FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 30th, 2019
NBC SPORTS HEADS TO TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY AS NASCAR ROUND OF 8 CONTINUES SUNDAY AT 3 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
NBC Sports’ NASCAR Coverage from Martinsville Delivers 5% Viewership Increase; Most-Streamed Martinsville Race Ever
Kyle Busch Joins NASCAR America Motormouths Today at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN
Special Feature with Jeff Burton and Paralyzed Driver Chris Morris During Xfinity Pre-Race Coverage
A Behind the Scenes Look Inside the Broadcast Booth in Martinsville With the Debut of the ‘Dale Jr Spy Cam’
STAMFORD, Conn. – Oct. 30, 2019 – Following last Sunday’s runaway victory for Martin Truex Jr., NBC Sports travels to Texas Motor Speedway this weekend for the second race of the Round of 8 in the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs with live coverage this Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
The Round of 8 continues with the AAA Texas 500 after an emotionally charged race at Martinsville Speedway. Truex became the first to clinch a Championship 4 berth for the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway (Nov. 17 on NBC), while tempers flared between defending Cup Series champion Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin post-race.
With Truex locked in, Hamlin, Kyle Busch, and Logano hold the three spots still available for the Championship race. Kevin Harvick, winner of the last two Playoff races at Texas, leads the group of four drivers currently behind the cut line. Texas will again give the Playoff drivers a chance to clinch a Championship 4 berth with a win.
2019 MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES PLAYOFF DRIVERS & STANDINGS:
| Position | Driver | Points | +/- |
| 1 | Martin Truex Jr. | 4,102 | ADV |
| 2 | Denny Hamlin | 4,082 | +24 |
| 3 | Kyle Busch | 4,075 | +17 |
| 4 | Joey Logano | 4,072 | +14 |
| CHAMPIONSHIP 4 CUT LINE | |||
| 5 | Kevin Harvick | 4,058 | -14 |
| 6 | Ryan Blaney | 4,057 | -15 |
| 7 | Kyle Larson | 4,048 | -24 |
| 8 | Chase Elliott | 4,028 | -44 |
NASCAR CUP SERIES RACING FROM TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY – SUNDAY AT 3 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
NBC Sports kicks off its NASCAR Cup Series Playoff coverage from Texas this Friday at 3 p.m. ET with first practice on NBCSN and final practice at 5 p.m. ET on the NBC Sports app. Cup Series coverage resumes Saturday at 7 p.m. ET with qualifying on CNBC.
Race Day coverage begins Sunday on NBCSN at 1:30 p.m. ET with NASCAR America, followed by Countdown to Green at 2:30 p.m. ET from the Peacock Pit Box on NBCSN. Live coverage of the AAA Texas 500 follows at 3 p.m. ET.
NBC Sports race announcer Rick Allen will call the action alongside 21-time Cup Series winner Jeff Burton, who won his first career Cup Series race at the inaugural race at Texas in 1997. Daytona 500-winning crew chief Steve Letarte and two-time Daytona 500 Champion Dale Earnhardt Jr., who won his first career Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway in 2000, will provide commentary from a second booth.
NBC Sports’ NASCAR pre-race host Krista Voda, auto racing icon Kyle Petty, and NBC analyst and Hall of Fame driver Dale Jarrett will host NASCAR America and Countdown to Green, as well as post-race coverage. Kelli Stavast, Dave Burns, Marty Snider, and Rutledge Wood will provide commentary and interviews from pit road and the grandstands. Post-race coverage begins at 6:45 p.m. ET, with Victory Lap, hosted by Danielle Trotta and AJ Allmendinger, closing out Race Day coverage at 7:30 p.m. ET.
DALE JR. SPY CAM DEBUTS THIS WEEK
The Dale Jr. Spy Cam debuted this week, giving fans a behind-the-scenes look at Dale Jr. in the broadcast booth with his partner each week. This exclusive video shares the entertainment, camaraderie and genuine excitement that takes place each week in the NBC Sports broadcast booth. This week’s video is from Martinsville and showcases Dale Jr. with Jeff Burton.
NASCAR AMERICA MOTORMOUTHS — WEDNESDAY AT 5 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
NBC Sports will present NASCAR America Motormouths today at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN, allowing fans to call in to the show and share their questions and thoughts on the latest stories in NASCAR.
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing, joins Motormouths hosts Rutledge Wood and Kyle Petty as tomorrow’s special guest. Busch will discuss the #18 team’s Playoff troubles and the adjustments they’re making going into Texas.
