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Friday, November 18th, 2016

CROWNING OF 2016 NASCAR CHAMPIONS CAPS TREMENDOUS YEAR OF CHAMPIONSHIP EVENTS FOR NBC SPORTS GROUP

From Unprecedented Coverage of the 2016 Olympic Games to the Stanley Cup Finals, NBC Sports Salutes a Groundbreaking Group of Champions

NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship Race Sun. at 2 pm ET on NBC

STAMFORD, Conn. – November 18, 2016 – When NBC Sports presents the crowning of the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup and XFINITY Champions this Sunday from Homestead-Miami Speedway, the events will place an exclamation mark on a remarkable year of Championships on NBC Sports Group platforms.

Below are Championship highlights from NBC Sports’ storybook year:

Olympics: The 2016 Rio Olympics, the most ambitious media event in history with more than 6700 hours of programming, saw a collection of stars crowned from Usain Bolt’s historic victory in the 100 meters, to Simone Biles’ three individual gold medal performances. The Olympics captivated minds and televisions for 16 days.

Cycling: Team Sky’s Chris Froome took home the third Tour de France victory of his career this year, tying the record for the second-most wins in Tour de France history. (Belgium’s Philippe Thys, France’s Louison Bobet, and the U.S.’ Greg LeMond.)

 

Figure Skating: Javier Fernandez of Spain and Evgenia Medvedeva of Russia won World and European titles this year, while Adam Rippon and Gracie Gold claimed the top spots at the 2016 Prudential U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

 

IndyCar: Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud captured the IndyCar title this season, fending off teammate Will Power for the first championship of his career.

 

French Open: Garbiñe Muguruza defeated defending champion Serena Williams in the French Open this year, while Novak Djokovic won the men’s singles.

 

Golf: Reigning PGA Champion Jason Day secured a win in his first Players Championship. Rory McIlroy holed two shots on the 16th hole at East Lake that made him a most unlikely FedExCup champion. Henrik Stenson won The Open Championship, shooting 20-under 264, the lowest 72-hole score ever in a major.

 

Gymnastics: Team USA’s Simone Biles captured her fourth straight all-around championship in the 2016 P&G Women’s Gymnastics Championships this year, while Sam Mikulak won a fourth consecutive national all-around title.

 

Horse Racing: NBC Sports’ horse racing coverage saw Nyquist win the 142nd running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. Exaggerator took home a win at the Preakness Stakes and Creator ran for victory at the Belmont Stakes.

 

Formula One: The 2016 Formula One Drivers’ Championship will be decided next weekend at the season finale at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday, Nov. 27, at 7:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN. Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg hopes to hold off teammate Lewis Hamilton to win the first drivers’ title of his career.

 

Motocross: Ken Roczen clinched the 2016 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship for his second career title in the series.

 

NASCAR: The XFINITY Series will host its first Championship race under the new Chase format this Saturday at 2 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Competitors Elliott Sadler, Daniel Suarez, Justin Allgaier and Erik Jones all face off in their first attempts at a Championship title.

 

NHL: The Pittsburgh Penguins earned their first Stanley Cup title since 2009 by defeating the San Jose Sharks by a score of 3-1 in Game 6.

 

Premier League: Leicester City were crowned champions in England’s top flight for the first time in their 132-year history, and became only the fifth club to win the Premier League title in the last 21 years (Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City).

 

Red Bull Global RallyCross: Andretti Autosport’s Scott Speed won his second consecutive series title this season, clinching the 2016 Championship at the season finale in Los Angeles on October 9.

 

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 –