This Sunday at 1PM ABC Sports will carry a one hour version of NASCAR Countdown, their pre-race show. The NEXTEL Cup Series race from Kansas is then scheduled to be on-the-air at 2PM Eastern Daylight Time.
Brent Musburger returns as the "show host," while Suzy Kolber and Brad Daugherty will occupy the Infield Studio. Tim Brewer will man the Tech Center, while upstairs in the broadcast booth will be Dr. Jerry Punch, Rusty Wallace, and Andy Petree. The pit reporters will be Allen Bestwick, Dave Burns, Mike Massaro, and Jamie Little.
This post will serve to host the comments about the ABC coverage. You can comment before, during, or after the on-air telecast. Please reference the TV coverage in your posts, or they will be removed. The rules for posting are on the right side of the main page.
To add your comments, simply click on the COMMENTS button below, there is nothing to join and you do not have to leave your email address. We just appreciate you taking the time to stop-by and leave your opinion of the TV coverage at Kansas.
To start the race day off on a good foot, Nascar Now is being delayed for Women's Soccer...
ReplyDeleteBill H (aka BillWebz)
Yeah, ESPN cuts off NASCAR broadcasts without interviews, but yet we're seeing the post game celebrations, which are taking forever. And now a prolonged music video/compilation of the events in the tournament.
ReplyDeleteIf I was at that game I'd be making my way to the car right now.
The real question is, will they show NN in its entirety, cutting into the NHRA broadcast or an abbrieviated version of NN?
23 minutes late. Not sure if I should care, but there is nothing on any other channel, so will watch Nascar Now for the 1st time in 6 months. Lets see if they mention Tony's bad word from yesterday.
ReplyDeleteBill H (aka BillWebz)
We've known Tony was not happy with ESPN..this just showed up on Jayski. If true, I wonder what brought this on?
ReplyDeleteStewart Could Face Penalty for Obscenity: #20-Tony Stewart could face his second points deduction this season for using vulgar language after telling a cameraman to "get the f-- away from me" during an ESPN2 broadcast shortly after the first Nextel Cup practice ended Saturday morning at Kansas Speedway. NASCAR officials requested a videotape of the exchange and said they were investigating the matter. A penalty could damage a bid for a third championship by Stewart, who will enter Sunday's Lifelock 400 trailing Jeff Gordon by two points in the Chase for the Nextel Cup standings. Stewart was docked 25 points and fined $25,000 for saying "bull--" in an ESPN interview after winning the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. He was fined $10,000 and placed on probation through Dec. 31 for skipping media obligations after finishing second at Phoenix International Raceway on April 21. ESPN broadcaster Dr. Jerry Punch apologized to viewers after Stewart's latest transgression. "It was an unfortunate incident," ESPN spokesman George McNeilly said. "The tape speaks for itself. In our view, the photographer was doing his job."(USA Today)(9-30-2007)
It appears that Eric K took some medication today. He is very mellow with Bill Lester in the studio (yes Bill Lester). They mentioned Tony's problem, but nothing else has been said. About 10 minutes of JJ going to a back up car with Brad D talking (BTW he made yesterdays Busch race worth watching for once) and an interview with Chad K.
ReplyDeleteBill H (aka BillWebz)
Tony's use of bad language doesn't bother me, but I am interested in seeing if Nascar will be consistant on their penalties.
ReplyDeleteBill H (aka BillWebz)
You watch, Nascar is going to say "Tony didn't know it was a live broadcast" The one before he knew it was live. Funny, I thought this was the story of the day yesterday with the TV coverage.
ReplyDeleteI was watching. On my TV, there was no sound heard from Tony. Only thing I heard was the Punch apology. I do wonder why they think that it is o.k. to rush a camera over to every discussion a driver has with another driver. I actually think there are times when they are trying to instigate “drama”.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Tony really didn't know he was on "live." Was there a reporter there to ask him questions or just the cameraman? If the latter, I think it's understandable he didn't know he was "live." Was he having a heated convo with Robby for some reason??
ReplyDeleteI would have seen it myself, but didn't know that ESPN2 changed the time of the broadcast to an hour earlier.... I was not a happy camper when I found out they changed the time of the broadcast... How did you all know it was an hour earlier? If it was just from a Friday qualifying announcement, then I would have missed that because I was at work and usually watch qualifying on pitcommand. Did they post it somewhere on their website? Oh, well... Guess I should expect that from them....
Who do you use to get your information????? Newspaper, Cable Company......I find it best to use the SpeedTV or ESPN websites for the current updated listings of what is planned for the day.
ReplyDeleteTypically, on Saturday morning I pull up the DirectTV guide on the remote and select all the nascar programs I want to watch during the day so that the TV automatically switches to each. That's what I did yesterday and apparently the first practice time hadn't been updated for the earlier hour. Sometimes I look at the Jayski daily listings, but didn't think to compare them yesterday. Oh, well - at least now I know to always double check.
ReplyDeleteSoooo, How much of Stewart's chummyness with Speed's RaceDay & Victory Lane have do with Home Depot sponsoring RaceDay!!
ReplyDeleteFather Brent in the ABC pulpit?
ReplyDeleteBrent Musberger...this is going to be a looong broadcast...
ReplyDeleteBAH HA HA!!! They just started the countdown broadcast and I was very disappointed to hear Brent's voice. Nevertheless, as they did a full shot of him and then zoomed in, you could see his foot from behind the podium. He was wearing tennis shoes with his suit. Bless him! I would be wearing tennis shoes, too!! heehee!
ReplyDeleteOk...cool music to open ABC countdown...i have the remote timed for a few minutes to miss Tattoo guy on Raceday and commercial.
ReplyDeleteWhy is Brent and Suzy on with all the others..is this normal?
More talking heads? Oy vey.
:-) Hurry up! Storms on it's way. To the cellar Dorothy!!
Just caught the comment about the tennis shoes with the suit! LOVE it..I remember when Latterman used to do that on his NBC show. ;-o
I can't watch this. I just can't stand Suzi's voice. I'm going to Speed for a while.
