FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 7th, 2020

NBC SPORTS PRESENTS NASCAR PLAYOFFS CUTOFF RACE AT CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY ROVAL THIS SUNDAY AT 2:30 P.M. ET ON NBC

Sunday’s Cup Series Coverage Begins at 1 p.m. ET on NBCSN With NASCAR America Pre-Race Show; Green Flag at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC

Mike Tirico Interview with Jimmie Johnson and Alex Bowman to be Featured During Sunday’s Pre-Race Coverage

NASCAR Xfinity Series Racing at Charlotte ROVAL – Coverage Begins Saturday at 3 p.m. ET on NBC

IMSA from Charlotte ROVAL – Live Coverage Saturday at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN

Lucas Oil Pro Motocross will Crown Two Champions at Fox Raceway Live Saturday at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN

STAMFORD, Conn.Oct. 7, 2020 – The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 8 will be determined at one of NASCAR’s newest and most unpredictable tracks – the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL – this Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

Pre-race coverage begins Sunday with the NASCAR America Pre-Race Show at 1 p.m. ET on NBCSN, followed by Countdown to Green at 2 p.m. ET on NBC. Green flag for the Bank of America ROVAL 400 will wave shortly after 2:30 p.m. ET. During pre-race coverage, NBC Sports’ Mike Tirico will interview seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson and Alex Bowman of Hendrick Motorsports. Yesterday, it was announced that Bowman will take over the No. 48 car beginning next season, replacing Johnson, who is retiring from full-time NASCAR racing.

Pre-race coverage of the Xfinity Series Playoffs’ Round of 12 elimination race on Saturday at the ROVAL begins at 3 p.m. ET on NBC, followed by race coverage at 3:30 p.m. ET.

2019 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch, who has yet to win a race in the 2020 season, is currently sitting outside of the Round of 8 and will need to overcome a 21-point deficit to advance. Austin Dillon (-21), Clint Bowyer (-38) and Aric Almirola (-48) are also fighting to keep their Championship hopes alive.

With his thrilling overtime victory on Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway, Denny Hamlin joined Kurt Busch as the drivers to have claimed a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 8.

2020 NASCAR CUP SERIES PLAYOFF STANDINGS

Drivers Points/Wins
Denny Hamlin 1 win
Kurt Busch 1 win
Kevin Harvick + 68
Chase Elliott + 44
Brad Keselowski + 41
Martin Truex Jr. + 32
Alex Bowman + 22
Joey Logano + 21
Kyle Busch – 21
Austin Dillon – 21
Clint Bowyer – 38
Aric Almirola – 48

NASCAR CUP SERIES RACING FROM CHARLOTTE ROVAL – PRE-RACE COVERAGE BEGINS SUNDAY AT 1 P.M. ET ON NBCSN, GREEN FLAG AT 2:30 P.M. ET ON NBC

The NBC Toyota car will make its first appearance during the 2020 season on Sunday, when “The Mayor” of NASCAR Jeff Burton will drive around the ROVAL at Charlotte Motor Speedway to give viewers an idea of the challenges the ROVAL will present for the drivers.

Host Krista Voda, NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee and 1999 NASCAR Cup Series champion Dale Jarrett and auto racing icon Kyle Petty will provide pre- and post-race studio coverage.

NBC Sports’ lead NASCAR race announcer Rick Allen will call the race from the Charlotte Motor Speedway broadcast booth alongside Daytona 500-winning crew chief Steve Letarte, 21-time Cup Series race winner Jeff Burton and two-time Daytona 500 Champion and recent NASCAR Hall of Fame selection Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Marty Snider, Dave Burns and Parker Kligerman will serve as pit reporters on-site from Charlotte.

XFINITY SERIES RACING FROM CHARLOTTE ROVAL – SATURDAY AT 3 P.M. ET ON NBC

The Xfinity Series Playoffs’ Round of 8 will be determined on Saturday at the ROVAL, with coverage on NBC beginning with Countdown to Green at 3 p.m. ET leading into Xfinity Series racing at 3:30 p.m. ET. Chase Briscoe and Justin Haley have secured spots in the Round of 8, while Austin Cindric is currently best on points in the Playoff standings. Ross Chastain currently holds the final spot in the Round of 8 by seven points over Harrison Burton, who faces elimination along with Brandon Brown (-19), Riley Herbst (-36) and Michael Annett (-38).

Allen, Letarte, Burton and Earnhardt Jr. will call the race. Burns, Dillon Welch and United States Navy Reserve Lt. Commander and current NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series driver Jesse Iwuji will provide reports from pit road.

