ESPN’s coverage of the 2010 NASCAR season launches with a live, flag-to-flag telecast of the NASCAR Nationwide Series season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, Feb. 13, on ESPN2. The telecast begins at noon ET with NASCAR Countdown and the 300-mile race’s green flag flies at 1:34 p.m. ESPN2 will again be the television home for the series in 2010, with select races on ESPN and ABC.
Continuing its multimedia commitment to NASCAR, ESPN also will have live coverage of the final 17 races of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season, including all 10 races in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Fourteen of the 17 races will air on ESPN, with three Saturday night races appearing on ABC. ESPN’s NASCAR Sprint Cup coverage begins July 25 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway while the Chase begins Sept. 19 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
In addition to race coverage for both series, the networks also will televise practice and qualifying from select races, season preview and review programs and a special Chase preview. Each race includes a dedicated pre-race program and comprehensive coverage of NASCAR appears on ESPN2’s NASCAR news and information program, NASCAR Now. All NASCAR programming on the ESPN networks is produced in high definition.
ESPN’s team of announcers has five former NASCAR Sprint Cup champions returning to their analyst roles in 2010, including 1999 champion driver Dale Jarrett and 1989 champion Rusty Wallace. Two-time champion crew chiefs Tim Brewer and Andy Petree and three-time champion Ray Evernham also will offer expert analysis during the season.
Lap-by-lap announcer Marty Reid will join Jarrett and Petree in the booth for race telecasts, with pit reporters Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Dr. Jerry Punch and Vince Welch. Allen Bestwick will host NASCAR Countdown with analysts Wallace and Brad Daugherty, joined by Evernham for selected races. Brewer will report from the ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage during race telecasts to help viewers better understand the technical and mechanical aspects of NASCAR racing.
Bestwick, Burns and Welch will each step into the lap-by-lap announcer position as fill-ins for Reid for some NASCAR Nationwide Series telecasts while NASCAR Now co-host Nicole Briscoe will host NASCAR Countdown for several races. Wallace and NASCAR Now analysts Ricky Craven and Randy LaJoie also will help call some races from the booth as fill-ins for Jarrett and Petree. NASCAR Now co-host Mike Massaro and reporter Shannon Spake will work as pit reporters for selected races as will Rick DeBruhl, a pit reporter on ESPN’s coverage of the IZOD IndyCar Series.
ESPN’s multimedia approach to coverage of NASCAR touches multiple ESPN platforms, including ESPN, ESPN HD, ESPN2, ESPN2 HD, ABC, ABC HD, ESPN.com, ESPN The Magazine, ESPN Classic, ESPN Deportes, ESPNEWS, ESPN Radio, ESPN International, ESPN Mobile and Jayski.com.
NASCAR race schedules for the ESPN Networks in 2010 are as follows:
2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Schedule on ESPN Networks
(All Times Eastern)
| DATE (Day) | LOCATION | NETWORK | RACE TIME |
| July 25 (Sun.) | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Aug. 1 (Sun.) | Pocono Raceway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Aug. 8 (Sun.) | Watkins Glen International | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Aug. 15 (Sun.) | Michigan International Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Aug. 21 (Sat.) | Bristol Motor Speedway | ABC | 7:30 p.m. |
| Sept. 5 (Sun.) | Atlanta Motor Speedway | ESPN | 7:30 p.m. |
| Sept. 11 (Sat.) | Richmond International Raceway | ABC | 7:30 p.m. |
| Sept. 19 (Sun.) | New Hampshire Motor Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Sept. 26 (Sun.) | Dover International Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Oct. 3 (Sun.) | Kansas Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Oct. 10 (Sun.) | Auto Club Speedway | ESPN | 3 p.m. |