ReplyDeleteOK - I like Aerosmith, BUT this song really annoys me because I'm sick of hearing it and it just makes no sense. "I'm driving in a fast car. I'm riding in 'a' Nascar." It's not "a" nascar. Nascar stands for National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing. You could say I'm riding in Cup car or I'm riding in the nascar series, even I'm riding in a stock car, but you can't say I'm riding in a national association for stock car auto racing. That makes no sense. Another alternative that makes sense is "I'm riding in a fast car. I'm driving in Nascar." If they (or their writers) were fans, they would know!!!! Anyway, I think I'd rather hear Rihanna's "Shut up and drive." ;-)
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the race today, everyone!!
"Anonymous said...
ReplyDeleteSoooo, How much of Stewart's chummyness with Speed's RaceDay & Victory Lane have do with Home Depot sponsoring RaceDay!!"
Tony's chumminess with RaceDay and Victory Lane is because they are his friends. That interview today was just a lovefest. Which is fine -that's what RaceDay is for, but it spoils him.
On Speed, Tony is not accountable for anything. They coddle him so he is nice to them, so he feels free to treat the ESPN employees and other reporters like dirt, even if they've never done anything to him.
In Tony's interview from Knoxville he said the ESPN cameraman wasn't supposed to be there. So they're not supposed to be on pit road unless Tony gives the OK?
Jim Hunter says this morning Tony is not being penalized, so I hope ESPN "punishes" him anyway by ignoring him for the rest of the chase. See what his sponsors think about that. Otherwise we as viewers are going to have to deal with this kind of immaturity and veiled hostility in his interviews until the ESPN contract runs out.
Great, NASCAR logic is you can swear on live TV as long as it is not an interview, this is why no penalty for Stewart.
ReplyDeleteshould be no slack for somebody already on probation for blowing off media obligations and swearing on TV this year. I like the comments of ESPN: "Certainly, tape delays are appropriate for random radio talk shows, but we don't feel the need for a tape delay when working with professional athletes." Want to be treated as one ACT like one.
ReplyDelete"Great, NASCAR logic is you can swear on live TV as long as it is not an interview, this is why no penalty for Stewart."
ReplyDeleteNASCAR is being inconsistent as usual. Remember earlier in the year when Juan Pablo Montoya thought his cameraman from NASCAR in Primetime was joking around and filming him, so he made a gesture and it turns out that it was caught on the live SPEED cameras?
Even though Montoya didn't know he was on air, he got fined and probation.
Anonymous 1:50, we're thinking alike because I wrote the following before I saw your post (good thing I previewed my post and saw yours):
Best quote from the whole thing from the ESPN spokesman:
--McNeilly was asked why a tape-delay was not used on the telecast.
"We use a tape-delay system for two-way radio conversations, much the same way you would use a tape delay for a radio talk show with random callers," McNeilly said. "We don't feel the need to use a tape-delay system when working with professional athletes."
The key there is PROFESSIONAL ATHLETE, Hint to Tony Stewart: start acting like a professional before ESPN forgets who you are. They still have Junior, Jimmie, and Jeff and really won't miss you that much, in my opinion.
I kind of hope ESPN is mad enough at Tony to give it a try.
The bad thing about Stewart's deal and lack of punishment from NASCAR (after he's already deliberately cursed live earlier in the year on ESPN)?
ReplyDeleteThis gives ESPN an easy (and somewhat understandable) way to say they don't need to air practices if the atmosphere and the drivers attitudes are going to be unpredictable. They fill a lot of that practice time with interviews and shots of the drivers talking to each other and crew, right? I'd bet that cameraman was just filming Stewart and Gordon to fill up airtime, not to cause controversy.
Go to ESPN.com and half the comments about Tony Stewart are "Why in the world was ESPN airing some sport's practice anyway? That's stupid."
It will be interesting to see how ABC will react if we see rain and go through red flags.
ReplyDeleteI wish we could mute Rusty and hear the other two. That's more technology than our tv system right now. I get aggravated when Rusty can't even pronounce Gilliland or Kenseth's names.
ReplyDeleteMissing pitstops...
ReplyDeleteat least they did a replay of the pitstops
ReplyDeleteThe weather forecast has been available since Thursday projecting this cold front coming in. Perhaps they could have offered an early start. And! the Kansas Speedway is of a size whereas this missing of a yellow flag for rain, and coming onto pit road should not have been missed. Nothing like watching a warmed over sporting event. Why not just show three solid hours of commercials followed by highlights of the race?
ReplyDeleteI find it funny Brent refered to Rusty Wallace as being the expert on Kansas weather. Rusty Wallace has lived on Lake Norman longer than his time in St Louis. Why not just call me on the phone: "Anonymous, you went through Kansas one time on a greyhound bus -- tell us what we can expect".
ReplyDeletehaha! Kasey made a comment on the late starts, too, and that they could have been done if they started earlier. He even said I guess I'll go watch some football. too funny!
ReplyDeletewow you people are harsh today
ReplyDeleteWhat time do yall want them to start? 5 a.m. OK?
ReplyDeleteGood lord since when is a 1 p.m. start considered late?
I'm by no means a NASCAR or ABC defender but weather happens, especially this year.
"wow you people are harsh today"
ReplyDeletePeople other than drivers are tired and stressed too. For some of us it isnt a sport its a full time venture into the abyss. Harsh would be throwing my laptop onto the track, this here is "having fun". Man I hate that statement.
"We don't feel the need to use a tape-delay system when working with professional athletes."
ReplyDeleteOn the surface, that sounds just fine. Going deeper, one has to ask, “What other sport does ESPN cover that allows the cameras and reporters to roam around amongst the athletes while they are “working”?
You guys start this column off by criticizing a broadcast that has not has not even started. This is not NASCAR Now in progress comments.
ReplyDeleteI don't think the comments on starts were ABC/ESPN-specific (or harsh). A number of years ago, starts used to be at 11am-12pm eastern time and very few were later than that (vs 2pm today). People were lucky to make it home in time from church (or errands) to see the green flag. Over the past years, starts have generally been pushed back and I don't think it is related to any one network as it is all of them.
