FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, September 14th, 2016

SIMON PAGENAUD AND WILL POWER DUEL FOR THE 2016 VERIZON INDYCAR CHAMPIONSHIP AT SONOMA THIS SUNDAY AT 6:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

IndyCar GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma – Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN

NBCSN Presents Practice From Sonoma on Saturday at 5 p.m. ET, Followed by Live Qualifying at 6 p.m. ET

NBC Sports Group in Midst of Its Most-Watched IndyCar Season To-Date

Formula One Singapore Grand Prix – Sunday at 7:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN

NBC Sports Kicks Off the Chase For The NASCAR Sprint Cup Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on NBCSN

STAMFORD, Conn. – September 14, 2016 – This weekend’s motorsports coverage on NBCSN is highlighted by a duel for the 2016 Verizon IndyCar Series championship, as Team Penske teammates Simon Pagenaud and Will Power battle for the season title at the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma this Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Coverage also includes the Formula One Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday at 7:30 a.m. ET, as Mercedes teammates Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg continue their season-long chess match atop the F1 driver standings with seven races remaining in the 2016 campaign.


INDYCAR GOPRO GRAND PRIX OF SONOMA – SUNDAY AT 6:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

Simon Pagenaud has been at the top of the Verizon IndyCar Series standings for nearly the entire 2016 season, with three wins and two second-place finishes to start the year, and will need to hold off teammate Will Power to clinch his first career season title on Sunday at Sonoma. Pagenaud leads the standings with 555 points, 43 ahead of Power (512). Sunday’s race is a double-points race, so Power can still win the championship by finishing in the top five in Sunday’s 85-lap race – depending on how Pagenaud fares. Click here for a full breakdown of championship outcomes.

Pagenaud’s best season finish came in 2013, when he finished in third place overall, while Power has one career Verizon IndyCar Series championship under his belt (2014). Power has historically performed well at Sonoma Raceway with three career victories, the most recent coming in 2013.

Heading into Sunday’s season finale, NBC Sports Group has had its most-watched IndyCar season to-date, averaging 481,000 viewers, up 2% vs. 2015 (excludes Pocono race, which aired on Monday, Aug. 22, due to a rain delay).

Coverage from Sonoma begins Saturday at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN with practice, followed by live qualifying at 6 p.m. ET. Pre-race coverage on Sunday begins at 6 p.m. ET, followed by the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma at 6:30 p.m. ET. NBCSN will also present an encore presentation of the race on Monday, Sept. 19, at noon ET.

Leigh Diffey play-by-play) will call the action alongside analysts and drivers Paul Tracy and Townsend Bell. Reporters Kevin Lee, Jon Beekhuis, Katie Hargitt and Robin Miller will report from the pits.


FORMULA ONE SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX – SUNDAY AT 7:30 A.M. ET ON NBCSN

Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg continue their pursuit of the 2016 F1 drivers’ championship, currently separated by just two points and nearly 100 points clear of the nearest challenger. Rosberg won his second consecutive race at Monza two weekends ago to close the gap on Hamilton, who finished in second place. The pair has combined to win all but one race on the F1 calendar this season (Max Verstappen; Spanish Grand Prix), with Rosberg (seven wins) holding a slight edge in victories over Hamilton (six wins).

Live coverage begins exclusively on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app on Friday morning at 6 a.m. ET with Practice 1, followed by NBCSN’s live coverage of Practice 2 at 9:30 a.m. ET. Streaming coverage on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app continues Saturday at 6 a.m. ET with Practice 3 and live qualifying at 9 a.m. ET on CNBC.

Live Singapore Grand Prix race coverage begins Sunday morning at 7 a.m. ET on NBCSN with F1 Countdown, and is followed by F1 Extra at 10 a.m. ET.

Brian Till 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. James Allen will serve as the on-site reporter in Singapore.

In addition this weekend’s live motorsports action, NBCSN will also present a pair of new Mecum Top 10 episodes, beginning on Thursday at 9 p.m. ET, kicking off the Thursday motorsports block, as well as a new episode of Journey to the Hammers at 11 p.m. ET.

