | 7 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Victory Lap | 11 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Mon., July 27 | F1 Hungarian Grand Prix (Encore) | 12:30 p.m. | NBCSN |
| NASCAR 120 – Indianapolis | 3 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR AMERICA | 5 p.m. | NBCSN |
*denotes same-day delay
**tape delay
MOTORSPORTS ON NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA: NBC Sports Live Extra – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs – will stream this week’s motorsports coverage via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value to for their subscription service, and making high quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms. The NBC Sports Live Extra app is available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play and Windows Store, Roku Channel Store and Apple TV.
MOTORSPORTSTALK: MotorSportsTalk (@MotorSportsTalk) on NBCSports.com brings racing fans up-to-the-minute news, video and information on Formula One, the Verizon IndyCar Series, and other open-wheel and off-road 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 is creator and editor at Richland F1, which begins its second season this year. Smith works alongside Tony DiZinno in providing F1 content on MotorSportsTalk He’s on Twitter at @LukeSmithF1, primarily handling the F1 scene from Europe in great detail.
- Tony DiZinno has most recently served as web editor for RACER Magazine and provides open wheel coverage on MotorSportsTalk. DiZinno has more than seven years of experience in the industry. Follow him on Twitter at @TonyDiZinno.
To explore the site, please visit MotorSportsTalk.nbcsports.com or www.NBCSports.com.
SOCIAL: NBC Sports Group will continue to provide comprehensive motorsports social coverage across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. On Twitter, fans can follow @MotorsportsTalk for all-encompassing content across NBC Sports Group’s motorsports properties, and follow @F1onNBCSports for the latest F1 news.
– NBC SPORTS GROUP –
