Thursday, February 05, 2015

MRN Announces Mammoth Speedweeks Schedule

Motor Racing Network – “The Voice of NASCAR” – will provide unprecedented radio coverage of Budweiser Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway this year as NASCAR kicks off its 67th season.

MRN is adding more than 14 hours of Sprint Cup Series practice to its Speedweeks schedule, which opens Friday, Feb. 13.

The network’s expanded Speedweeks slate is just the start of a season that will feature broadcast coverage of all Cup Series practice sessions from each of the International Speedway Corporation-owned tracks as well as Dover, Pocono and Charlotte Motor Speedway during All-Star weekend – 15 facilities in all.

On Saturday, Feb. 14, Motor Racing Network will air the ARCA Racing Series Lucas Oil 200 from Daytona.  After that, MRN will welcome JTG/Daugherty Racing Cup Series driver AJ Allmendinger, a qualifier for the post-season Chase in 2014, to the broadcast booth for the Sprint Unlimited.  He’ll join Joe Moore and Jeff Striegle for the call of the season-opening non-points special event starting at 7 p.m. EST.

There will be 10 straight days of coverage from “The World Center of Racing” culminating with the 57th running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 22.  Air time will be 12 p.m., with live streaming at MRN.com.

In addition to NSCS practice coverage in 2015, MRN will broadcast Cup Series qualifying from the same 15 venues, with the same award-winning race coverage that recently netted seven NMPA awards for broadcast excellence in 2014.

“This all adds up to something special in 2015,” said Motor Racing Network President and Executive Producer David Hyatt.  “We have the best team in motor sports and the best fans in all of sports.  We’re confident that we can continue to deliver quality programming and at the same time, give those loyal fans and listeners unprecedented access to race weekend with blanket coverage of practice, qualifying and the races.”

MRN, launching its 46th year on the air, will have Moore and Striegle anchoring race-day coverage throughout the season.  Turn announcers Mike Bagley, Dave Moody and Kyle Rickey are back, with pit reports from Alex Hayden, Steve Post and Winston Kelley, who also is the executive director of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Motor Racing Network recently announced the addition of former Miss Sprint Cup Kim Coon and the return of veteran voice Eli Gold to its Sprint Cup Series lineup, which also will feature Hall of Fame driver Rusty Wallace.

Coon’s duties will include reports from pit road during the network’s Cup Series qualifying shows, and interaction with fans via social media and on the air during MRN’s race coverage.  Gold was a vital cog in the network’s formative years and is one of its most recognizable talents after more than three decades on the air.  He will host MRN’s pre-race and post-race coverage of the Sprint Cup Series, and provide in-race updates.  Coon will join Gold as a contributor to the pre-race show.

Wallace, the 1989 Cup Series champion, was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in February 2013.  He’ll bring a driver’s perspective to MRN programming with a presence during select race broadcasts and on weekly network shows, and provide commentary and content at www.MRN.com.

In addition to exclusive radio coverage of 25 Sprint Cup Series race weekends this year, MRN will broadcast 21 XFINITY Series events and all 23 races in the Camping World Truck Series.  The network’s 2015 slate will once again conclude in December with live coverage of the Sprint Cup Series Awards in Las Vegas.

Motor Racing Network – 2015 Budweiser Speedweeks Schedule -- (All times EST)
Friday, Feb. 13                          NSCS Practice, 5 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 14                      NSCS Practice, 10:30 a.m.
                                                NSCS Practice, 1:30 p.m.
                                                ARCA Lucas Oil 200, 4 p.m.
                                                Sprint Unlimited, 7 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 15                        Daytona 500 Qualifying, 1:30 p.m.
Monday, Feb. 16                       Motorsports Monday, 12 p.m. (streaming only at MRN.com)
Tuesday, Feb. 17                      “NASCAR Live” from the Ocean Deck in Daytona Beach, Fla., 7 p.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 18                 NSCS Practice, 2 p.m.
                                               “MRN 360” from the Ocean Deck in Daytona Beach, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 19                    NSCS Practice, 12 p.m.
                                                Budweiser Duel Daytona 500 Qualifying Races, 6 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 20                          NSCS Practice, 11 a.m.
                                                NSCS Practice, 2 p.m.
                                                NextEra Energy Resources 250 NCWTS Race, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 21                      NSCS Practice, 10:30 a.m.
                                                Alert Today Florida 300 NXS Race, 3 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 22                        57th Daytona 500, 12 p.m.

3 comments:

  1. While good overall, MRN still needs to bring back Allen Bestwick, their best primary announcer. When he had to sub for Barney Hall in the 2003 500 the difference in the quality of the racecast was striking.

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    Replies
    1. LOL, Allen already has a job.

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    2. I know. I still miss him on MRN, though.

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