 

NBC SPORTS KICKS OFF THE CHASE FOR THE NASCAR SPRINT CUP SUNDAY AT 2 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

NBC Sports heads to Chicagoland Speedway this weekend for the first race of the NASCAR Sprint Cup playoffs and final race of the XFINITY Series regular-season. With adrenaline running high, drivers in both series will put it all on the line of the 1.5-mile track. NBC Sports’ weekend coverage from the “Windy City” is highlighted by the NASCAR Sprint Cup race Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on NBC and the XFINITY Series race Saturday at 3 p.m. ET on NBC. A release with detailed information regarding this weekend’s NASCAR coverage will be sent later today.

Following is this week’s NBC Sports Group motorsports coverage schedule:

DATE COVERAGE TIME (ET) NETWORK
Thurs., Sept. 15 NASCAR America 6 p.m. NBCSN
  Mecum Top 10 – Pickup Trucks 9 p.m. NBCSN
  Mecum Top 10 – Exotics 9:30 p.m. NBCSN
  Nitro Circus 10 p.m. NBCSN
  Journey to the Hammers 11 p.m. NBCSN
  Journey to the Hammers (Encore) 11:30 p.m. NBCSN
Fri., Sept. 16 F1 Singapore Grand Prix – Practice 1 6 a.m. Streaming
  Off the Grid – Singapore 9 a.m. NBCSN
  F1 Singapore Grand Prix – Practice 2 9:30 a.m. NBCSN
  Journey to the Hammers (Encore) 11 a.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR The Season 11:30 a.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR XFINITY Series Chicagoland – Practice 12:30 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chicagoland – Practice 1:30 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR America 6 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chicagoland – Qualifying 6:30 p.m. NBCSN
Sat., Sept. 17 F1 Singapore Grand Prix – Practice 3 6 a.m. Streaming
  F1 Singapore Grand Prix – Qualifying 9 a.m. CNBC
  NASCAR XFINITY Series Chicagoland – Qualifying Noon NBCSN
  NASCAR America 1 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chicagoland – Final Practice 1:30 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR XFINITY Series Countdown to Green 2:30 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR XFINITY Series Racing from Chicagoland 3 p.m. NBC
  IndyCar GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma – Practice 5 p.m. NBCSN
  IndyCar GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma – Qualifying 6 p.m. NBCSN
  F1 Singapore Grand Prix – Qualifying (Encore) 7:30 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR K&N Pro Series West – Utah 9 p.m. NBCSN
Sun., Sept. 18 F1 Countdown 7 a.m. NBCSN
  F1 Singapore Grand Prix 7:30 a.m. NBCSN
  F1 Extra 10 a.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR America Sunday 1:30 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Countdown to Green 2 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Racing from Chicagoland 2:30 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR Sprint Cup Post-Race 6 p.m. NBCSN
  IndyCar GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma 6:30 p.m. NBCSN
  IndyCar Post-Race 9 p.m. NBCSN
  NASCAR Victory Lap 9:30 p.m. NBCSN
Mon., Sept. 19 IndyCar GoPro Grand Prix of Somona (Encore) Noon NBCSN

 

MOTORSPORTS ON NBCSPORTS.COM AND THE NBC SPORTS APP: NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will provide live streaming coverage of this weekend’s motorsports content 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. 

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app are powered by Playmaker Media and available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire.

NASCAR TALKNASCAR TALK provides the most comprehensive and up-to-date NASCAR coverage, including Sprint Cup, XFINITY, and Camping World Truck Series. The site also promotes videos from NBCSN’s NASCAR AMERICA. Fans can follow @NASCARTalkNBC on Twitter.

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.

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. @NASCARonNBC and@NASCARTalkNBC share the latest NASCAR content, @F1onNBCSports provides the latest news in Formula One, and @IndyCaronNBCSN delivers up-to-the-minute information on the Verizon IndyCar Series.

In addition, the NASCAR on NBC Facebook page will provide users with videos, interactive content and much more. Fans should also “like” NBC Sports on Facebook for the most up-to-date news, videos and commentary about NBC Sports Group’s motorsports properties.

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 –