2020 PIT CREW ALL-STARS TO BE RECOGNIZED DURING NASCAR PLAYOFFS

During the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, NBC Sports will salute this year’s Pit Crew All-Stars. This group of unsung heroes – 16 in all, matching the 16 Playoff drivers – comes from the ranks of over-the-wall crew members, engineers, shop employees, hauler drivers, and/or team officials. Throughout the Playoffs, NBC will showcase the All-Stars’ stories, and what makes them and their abilities so special.

HANK PARKER JR. JOINS DALE JR. DOWNLOAD – TONIGHT AT 5 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

Former NASCAR Xfinity and NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series driver Hank Parker Jr. is this week’s guest on the Dale Jr. Download that airs tonight at 5 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

Produced on-site at Dirty Mo Media Studios in Mooresville, N.C., the Dale Jr. Download on NBCSN takes viewers couch-side for the taping of the motorsports icon’s weekly podcast, featuring unparalleled perspective, candid commentary, and insight that fans have come to expect from Dale Jr.

IMSA WEATHERTECH SPORTSCAR CHAMPIONSHIP AT CHARLOTTE ROVAL –SATURDAY AT 8 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

The 2020 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season returns to action at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL on Saturday. Live coverage of the 100-minute race featuring the GT Le Mans and GT Daytona classes will begin at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

In GTLM, Corvette Racing looks to continue its strong 2020 season. Jordan Taylor and Antonio Garcia took the #3 Corvette to victory last time out at Mid-Ohio and seek to expand their 17-point lead in the class championship over their teammates in the #4 Corvette, Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner.

In GTD, Mario Farnbacher and Matt McMurry maintain the points lead in the #86 Acura NSX GT3, but only by three points over Aaron Telitz and five points over Jack Hawksworth. Telitz and Hawksworth both drive for AIM Vasser Sullivan and reunited at Mid-Ohio to put their #14 Lexus RC F GT3 on the top step of the podium.

Kevin Lee (play-by-play), Calvin Fish (analyst), and AJ Allmendinger (analyst) will have the call for the race with Parker Kligerman and Dillon Welch providing reports from the pits. Allmendinger will pull double duty at the ROVAL, as he will commentate during the IMSA broadcast after competing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race earlier in the day.

LUCAS OIL PRO MOTOCROSS FOX RACEWAY – SATURDAY AT 6 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

The 2020 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship season concludes with live coverage of the Fox Raceway National in Pala, Calif., where two champions will be crowned, Saturday at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Zach Osborne leads the 450MX Class points standings with hopes of winning his first premier class title, while Dylan Ferrandis is atop the 250 MX Class standings.

Veteran play-by-play voice Jason Weigandt, analyst and two-time AMA Pro Motocross Champion Grant Langston, and pit reporter Will Christien will call the race.

In addition to coverage on NBCSN, NBC Sports Gold’s Pro Motocross Pass will super-serve Motocross fans everywhere with programming that includes live, commercial-free coverage of every Moto 1 and Moto 2 from each round.

MOTOGP FRENCH GRAND PRIX – SUNDAY AT 6:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

The 2020 MotoGP season continues on Sunday from Le Mans Bugatti Circuit with the French Grand Prix at 6:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Fabio Quartararo leads the points standings following his victory at the Catalunya Grand Prix on Sept. 27.

Following is this week’s motorsports programming across NBC Sports:

DATE COVERAGE TIME (ET) NETWORK
Wed., Oct. 7 Dale Jr. Download – Hank Parker Jr. 5 p.m. NBCSN
Sat., Oct. 10 Xfinity Series – Countdown to Green 3 p.m. NBC
NASCAR Xfinity Series Race – Charlotte ROVAL 3:30 p.m. NBC
Lucas Oil Pro Motocross – Fox Raceway National 6 p.m. NBCSN
IMSA WeatherTech Series – Charlotte ROVAL 8 p.m. NBCSN
Sun., Oct. 11 NASCAR America Pre-Race Show 1 p.m. NBCSN
Cup Series – Countdown to Green 2 p.m. NBC
NASCAR Cup Series Race – Charlotte ROVAL 2:30 p.m. NBC
Cup Series Post-Race 6 p.m. NBCSN
MotoGP French Grand Prix* 6:30 p.m. NBCSN

*same-day delay

NBC SPORTS’ NASCAR COVERAGE

NBC Sports is the official home of the 2020 NASCAR Playoffs, covering the race for the NASCAR Cup Series & NASCAR Xfinity Series championships. NBC Sports’ NASCAR programming also includes NBCSN’s daily motorsports show, NASCAR America; races from NASCAR’s regional touring series; annual events such as the NASCAR Cup Series Awards and NASCAR Hall of Fame induction ceremony; and original programming specials.

–NBC SPORTS–