FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, September 15th, 2022
NASCAR CUP SERIES PLAYOFF CUTOFF RACE AT BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY PRESENTED IN PRIMETIME THIS SATURDAY AT 7:30 P.M. ET ON USA NETWORK
Four NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Drivers to be Eliminated at Bristol in Primetime on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network; Countdown to Green Pre-Race Coverage Begins at 6:30 p.m. ET
New Episode of Race for the Championship Docuseries Premieres Tonight at 10 p.m. ET on USA Network
Special The Dale Jr. Download Episode Featuring Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Return to Racing at North Wilkesboro – Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET on USA Network
2022 is Most-Watched NTT INDYCAR SERIES Season in Six Years
STAMFORD, Conn. – Sept. 15, 2022 – The first cutoff race of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs will be presented this Saturday from Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee in primetime at 7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network. Four Playoff drivers will be eliminated ahead of the Round of 12 beginning at Texas Motor Speedway next weekend.
2022 NASCAR CUP SERIES PLAYOFF STANDINGS ROUND OF 16
| Driver | Points |
| Christopher Bell | 2108 |
| William Byron | 2098 |
| Denny Hamlin | 2097 |
| Joey Logano | 2090 |
| Ryan Blaney | 2086 |
| Alex Bowman | 2080 |
| Chase Elliott | 2078 |
| Kyle Larson | 2077 |
| Ross Chastain | 2076 |
| Daniel Suárez | 2056 |
| Tyler Reddick | 2052 |
| Austin Cindric | 2052 |
| Kyle Busch | 2050 (-2) |
| Austin Dillon | 2049 (-3) |
| Chase Briscoe | 2043 (-9) |
| Kevin Harvick | 2017 (-35) |
NASCAR: CUP SERIES BASS PRO SHOPS NIGHT RACE & XFINITY SERIES FOOD CITY 300
Four NASCAR Cup Series Playoff drivers will be eliminated this Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway in the final race in the Round of 16. Bubba Wallace earned his second career Cup Series victory last weekend in Kansas.
Primetime coverage of the Bass Pro Shops Night Race in Bristol will be presented Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network with an hour-long edition of Countdown to Green beginning pre-race coverage at 6:30 p.m. ET. NASCAR America post-race coverage will immediately follow the checkered flag at 11 p.m. ET on USA Network.
The Food City 300 marks the final race of the Xfinity Series regular season with primetime coverage from Bristol beginning Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network, with Countdown to Green getting underway at 7 p.m. ET.
Two-time Daytona 500 Champion and NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., 21-time Cup Series race winner and “The Mayor” of NASCAR Jeff Burton, and Daytona 500-winning crew chief Steve Letarte will serve as analysts for the Cup Series and Xfinity Series races from Bristol Motor Speedway with lead NASCAR race announcer Rick Allen.
Marty Snider, Dave Burns, Kim Coon and Dillon Welch will serve as pit reporters at Bristol.
Snider will anchor pre- and post-race studio coverage with NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Dale Jarrett and racing icon Kyle Petty on Friday and Saturday. During pre-race coverage on Saturday, the studio team will analyze Kyle Busch joining Richard Childress Racing in 2023, discuss if there will be a 19th different winner in the Cup Series this season, and provide updates on all 16 Playoff drivers as they prepare to battle for a spot in the Round of 12 in Thunder Valley.
Saturday’s Countdown to Green will also feature Chase Briscoe sharing his story with Rutledge Wood on his early start in racing, moving to North Carolina, and the impact Tony Stewart had on his career as well as Jeff Burton driving a lap in the NBC Toyota car to provide viewers an idea of the short track.
Earnhardt Jr. (2004), Burton (2008) and Jarrett (1997) all own a Cup Series victory at Bristol.
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Earlier this week, NBC Sports announced that 2022 is the most-watched NTT INDYCAR SERIES season in six years (since 2016) and NBC Sports’ most-watched season on record, an increase of 5% compared to 2021.
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The official home of the NASCAR Championship and Playoffs, NBC Sports will once again present the final 20 NASCAR Cup Series races and 19 NASCAR Xfinity Series races in 2022 across NBC, Peacock and USA Network, culminating with the Championship at Phoenix Raceway on Nov. 5-6. Click here for more information on NBC Sports’ 2022 NASCAR coverage.
NASCAR Pick ‘Em: NBC Sports’ free-to-play game, NASCAR Pick ‘Em, features a weekly contest for each NASCAR Cup Series race throughout the season. NASCAR Pick ‘Em is available for download now on the NBC Sports Predictor app powered by PointsBet (available in the App Store and Google Play Store).
A new episode of Race for the Championship premieres tonight at 10 p.m. ET on USA Network. The one-hour unscripted docuseries will take viewers inside the lives of NASCAR’s top drivers and teams on and off the track. Across ten thrilling episodes, the all-access series will chronicle the sport’s best as they balance their personal lives with the passion, pressure and perils of racing, all for a chance to make history.
BROADCAST TEAM
- Analysts: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte
- Play by Play: Rick Allen
- Pit Reporters: Marty Snider, Dave Burns, Kim Coon, Dillon Welch
STUDIO COVERAGE TEAM
- Host: Marty Snider
- Analysts: Dale Jarrett, Kyle Petty
HOW TO WATCH
- TV – USA Network
- Streaming – NBCSports.com, NBC Sports app
| Date | Coverage | Platform | Time (ET) |
| Fri., Sept. 16 | NASCAR Xfinity Series Practice & Qualifying | NBCSports.com, NBC Sports app | 2:30 p.m. |
| NASCAR Cup Series Practice & Qualifying | NBCSports.com, NBC Sports app | 4:30 p.m. | |
| NASCAR Cup Series Practice & Qualifying | USA Network | 5 p.m. | |
| Countdown to Green – NASCAR Xfinity Series | USA Network | 7 p.m. | |
| NASCAR Xfinity Series Food City 300 | USA Network | 7:30 p.m. | |
| Sat., Sept. 17 | Countdown to Green – NASCAR Cup Series | USA Network | 6:30 p.m. |
| NASCAR Cup Series Bass Pro Shops Night Race | USA Network | 7:30 p.m. | |
| NASCAR America Post-Race – NASCAR Cup Series | USA Network | 11 p.m. |
MOTOGP: ARAGON GRAND PRIX
MotoGP’s Aragon Grand Prix at MotorLand Aragon in Spain is presented this Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Francesco Bagnaia (181 pts), who has won four consecutive races, narrowly trails points standings leader Fabio Quartararo (211 pts).
THE DALE JR. DOWNLOAD
A special episode of The Dale Jr. Download featuring Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s return to racing at North Wilkesboro Speedway earlier this month will air this Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET on USA Network following NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying.
Veteran NASCAR driver Greg Biffle joins this week’s The Dale Jr. Download episode streaming tonight at 6 p.m. ET on Peacock. Weekly and on-demand episodes of Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s podcast will stream exclusively on the platform, taking viewers table-side for unparalleled perspective, candid commentary, and insight from Dale Jr.
–NBC SPORTS–