ReplyDeleteWell, I'll say something positive, since it seems no one actually watched the preshow:-)
ReplyDeleteThe Countdown to Green or whatever the preshow is called on ABC today was awesome! We recorded it and watched it through the live race commercials. I don't usually like that show, but they seem to be getting it together.
First they had Matt Kenseth up in the studio with Suzy, Rusty and Brent, then a good feature on Clint Bowyer.
Then the (I'm using the word again) awesome story on NASCAR and franchising, which I think is the best feature this show has done so far. It helped us understand what it might be like if they went to franchises. Who would have thought: ABC/ESPN has a story that was shot on film, included informatative interviews with all those reporters and owners and narrated by Allen Bestwick? Excellent job-they must have been watching Wendy's features on RaceDay.
I was one of the female viewers who complained here a couple of times about the lack of driver personality features and the utter lack of drivers shots in invocation/anthem. ABC did a great job on the driver/wife/girlfriend shots today, and we liked that feature about "Who knows Jimmie Johnson better: his wife or crew chief?" That was very enjoyable. Also noticed that "NASCAR Moments" segment during the rain delay. Was that footage of Kim Burton from NaSCAR in Primetime? It seemed familar. But it looks like NASCAR Moments might be a nice little series of family vignettes for the rest of the year, so that's cool of ESPN to do that.
Also noticed that Tony Stewart was nowhere to be found in ABC interviews with all the Chasers in the preshow (or the rain delay so far). And you know what - we really didn't miss him at all.I have to agree with y'all, I love Tony's grumpy personality, but there's a limit to that behavior when you are in the spotlight.
If ESPN doesn't want to interview him, I don't think they should have to! He needs to get it together and realize he is the face of a multimillion dollar business. Don't the TV rights fees make up most of the money in the race purses, anyway?
So good job, ESPN/ABC! I haven't been able to say that very often.
what do you think...how ABC is handling the red flag?
ReplyDeleteDon't the TV rights fees make up most of the money in the race purses, anyway?
ReplyDeleteNope. Race promoters do that.
Bonus for the championship is paid by Nextel.
Engines have started again. after a long rain delay.
ReplyDeletedecent coverage so far.
ReplyDeleteRace teams (including Joe Gibbs Racing) get a cut of the TV rights fees from NASCAR. So in a roundabout way, the networks are paying part of Tony Stewart's salary or funding his race cars.
ReplyDeleteThat's why whenever you hear David Poole or somebody mention the TV guys running roughshod over the print guys, like in interview situations? As he puts it, they're providing the money.
the rain delay coverage was good. Everybody seemed to be in a good mood - both pit reporters and drivers.
Nice job cutting to commercial as the leaders go 3-wide.
ReplyDeleteUnbelievable. Racing at the front and they cut to a commercial!
ReplyDeleteWTF? Get a replay of the lead change instead of staying with the very obvious battle for the lead before the commercial break.
ReplyDeleteMorons @ABC.... Take a freakin' commercial break while the leaders are darn near 3 wide..... then show us what we missed coming out of commercial..... morons!
ReplyDeleteDidn't networks used to break out of the commercial for a yellow flag?? At least show the pit stops and go back to the commercials while waiting for the green. Sheesh!
ReplyDeleteAfter the red flag, before they went green, they set up "the cat and mouse game" between Blaney, Petty and Schrader. Made a big deal about Blaney staying out until 1 lap to go to pit. Then they totally ignored it by talking to their "in-race reporter". Never paid it off. So did Schrader or Petty lead a lap and get their bonus points?
ReplyDeleteAlso, the red flag coverage was decent. Nice mix of driver interviews and taped pieces. But the six people in the three booths sure aren't as comfortable filling air time as their Fox counterparts.
Somebody give Rusty a valium....... and a thesaurus.
ReplyDeleteI liked the way Rusty said how the rain didn't "warsh" the rubber off the track after the rain delay.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know wash had an 'R' in it.
Probably a diploma from JR High School might have helped Rusty as well.....
ReplyDeleteSo was Kenseth's air not affected when he was passed by Busch and Gordon? Didn't he have clean air? Did Busch side draft off him? When did his green air turn yellow? I'm so confused.
ReplyDeleteI guess the Draft Track can only handle two cars at a time. Better upgrade it before Talladega, boys.
Another missed restart! Maybe I will just wait for the NASCAR Victory Lane.... I will get to see more of the race
ReplyDeleteyay for missed restarts...who watches those silly things anyway
ReplyDeletehow long till DW is back? :(
Good move.... Let's watch a piece of black crap on the track for 3 minutes. then go to commercial as pit stops start.
ReplyDeleteGood choice for drivers on HotPass today. 5 drivers, in positions 4 - 8.
ReplyDeleteThere's some guys running in the top 15 that are having a really great day but I haven't heard any of them mentioned.
ReplyDeleteThere's other cars in the race than just the front 2 or 3.
Are you kidding me?? This SC update junk during the race is pathetic. Pit stops beginning and they're giving other sports updates. Besides, I didn't need to be reminded that my Mets pulled off the greatest collapse in MLB history.
ReplyDeleteIf I wanted to know what was going on in the world of sports, I can turn to ESPN News. I don't need a SportsCenter Minute during the race.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if they have search word "Missed Restarts" on espn.com??
ReplyDelete"Coastes across the line..." Can someone... anyone please sign Rusty up for English as a Second Language class?
ReplyDeleteOnce again ABC/ESPN's can only see that 12 cars are on the track yet the rest of us see 43. Does anyone remember when FOX took over the racing in 2001 and they would not show the car's sponsors graphics unless they bought ad time during the race? Remember in 2001 when Alan Bestwick was told during the October Busch race on NBC at Lowe's motor Speedway NOT to say "we are at Lowe's MS" because Lowes did not "buy into the show"? Well NASCAR took Fox to the wood shed and Humpy Wheeler backed tow trucks up to the uplink trucks ready to hook them up to yank the uplink trucks off of the speedway property. When NBC came on the air on Sunday for the cup race Alan could not say "we are here at Lowe's MS in Charlotte" enough.