| Oct. 16 (Sat.) | Charlotte Motor Speedway | ABC | 7:30 p.m. |
| Oct. 24 (Sun.) | Martinsville Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Oct. 31 (Sun.) | Talladega Superspeedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Nov. 7 (Sun.) | Texas Motor Speedway | ESPN | 3 p.m. |
| Nov. 14 (Sun.) | Phoenix International Raceway | ESPN | 3 p.m. |
| Nov. 21 (Sun.) | Homestead-Miami Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series Schedule on ESPN Networks
| DATE (Day) | LOCATION | NETWORK | RACE TIME |
| Feb. 13 (Sat.) | Daytona International Speedway | ESPN2 | 1:15 p.m. |
| Feb. 20 (Sat.) | Auto Club Speedway | ESPN2 | 5:30 p.m. |
| Feb. 27 (Sat.) | Las Vegas Motor Speedway | ESPN2 | 4:30 p.m. |
| March 20 (Sat.) | Bristol Motor Speedway | ABC | 2:30 p.m. |
| April 3 (Sat.) | Nashville Superspeedway | ESPN | 4 p.m. |
| Apr. 9 (Fri.) | Phoenix International Raceway | ESPN2 | 9:30 p.m. |
| Apr. 17 (Sat.) | Texas Motor Speedway | ESPN2 | 3:30 p.m. |
| Apr. 24 (Sat.) | Talladega Superspeedway | ABC | 3 p.m. |
| Apr. 30 (Fri.) | Richmond International Raceway | ESPN2 | 7:30 p.m. |
| May 7 (Fri.) | Darlington Raceway | ESPN2 | 7:30 p.m. |
| May 15 (Sat.) | Dover International Speedway | ABC | 2:30 p.m. |
| May 29 (Sat.) | Charlotte Motor Speedway | ABC | 2:30 p.m. |
| June 5 (Sat.) | Nashville Superspeedway | ESPN2 | 8 p.m. |
| June 12 (Sat.) | Kentucky Speedway | ESPN | 8 p.m. |
| June 19 (Sat.) | Road America | ESPN2 | 3:30 p.m. |
| June 26 (Sat.) | New Hampshire Motor Speedway | ESPN | 3:30 p.m. |
| July 2 (Fri.) | Daytona International Speedway | ESPN | 8 p.m. |
| July 9 (Fri.) | Chicagoland Speedway | ESPN | 8 p.m. |
| July 17 (Sat.) | Gateway International Raceway | ESPN2 | 8 p.m. |
| July 24 (Sat.) | O’Reilly Raceway Park | ESPN | 8p.m. |
| July 31 (Sat.) | Iowa Speedway | ESPN2 | 7:30 p.m. |
| Aug. 7 (Sat.) | Watkins Glen International | ESPN | 2 p.m. |
| Aug. 14 (Sat.) | Michigan International Speedway | ESPN | 2 p.m. |
| Aug. 20 (Fri.) | Bristol Motor Speedway | ESPN | 8 p.m. |
| Aug. 29 (Sun.) | Circuit Gilles Villeneuve | ESPN | 2:30 p.m. |
| Sept. 4 (Sat.) | Atlanta Motor Speedway | ESPN2 | 7 p.m. |
| Sept. 10 (Fri.) | Richmond International Raceway | ESPN2 | 7:30 p.m. |
| Sept. 25 (Sat.) | Dover International Speedway | ESPN2 | 3:30 p.m. |
| Oct. 2 (Sat.) | Kansas Speedway | ESPN2 | 3:30 p.m. |
| Oct. 9 (Sat.) | Auto Club Speedway | ESPN2 | 4:30 p.m. |
| Oct. 15 (Fri.) | Charlotte Motor Speedway | ESPN2 | 8 p.m. |
| Oct. 23 (Sat.) | Gateway International Raceway | ESPN2 | 3:30 p.m. |
| Nov. 6 (Sat.) | Texas Motor Speedway | ESPN2 | 12:55 p.m. |
| Nov. 13 (Sat.) | Phoenix International Raceway | ESPN2 | 4:30 p.m. |
| Nov. 20 (Sat.) | Homestead-Miami Speedway | ESPN2 | 4:30 p.m. |
Visit www.espnmediazone.com for ESPN’s latest releases, schedules and other news, plus photos, video and audio clips and more.
About NASCAR on ESPN:
ESPN produces comprehensive, multi-platform coverage featuring telecasts of the final 17 NASCAR Sprint Cup races, including the 10-race “Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Additionally, ESPN2 is the home of the NASCAR Nationwide Series all season. All television programming is produced in high definition. ESPN’s NASCAR coverage extends to ESPN.com, SportsCenter, ESPN the Magazine, ESPN Classic, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio and ESPN International, among other ESPN platforms. ESPN aired 262 NASCAR Cup Races over a 20-year period starting in 1981 and returned to NASCAR coverage in 2007. The network’s award-winning, live flag-to-flag coverage on ESPN has been honored with 19 Sports Emmy Awards, as well as many industry honors. It is widely credited for helping to popularize the sport nationwide.
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