XFINITY SERIES RACING FROM TEXAS – SATURDAY AT 8:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
NBC Sports’ Xfinity Series Playoff coverage from Texas begins Friday with first practice at 2 p.m. ET on NBCSN and final practice at 4 p.m. ET on the NBC Sports App. ET. Race Day coverage begins Saturday with qualifying at 5:30 p.m. ET on CNBC. NASCAR America will air at 6:30 p.m. ET on CNBC, followed by Countdown to Green at 8 p.m. ET and live coverage of Xfinity Series Playoff racing at 8:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. A half-hour post-race show wraps up Race Day coverage on NBCSN at 11 p.m. ET.
With one race complete in the Xfinity Series Round of 8, Christopher Bell (+49 above the Championship cut line) leads the way over Cole Custer (+38), Tyler Reddick (+37), and Justin Allgaier (+2 over 5th-place Chase Briscoe). Bell, Custer and Reddick have combined for 19 wins this season – 7 each for Bell and Custer, and 5 for Reddick, the defending series champion.
MARTINSVILLE VIEWERSHIP UP 5% ON NBCSN
NBC Sports’ coverage of the First Data 500 from Martinsville Speedway averaged a Total Audience Delivery of 2.275 million viewers across NBCSN, NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app, up 5% vs. the 2018 race (2.176 million).
The race is also the most-streamed Martinsville race ever, with 70,000 unique viewers, 5.4 million minutes, and an Average Minute Audience (AMA) of 23,000 viewers, up 21%, 20%, and 44%, respectively, from last year.
Martinsville (3:22-6:55 p.m. ET) delivered a 1.37 household rating and averaged 2.252 million TV-only viewers. The TV-only audience peaked with 2.715 million viewers from 6:30-6:45 p.m. ET.
NO WINNERS IN THE ‘PICK ‘EM’ JACKPOT IN MARTINSVILLE; POT WILL SURGE TO $20,000 FOR TEXAS
Nearly 85,000 fans played the NASCAR Pick ‘Em free-to-play game on the NBC Sports Predictor app for this past weekend’s race at Martinsville, but no one was able to record a perfect score. The jackpot will surge to $20,000 this weekend in Texas.
- For each race stage, pick the driver that will have the best finish from a group of four drivers.
- Then, out of the entire field, pick which drivers will finish the race in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place – in exact order.
Following is this week’s NASCAR programming across NBC Sports:
| DATE | COVERAGE | TIME (ET) | NETWORK |
| Wednesday, Oct. 30 | NASCAR America Motormouths w/ Kyle Busch | 5 p.m. | NBCSN |
| Thursday, Oct. 31 | NASCAR America | 5 p.m. | NBCSN |
| Friday, Nov. 1 | NASCAR Xfinity Series First Practice – Texas | 2 p.m. | NBSCN |
| NASCAR Cup Series First Practice – Texas | 3 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Xfinity Series Final Practice – Texas | 4 p.m. | Streaming | |
| NASCAR Cup Series Final Practice – Texas | 5 p.m. | Streaming | |
| Saturday, Nov. 2 | NASCAR Xfinity Cup Series Qualifying – Texas | 5:30 p.m. | CNBC |
| NASCAR America Pre-Race | 6:30 p.m. | CNBC | |
| NASCAR Cup Series Qualifying – Texas | 7 p.m. | CNBC | |
| NASCAR Xfinity Series Countdown to Green | 8 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Xfinity Series Race – Texas | 8:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Xfinity Series Post-Race Show | 11 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| Sunday, Nov. 3 | NASCAR America Pre-Race | 1:30 p.m. | NBCSN |
| NASCAR Cup Series Countdown to Green | 2:30 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Cup Series Race – Texas | 3 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Cup Series Post-Race Show | 6:45 p.m. | NBCSN | |
| NASCAR Victory Lap | 7:30 p.m. | NBCSN |
NBC SPORTS’ NASCAR COVERAGE
The official home of the NASCAR Playoffs, NBC Sports will present the final 20 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races, final 19 NASCAR Xfinity Series races, and select NASCAR Regional & Touring Series events in 2019. NBC Sports’ NASCAR programming also includes NBCSN’s daily motorsports show NASCAR America, coverage of NASCAR’s Awards Ceremonies, the annual NASCAR Hall of Fame induction ceremony, as well as original programming specials.
–NBC SPORTS–