ReplyDeleteNow it is time for NASCAR to take ESPN out to the wood shed and let them now that there are more than 43 cars on the race track not 12.
Okay, they're showing us the scoring pylon in the rain. How about a list of how everyone's running now?
ReplyDeleteNice shot of the covered cars. Too bad we can't tell who's in line where.
And I thought the Astros pulled off the greatest collapse this year. Anyway, these guys in the booth are getting giddy because of the rain.
ReplyDeleteAnother commercial break. And we only know that "Tony Stewart is our leader under the red". But who's second? Who's third? etc.
ReplyDeleteThey love showing how the points standing is during the race when it doesn't matter. How about now, when this might be the final race result?
Guess they want to keep us watching those "Desperate Housewives" commercials.
Who woke Musburger?? What prolific comments this man has!
ReplyDeleteLooking at radar...this is only a narrow band of weather.
ReplyDeleteBrent just made his profound contribution. We are all impressed. He can leave now, mission accomplished.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how much ABC pays Brent per word.
Back in the 'old days' when races started at noon or 1:00, there was pleanty of time if a rain delay occured.
ReplyDeleteThese guys sound like they are praying for it to end here. Sound like kids on a snow day!
Kenny Rogers??? Gambler??? Seriously????
ReplyDeleteAt least it wasn't "Love Will Turn You Around" since that was from that good ol' racing movie "Six Pack."
Exactly how dramatic were those shots of Stewart turning on and off the ignition, Brent?
ReplyDeleteIt's been at least 20 minutes now and still no leader board.
At least Brad knows how everyone is running, but we still don't.
And yet another commercial.
The lack of a position rundown is quite pathetic. Are the graphics unavailable too? I'd rather hear Punch list the driver running order than listen to them ramble.
ReplyDeleteNow I understand what Kasey Kahne was saying earlier. If you know you have a threat of heavy rain and darkness, why not get the race started early? The Countdown show started at 1 p.m. Eastern so the programming time was available. They should have started that show with the start engines command and got the race going then.
Even if the weather goes away, the track has to dry. ABC has new premieres tonight of all of its primetime shows - starting at 7 PM Eastern. No way NASCAR can bump into that unless they move the race over to another network.
The "Hat Dance".... AGAIN???? DIdn't we see that at the last rain delay race? These dolts have nothing else in the can to keep us from having to hear about another open-wheeler coming to NASCAR. He hasn't even attempted a qualifying lap at Dega yet and they have him causing 18 car wrecks. Can some one give me a Back in the Day episode?
ReplyDeleteYou will be able to see the rest of the race on The Ocho:)
ReplyDeleteGreat convo between Larry Mac, Hammond and Wendy on Hotpass re: fuel mileage between teams. The 20 and 18 were able to stay out and the 11 wasn't. The 25 was able to stay out and the 24 and 48 had to come in for green flag stops. Apparently, the drivers were questioning the disparity. They also ran through scenarios for the 20 if the race goes back to green, etc....
ReplyDeleteHey maybe they will switch the race over to Classic at 7:00...
ReplyDeleteDid Suzy actually just ask Brad what the disvantages are to restarting this race? I hope I heard that wrong...
ReplyDeleteThe disadvantage would be that it would run into the Despot Horewives show for the East Coasters
ReplyDeleteI cannot recall Fox/TNT/NBC running the exact same segments during a rain delay that they ran during the prerace show just a FEW HOURS beforehand (the Bowyer segment, the merger segment).
ReplyDeleteGeez. ABC is all about repurposing, I suppose.
Too bad no one at ESPN has the sense to pull out an episode of NASCAR Drivers Non-Stop to air in this delay before they lose all their viewers. Don't they have video libraries? Only a few of us saw the episodes when they aired on ESPN2 last year, anyway, so it would be good to pull them out now.
Clint Bowyer was featured in two or three of the shows -one at the Kansas track - last year. Casey Mears too and I think he's running well today. I say "I think" because ABC didn't do a good job keeping us updated.
In addition to that mentioned above, the Hotpass crew has covered the race for the Top-35, various other drivers they haven't had a chance to discuss (such as Jarrett), the past few years for Truex and Boyer's careers, and more. I think the difference is that the Hotpass crew are allowed to talk off the top of their heads vs the ESPN crew is being told what to discuss and what pre-recorded segments will play (I can hear them during the pre-recorded segments with Hotpass alt audio sometimes).
ReplyDeleteThe switch is on! ESPN2
ReplyDeleteWelp, I FEEL for folks TAPING this race today...let's hope the rain stays and the race is called.
ReplyDeleteThey are switching stations to ESPU 2 at the top of the hour.
Yeah, luckily I happen to be watching live today. Normally I'm a couple hours behind watching on my DVR. LUCKY.
ReplyDeleteWell, at least we are getting an ear full of the financial responsibilities of NASCAR teams. I can relate to that.
ReplyDeleteHey! Band of Brothers is on the History Channel!
Surely ESPN would have some old races in their library that they could put on instead of all this dribble. How many times are they going to show the Chase list!!!!
ReplyDeleteI think they are doing a good job during the delay. I enjoy all the interviews. I must say kudos to Kurt for re-setting the field for us if it goes back to green!!
ReplyDeleteNow Busch fan, why would they put an old ESPN race on? That would prove to everyone that "NEW" ESPN is the worst coverage.
ReplyDeleteRace now on ESPN2
ReplyDeleteWell Matt you are smarter than me to think of that. Why would we want to see Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Buddy Baker, etc. they would certainly show the current guys what we enjoyed watching. And what we were hoping ESPN could provide. Hmmmmmmmm.
ReplyDeleteoops...screen went black as ESPN2 went to commercial but now there is a commercial....I TELL YOU WHAT....
ReplyDeleteI need to go to the store to make choclate chip cookies...need some oatmeal to add to the recipe.
Looks like ESPN2's schedule is wide open. Repeats of Contender, a replay of a Womens World Cup match, and poker. They should be able to keep it here until the conclusion.
ReplyDeleteThat says it all. Brent says Suzy is just waiting for it all to be over so that she can get to MNF...
