FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 18th, 2017
LEWIS HAMILTON CAN CLINCH 2017 FORMULA ONE DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP AT UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX THIS SUNDAY ON NBC
F1 United States Grand Prix – Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on NBC; Pre-Race Coverage Begins at 2 p.m. ET on NBC with F1 Countdown
NBCSN to Provide Coverage of All Practice and Qualifying, Beginning Friday at 11 a.m. ET
Season Four of /DRIVE on NBCSN Begins Thursday at 10 p.m. ET
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of 12 Continues from Kansas Speedway this Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN
STAMFORD, Conn. – October 18, 2017 – Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) can clinch his fourth career Formula One Drivers’ Championship this weekend, as NBC Sports presents live coverage of the United States Grand Prix from iconic Circuit of the Americas this Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on NBC. Pre-race coverage begins at 2 p.m. ET on NBC with F1 Countdown.
NBC, NBCSN, NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app will combine to present comprehensive live coverage of all practice, qualifying and race coverage this weekend, beginning on Friday at 11 a.m. ET on NBCSN with Practice 1.
In addition, NBC Sports Group surrounds the Round of 12 elimination race in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs with live race coverage from Kansas Speedway on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
FORMULA ONE UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX – SUNDAY AT 3 P.M. ET ON NBC
Hamilton currently holds a 59-point lead over Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel in the World Championship standings as the season rolls into Austin, Texas. Hamilton has won five times in the six U.S Grand Prix he’s competed in, including the last three at COTA, and has won four of the last five races this season to pull ahead of Vettel. Hamilton driver needs to outscore Vettel by 16 points, and teammate Valtteri Bottas by three points, in order to capture his fourth career Drivers’ Championship.
Hamilton wins Drivers’ Championship …
- If Hamilton wins and Vettel finishes sixth or worse;
- If Hamilton finishes in second place, Vettel finishes in ninth or lower, and Bottas fails to win.
|
2017 F1 Drivers’ Championship Standings |
|||
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
| 1 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 306 |
| 2 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 247 |
| 3 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 234 |
| 4 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull Racing Tag Heuer | 192 |
Mercedes enters the weekend with a 145-point lead over Ferrari in the race for the Constructors’ Championship, and needs to maintain a 129-point lead at the conclusion of this weekend’s race to claim its fourth consecutive title.
|
2017 F1 Constructors’ Championship Standings |
||
| Position | Team | Points |
| 1 | Mercedes | 540 |
| 2 | Ferrari | 395 |
| 3 | Red Bull Racing Tag Heuer | 303 |
| 4 | Force India Mercedes | 147 |
NBC Sports Group’s lead F1 commentary team of play-by-play voice Leigh Diffey, veteran analyst and former racecar driver David Hobbs, and analyst and former race mechanic for the Benetton F1 team Steve Matchett will call the action. F1 insider Will Buxton will serve as the on-site reporter from Circuit of the Americas.
SEASON FOUR OF /DRIVE ON NBCSN BEGINS THURSDAY AT 10 P.M. ET
/DRIVE is again bringing its dynamic, car-enthusiast programming to NBCSN for Season Four, beginning Thursday at 10 p.m. ET, as Matt Farah, Mike Spinelli, and Chris Harris take viewers around the globe in some of the most dynamic vehicles on earth. Season Four will be comprised of six 30-minute episodes, as well as a 60-minute season finale featuring the crew’s adventures in Iceland on Nov. 9 at 10 p.m. ET. Thursday night’s premiere includes a look at a Camaro 1LE in a NASCAR wind tunnel, as well as a visit to the Miami car scene with a new Lamborghini. Click here for a season preview.
NBC SPORTS PRESENTS MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES PLAYOFFS ROUND OF 12 FROM KANSAS – THIS SUNDAY, OCTOBER 22, AT 3 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
NBC Sports Group surrounds the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of 12 elimination race with more than 17 hours of trackside coverage from Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas. Race coverage from “The Sunflower State” begins Saturday at 3 p.m. ET on NBC, with XFINITY Series racing, and culminates Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN, with Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series racing.
Following is this week’s motorsports coverage schedule:
| Date | Program | Time (ET) | Network |
| Thur., Oct. 19 | NASCAR K&N Series – All American Speedway | 3:30 p.m. | NBCSN |
| NASCAR America | 5 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Wheelen Series – Thompson Speedway | 6 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Mecum Top 10 – Restomods | 7 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Mecum Top 10 – Exotics | 7:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Caffeine & Octane (Premiere) | 8 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Caffeine & Octane (Encore) | 8:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Motorclub (Premiere) | 9 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Motorclub (Encore) | 9:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| /DRIVE (Season Premiere) | 10 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| /DRIVE (Premiere) | 10:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Fri., Oct. 20 | F1 United States Grand Prix – Practice 1 | 11 a.m. | NBCSN |
| NASCAR Cup Series Kansas – Practice 1 | 1 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR XFINITY Series Kansas – Practice 1 | 2:30 p.m. | Streaming** | |
| F1 United States Grand Prix – Practice 2 | 3 p.m. | Streaming** | |
| NASCAR XFINITY Series Kansas – Final Practice | 4:30 p.m. | Streaming** | |
| NASCAR XFINITY Series Kansas – Final Practice | 5 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Cup Series Kansas – Qualifying | 6 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| F1 United States Grand Prix – Practice 2 (Encore) | 11 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Sat., Oct. 21 | NASCAR Cup Series Kansas – Practice 2 | 11 a.m. | Streaming** |
| NASCAR XFINITY Series Kansas – Qualifying | 12 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| F1 United States Grand Prix – Practice 3 | 12 p.m. | Streaming** | |
| NASCAR America | 1 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Cup Series Kansas – Final Practice | 1:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Countdown to Green | 2:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR XFINITY Series Kansas – Race | 3 p.m. | NBC | |
| F1 United States Grand Prix – Practice 3* | 4 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| F1 United State Grand Prix – Qualifying | 5 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Sun., Oct. 22 | NASCAR America | 1 p.m. | NBCSN |
| NASCAR Countdown to Green | 2:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| F1 Countdown | 2 p.m. | NBC | |
| NASCAR Cup Series Kansas – Race | 3 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| F1 United States Grand Prix – Race | 3 p.m. | NBC | |
| F1 Extra | 5 p.m. | NBC | |
| NASCAR Cup Series Post-Race | 6:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Victory Lap | 7 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Racing Roots (Premiere) | 8 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Racing Roots (Encore) | 8:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| F1 United States Grand Prix – Race (Encore) | 9 p.m. | NBCSN |
*delayed coverage
**NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app
NBC SPORTS GROUP STREAMING, DIGITAL AND SOCIAL CONTENT
NBC Sports Group will provide comprehensive streaming and digital coverage surrounding its motorsports properties via NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets – and NASCAR Talk and MotorSportsTalk, NBC Sports Group’s digital home for the latest motorsports news.
NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app will provide season-long live streaming coverage of all Formula One practices, qualifying sessions and Grands Prix, including exclusive coverage of practices that will not air on NBC or NBCSN. NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app will stream NASCAR and IndyCar content that will air on NBC and NBCSN (race coverage and some practice and qualifying), as well as the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, Red Bull Global RallyCross series, and Red Bull Air Race.
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 –