ReplyDeleteI'm really stupid when it comes to the financial requirements of starting a new "channel" but why doesn't ESPN make a race channel on their suite of channels? They have plenty of old NASCAR races in the vault that they can show when they have nothing else on and certainly they could come up with some original programming couldn't they? Or is there not enough room for an ESPN race channel and SPEED, too? SPEED's non-NASCAR programming sucks....so IMO there's plenty of room for both.
ReplyDelete"Clint Bowyer was featured in two or three of the shows -one at the Kansas track - last year. Casey Mears too and I think he's running well today. I say "I think" because ABC didn't do a good job keeping us updated."
ReplyDeleteYeley was on there with them on Drivers Non-Stop too, and he's running good today. I saw those episodes (I believe I saw all of them) and wish they were on now. Or why couldn't they run NASCAR in Primetime? That's more recent and might keep people tuned in. I didn't get to see all of those shows, so replaying them in rain delays would be good.
We have already switched the channel from ESPN2 but have the leaderboard up on the PC in case the race starts again.
Why does it seem like it's mostly the "also rans" are talking to ESPN during a rain delay and not the chase guys or Dale Jr.? Talk about a double edge sword....the 2nd and 3rd tier teams get no attention during the race, but these are the guys that are "good enough" to talk to them during the rain delay. Sponsors should pray for rain every week.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDeleteI'm really stupid when it comes to the financial requirements of starting a new "channel" but why doesn't ESPN make a race channel on their suite of channels?
Probably not as 'unenlightened' as the ESPN division of the Disney Empire is though and you can be proud of that.
Pretty good effort to keep NASCAR on the air. It certainly exposes the issues with broadcast network distribution of live sports product. It will be interesting to see how this affects the other NASCAR TV programs scheduled for tonight.
ReplyDeleteJD
Sophia you could have done all your grocery shopping, all your laundry, gotten your car gassed up and washed and still not missed anything on the broadcast during this rain delay!
ReplyDeleteSuzie "whatever her name is" and Mosberger are an insult to NASCAR fans. ESPN is probably obligated to use their services but its obvious they know nothing about NASCAR racing. I resent having to listen to their reading from scripts and Mosbergers stupid, uninformed babble. Its a shame that money is the only thing that matters anymore because ESPN coverage gives NASCAR a backseat to other sports.
ReplyDeleteBush Series Fan,
ReplyDeleteYou are correct LOL.
I would be working on my cookies NOW (I DO have old fashioned oats to add to the batter after all) but the LR tv is where my room mate is watching steelers game and the Kitchen TV would compete sound wise and I would be too far away to read the close captioning where I use the Kitchen Aid mixer.
sweet Kasey took a shower thinking he was heading home! I just hope there are no weepers on the track to stall the restart.
I am in such a mood I hope a NON CHASER wins or maybe Jr...just to hack off those Jr haters! :-)
Or Bobby labonte needs a win, too!
:-) I ate my Cheerios last night in hopes of him having a good day.
oh boy...late start due to radio problems....Huge Sigh...
ReplyDeleteThis could be really interesting for those who haven't fallen asleep by now.
:-)
Well rats...if they are going to start this thing, I will be busy watching SPEED Channel for sports stuff until 10pm. No SPEED in kitchen. Stupid football game in LR...ha.
ReplyDeleteNo starting cookies until after WT!
Sometimes its the little things. They are going to run to lap 225.
77 laps. OMG...
(dramatic music starts playing)
:-)
Where the hell is HotPass?????
ReplyDeleteI assume it is contractual based on time, but I hope John addresses this.
It seems unfair for the fans paying NASCAR extra money not to be able to see the end of races they are paying extra money for!
Hotpass came back on before they started.
ReplyDeleteWhy did they show from MW car the wreck? It showed nothing...
ReplyDeleteCourse my favorite was taken out. Darn!
ReplyDeleteHow many cars got back on the lead lap? Did they pit? Does anyone know? Anyone? At all? If you do, could you tell me, cause ESPN won't.
ReplyDeleteMatt, don't you know, we're only watching Tony!
ReplyDeletewell if you watch nascar.com "live leaderboard" it has all that info on it.
ReplyDeleteOK...so Tony may or may not have an isse.... Who the heck is running where?
ReplyDeleteI would appreciate if they would actually TELL US something instead of just talking. I haven't heard anything that actually matters in like an hour. And how bout Rusty's expert analysis: "That fender may rub..or it may not."
ReplyDeleteThat wreck was painful....Schrader got loose next to Mikey and Labonte and a bunch got caught up.
ReplyDeleteHope INC has regular gang tomorrow night. Schrader HAS to feel terrible...
O had a problem with Rusty saying if ZIPPY said the tire is ok, then it's ok...now TONY will cause a wreck.
ReplyDeleteSIGH
Hot dang they don't call him smoke for nothing!
ReplyDeleteESPN is over 10 seconds delayed and ABC was over 20. From the leader board on NASCAR.com
ESPN is not getting any better on their coverage of the sport. Altho I do have to hand it to them for sticking with it through the rain delay. I was pleasantly surprised by their actions.
Why aren't they showing any one else? Just Tony!!! Come on!!!
ReplyDeleteGood, now who they going to talk about?
ReplyDeleteCan't wait for the ESPN interview with Tony. (JK)
ReplyDeleteI bet he won't talk to them..
ReplyDeleteYeah Steve if I were ESPN I wouldn't even approach Tony! Poor Carl!
ReplyDeleteJamie shut up!!! Ask one question and go!
ReplyDeleteNot unless they prefer another f-bomb...
ReplyDeleteWow these Chase contenders are snake bit today.
ReplyDeleteI think Tony may be boycotting ESPN again. I haven't seen him interviewed on there all day and Zippy has done the interviews instead. However, Tony has done all the Speed Channel and Hotpass interviews. Did anyone see a Tony interview on ESPN?
ReplyDeleteNext week Tony will be on damage control and he'll probably show up for an interview on ESPN.
ReplyDeleteBeginning to feel like the Friday night demolition derby.... Jees!
ReplyDeleteESPN is the repetition channel, all they do is repeat and rehash events from yesterday, last week, the week before, and who knows when. How bout focusing on the here and now huh?
ReplyDeleteOh I thought we were watching Islip's Friday Night Demoliton Derby race! These are actually cup drivers?
ReplyDeleteNo commercials for an hour or so? Can it be?
ReplyDeleteWhen was the last commercial break?
ReplyDeleteDon't ask!
ReplyDeleteAndy and Rusty are excited in the booth tonight! Now if we can just get Dr. Punch to raise his voice and get a little out of control!
ReplyDelete;-)
They are talking about how fast Jimmie Johnson is compared to the leader.... Umm guys Jeff Gordon is the fastest on the track right now.
ReplyDeleteWhy oh why are we going to the COT ?????
ReplyDeleteYehaw! 3 lap trophy dash.... Biff is gonna block like a pulling guard!
ReplyDeleteNASCAR! Nothing like a bunch of spoil sports
ReplyDeleteJerry, Jerry, Jerry,
ReplyDeleteClint didn't grow up dreaming of winning on his home Kansas track in a big-time nascar race..... because the Kansas track wasn't even built when Clint was a kid.
I really do like Jerry, but he's just not right for the booth and needs to trade places with Bestwick.
Hey Guys,
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think about this long effort by ESPN today overall?
JD
Nascar's Live Leaderboard shows Clint Bowyer winning the race! Hmmmm!
ReplyDeleteThese guys in the booth are getting punchy now! The broadcast was pretty good I'd say.
ReplyDeleteIt's over? What a rip off!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteBeen nice if they spent some of their blathering time giving pit information and full-field rundowns.
ReplyDeleteABC and ESPN need some race fans in charge of the production.
Well, credit is certainly due for them sticking with Nascar for the long haul today!
ReplyDeleteJD-Gotta give 'em credit for staying with the race. Once it moved over to ESPN2, it was great without the dearth of Desparate Housewives commercials. They really need to produce some more fillers for those times when Mother Nature will not cooperate. They still need to work on the chemistry or lack thereof in the booth. I'm begging to think BRad needs to be there on Sundays.
ReplyDeleteHowever, they left pretty quick before resolving whether Biffle actually won the race.... Shouldn't they have sorted that out before going off air?
ReplyDeleteIt was a better broadcast John. I can tell because I didn't get out the moody boombox to carefully dial in MRN (No pun intende)
ReplyDeleteBut the way they RUSHED OFF THE AIR afterwards for a CHASE RACE STANK.
Plus JD, on the SPEED BOARDS, some were watching on ABC but did NOT have ACCESS to ESPN2 or cable.
ALSO, ask again when the folks out doing things with family on a Sunday come home to find they MISSED the end of the race . So much action after the rain it's mind boggling.
But as somebody with access and who was HOME to be aware of the changes, it was nice to watch on the TV's. When I get MRN I have to stay in one area as it's hard to get inside the house.
Less GRAPHIC INTRUSION today, Rusty did not OVER USE those two dreaded words and he and Petree seemed EXCITED!
:-)
THANK GOD FOR SPEED but they should've stayed on the air longer..I mean John, the women's SOCCER WAS A REPEAT ON ESPN2?? COME ON.
So much more continuity and excitement with commercial free broadcast from EPSN2. Made a world of difference.
ReplyDeleteBravo to ESPN for sticking with this to the end, and no commercials to boot! Excellent job.
ReplyDeleteOk...I had no idea things were so confusing and CONTROVERSIAL.
ReplyDeleteFolks are screaming for NASCAR RULE BOOKS! I get the feeling it's written on an Etch-A-Sketch as folks are screaming Bowyer should have won?
In the confusion, I missed what happened. What do the rest of you think? Will JD address this confusion as different sites apparently are saying different things about who won??
I'm glad you all thought the race coverage was good, but I thought it was awful. I heard nothing that actually had much do with the race from either Rusty or Jerry. It was just "words." Thre was no info on who pitted, who got back on the lead lap, no discussion of strategy. I'm sorry, but to me this gang in the booth really does not make the race enjoyable or informative. I will commend ESPN2 for going commercial free, but that doesn't mean it makes up for awful announcing.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Tony really didn't know he was on "live." Was there a reporter there to ask him questions or just the cameraman? If the latter, I think it's understandable he didn't know he was "live."
ReplyDeleteAnyone with any media savvy at all know you treat every camera as though it is on, every microphone as though it is hot.
Tony knows better.
Tony just doesn't care.
And obviously, the in-car camera is tougher than he thought when he threw his helmet at it.
Anyone who has yet to try listening to MRN while watching ESPN is really missing THE way to watch the race.
ReplyDeleteThe MRN guys miss nothing on the track or on pit road. They also have a solid command of the English language, unlike the gentlemen on ESPN.
Try it, you'll like it!
I agree with Matt on his points. We saw nothing back in the pack. We got no information or interviews from very many drivers that were taken out of the race.
ReplyDeleteIt was somewhat better, but they have a long way to go.
The energy level was higher today which was nice.
I don't expect to see vast changes for the rest of the season but I sure hope they work things out before next year.
What a bogus ending. We'll never know if the 16 had any gas.
ReplyDeleteKudos to ABC/ESPN for sticking with the whole thing throughout the rain delay, although the channel switch certainly left some DVRers yearning for the end.
It is getting old how NASCAR keeps making up rules as they go along.
Kudos to ABC/ESPN. At first, I know alot of us were upset it got switched to ESPN2. But it didn't end until 8:30. It was better to switch at 6:00, than in the middle of racing action. Plus. We saw little commercial interuption on ESPN2.
ReplyDeleteMatt: Overall, I would agree. It was a pretty crappy day for viewers, but I have come to expect that level of performance from ABC/ESPN/ESPN2/ESPN Classic or wherever the hell the put us to watch a little NASCAR. I am guessing that Disney paid the bucks they did so they would have the advertising platform they wanted to pimp their primetime shows. It is obvious it is not about the racing (see missed racing by the leaders and missing restarts). NASCAR has put themselves in the hands of folks who do not need them. They went after the money at a time when NASCAR was at its peak of popularity and nowhere to go but down in viewship numbers. My fear is that NASCAR will go the way of IRL/CART and we will end up wathing 1/2 the season on "The Ocho", because Disney does not get the views they need to pimp their products. We will be begging for the DDW and the boys to start the new year just so we can get a couple of months of decent announcing and at least a bit better production. Maybe my last comment was posted while in the delerious state I found myself after and hour of not watching commercials.
ReplyDeleteIf I heard correctly, Rusty's "word of the day" was that Tony's tire was "clearancing" the fender!...
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDeleteIf I heard correctly,Rusty's "word of the day" was that Tony's tire was "clearancing" the fender!...
Nah.... I thought it was "coastes across the line..."
It is getting old how NASCAR keeps making up rules as they go along.
ReplyDeleteYou mean, like how JPM flips off a camera in a (non-interview) situation and is penalized, but Tony Stewart, who is on "probation, drops the f-bomb on camera and that's all right, because it's a non-interview situation?
They may just as well have said,"Well, see, Tony's in the chase, so when we said 'probation,' we didn't really mean it."
Stop Complaing. Everyone was all for NASCAR rejoining with ESPN and NBC Was not returning. Now, you don't like ESPN's coverage and place the blame on NASCAR. Quit your complaining. Not every broadcast is going to be award winning. You all got what you asked for. Now you wish you had NBC, don't ya? You got what you wanted. Stop complaining. It's not NASCARS fault.
ReplyDeleteNot every broadcast is going to be award winning.
ReplyDeleteOr any of them.
And for the record, I never said I wanted NBC out of the pciture, so Stop Generalizing.
Nah, Anonymous...... I am not looking for award winning everytime, however something that might keep the broadcasts off the Razzies would be nice. I would be just fat, dumb and happy with Fox for the whole year
ReplyDeleteEveryone was for ESPN. Some of the things complained about are rediculous. The brightness of the picture? The speed of the ticker? The switching of networks.
ReplyDeleteSoon we will hear. "The Cars Look To Small". Like ESPN has control over that.
Everyone was for ESPN.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't.
The broascast for good, considering the long day. Lets put ourselves in ESPN's shoes. 8 1/2 hours on air is huge. Mistakes will be made!
ReplyDeleteWhat's their excuse for their poor work on normal-length racedays?
ReplyDeleteWhy arent there any comments on Jr dumping Kyle Busch? If it was the other way around we'd have the Jr nation rioting in the streets, like last year at Talledega. I cant stand that guy nor his fans..... *sigh*
ReplyDeleteKevin in SoCal
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ReplyDeleteBefore today, in the 6 & 2/3 years of the "modern era TV contracts" from 2001-2007, there was only ONE incident of a TV network dumping a race to another network in the middle of the day. That was the 2001 fall Cup race at Charlotte, where NBC moved the race to TNT during Countdown to Green after NBC News took over coverage of the beginning of the Iraq war.
ReplyDeleteNow that ABC/ESPN are back in the sport, it took exactly 4 races for ABC to dump out of a race after a little rain. Give me a break. If you want to pay millions of dollars to cover this sport how about treating it like it matters and sticking with the race until the end? This would have never happened if ABC was covering college football, the NFL, or baseball. I can't believe there wasn't something written in the TV contract that would force ABC to stick with the races in their entirety. Fox, FX, NBC, and TNT NEVER abandoned a race no matter how long it ran. NBC stuck with the 2005 Pepsi 400 at Daytona until what, 2 or 3 AM? Today's race ended at about 8:15 PM, a little over 2 hours after its originally scheduled off-air time. TWO HOURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Brent Musburger is a joke, he adds NOTHING to the broadcasts so why is he there? He doesn't know who any of the drivers are, and can't even pronounce most of their names (how exactly did he pronounce B-O-W-Y-E-R?). Hell, he couldn't even pronounce Mike Massaro's name. Suzy Kolber is a terrible pre-race host. I think she even left during the rain delay to get to her real job of covering Monday Night Football. I don't think I heard her speak during the ESPN2 portion of the race, which is a good thing by the way. Not only does it insult NASCAR fans' intelligence to have a football reporter hosting race broadcasts, but it's an even bigger insult to have her leave in the middle of the broadcast to catch her plane.
Thank God for Hotpass so I could push the blue button on my remote to see the running order during the red flag. It took forever for ESPN to do the most simple thing - show us the running order and how they would finish if the race was called. They showed the "Points as of Now Graphic" several times during the rain but never showed the running order. Also, why did we get ZERO driver interviews from the time the rain hit the second time until the coverage got switched to ESPN2? Hotpass interviewed tons of people during the rain so it wasn't like everyone was evacuated because of the lightning and ESPN's announcers had to run for shelter.
The "Through the Field" shouldn't be for ONLY Chase drivers. If you want to run through the top 10 runners and sprinkle in the other Chase drivers deeper in the field that's fine, but why focus solely on the Chase drivers? It was a huge waste of time to even cover Kyle Busch and Jeff Burton during those "through the fields". They were tons of laps down and out of the contention, so what need is there for a follow-up on them?
ESPN and ABC are pathetic and I'm sick of their horrible coverage and overall lack of respect for NASCAR fans and this sport in general.
Thank God almost everything at Talladega is on Speed Channel, except for the Cup race that will start on ABC, then get switched to ESPN2, then ESPN Classic, then ESPN360.com.
Yep, that pretty well sums it up.
ReplyDeleteWere there more than 12 cars on track today? According to MRN there were. According to MRN 8 cars were involved in the restart pile up ESPN2 only told us of 2. MRN told us about both Jamie McMurray and Denny Hamlin, ESPN only focused on Hamlin.
ReplyDeleteABC/ESPN needs to split the coverage. ABC with the current crew can show the chase while ESPN2 or SPEED can put together a crew to show THE RACE!
ABC didnt stick with NASCAR because, unfortunately for us, they would get a lot more letters and emails if "Desparate Housewives" didnt air because of a "stupid redneck race," then they would from us NASCAR fans. It sucks, but its the truth.
ReplyDeleteKevin in SoCal
(Staning O) for stricklinfan82
ReplyDeleteEVERYONE was not for ESPN coming back. I didn't like the move because I knew this stupid channel hopping crap was going to happen because ESPN and ABC cover a thousand other sports. Mr. Daly correctly voiced his concerns about that on this blog earlier this year as well. At least on Fox, NBC, and TNT there was nothing for NASCAR to compete with except for the "Gravity Games", volleyball, and Law & Order re-runs so we knew we would see every race in its entirey on ONE channel.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure some fans were looking forward to ESPN coming back, expecting their coverage to be the same as in was from 1981-2000 when they were the best NASCAR network around. No one expected our intelligence to be insulted by having Brent Musburger, Chris Fowler, Suzy Kolber, Erik Kuselias, and the legendary Doug Banks become the "faces of NASCAR on ESPN". We also weren't expecting ESPN to buy the exclusive rights to practice sessions, not to air them themselves but for the sole purpose of keeping them off of any other competing network.
If all of the fans knew this was coming, no one would have been looking forward to ESPN coming back.
Anonymous said...
ReplyDeleteI'm really stupid when it comes to the financial requirements of starting a new "channel" but why doesn't ESPN make a race channel on their suite of channels? September 30, 2007 6:19 PM
Because then NASCAR will be seen by less than half of its current audience. My cable CO. will not put that channel on standard cable.
stricklinfan82 said...
ESPN and ABC are pathetic and I'm sick of their horrible coverage and overall lack of respect for NASCAR fans and this sport in general.
Thank God almost everything at Talladega is on Speed Channel, except for the Cup race that will start on ABC, then get switched to ESPN2, then ESPN Classic, then ESPN360.com.
September 30, 2007 10:03 PM
WOW... you are mad, and you seem like you would like ESPN to just disapear rather than improve its broadcast.
Also, I'm tired of everyone blaming everything on NASCAR.
Stricklinfan82,
ReplyDeleteYou just had a great point. Since the unified television deals, only once has a race moved from broadcast to cable, and that was a National Crisis because our bravest went to battle to fight Usama's Henchmen in the 'Stan. not the Iraq War. Fox even had a graphic when Iraq started to have viewers watch Fox News Channel, a great way to plug what is now the #1 news channel.
This morning's NASCAR Now was delayed by the Women's World Cup Final, something which ESPN has rights. You cannot do anything about that event because it is a world-class event.
Last year, I noted Disney had placed a "franchise" tag on Desperate Housewives, giving it ultimate priority.
To protect Disney's #1 franchise, the Cup race moved from the ESPN Broadcast Network to ESPN2.
That shows how Disney just loves four raunchy women talking steamy X-rated issues while pushing Cup drivers to the back.
Last year I warned this would happen, and here we go. The "franchise" tag means to let this show air at its proper 9 PM ET time slot, the race had to go and could not air on network primetime.
Desperate Housewives as a "franchise" tag, and they've given the Indy Racing League a "transition" tag. They get more priority than NASCAR, and it showed today how the Franchise tag on Housewives won out. They put the "transition" tag on the Indy 500 and have aired it into primetime the two times in the past four runnings where it has been cut because of rain.
I normally had cable, but today I was somewhere else that did not have cable. So I was a little disappointed with ABC's switch to ESPN2. Good thing I had MRN.
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ReplyDeleteIf NASCAR had the TV ratings of the NFL, then ABC wouldn't have bumped it. But, unfortunatly, it doesn't. That isn't ABC's fault. Though I'm glad ESPN at least sticks with live events.
ReplyDeleteWow, let's not get so ugly with comments about drivers. This is NOT what this blog is supposed to be about folks.
ReplyDeleteI pretty much agree with EVERYTHING Strickland fan said as well. But as I HAVE SAID BEFORE, nobody cares. We can have the most astute bunch of LONG TIME NASCAR FANS (Which SFan is) and both ESPN and NASCAR does not seem to care.
Also, i think it is super tacky to make such remarks about the Earnhardts. Classless comment. I am a Jr fan but not the drunken idiot kind. Some Jr fans DO have an IQ higher than that of a houseplant and are flummoxed at the hatred the very "E" name or Jr name can provoke such nasty comments.
Also for those interested, off topic kind of, INC is NOT GOING to be the FUN show I expected after Schraders HUGE WRECK, with Mikey next to him, and Biffle's controversial win. INC is going to be Waltrip, Reutimann and Vickers. Could've been an explosive fun episode but will now be a snoozefest, I guess to announce Reut is returning to Mikey's team. And I LIKE both those guys but can call them as I see them.
So Schrader fans, we are gypped this Monday night. :(
You know Erik, NASCAR's ratings are second to the NFL. If that's not good enough to warrent proper coverage than why doesn't ESPN/ABC just get out of their contract and give it to a network who actually cares about the sport. Just because NASCAR doesn't get NFL-type ratings means we deserve (or the sport deserves) second-class treatment.
ReplyDeletehttp://youtube.com/watch?v=PA5q8FuB7t8
ReplyDeleteOk..I really Liked Brad D in the booth and must admit I MISSED his over use of the "O" word! LOL. See for yourself and it's a GREAT, OLD song featuring snippets from the 70's with Neil Young and the late great Nicolette Larson song FIELD OF OPPURTUNITY...wish I could've heard more of the song,:-)
SophiaZ123, I do not think you should have brought up INC and Mikey. I hope this does not spark a major argument like the last INC column started. However, I too would have wanted to see regular cast at INC tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteSorry Anon, I did not mean to start anything. If you read back, you will see I LIKE MIKEY a lot as he makes me laugh but he can test ones tolerance. I just love the 'regulars' on INC and in lieu of TODAY's BIZARRE RACE, I wanted to hear what ALL THREE had to say.
ReplyDeleteAs soon as the race went off the air, I switched to SPEED to see Schrader wrapping up an interview saying what the chasers need to remember is SOME of the rest of the guys are racing for the TOP 35 position.
I wanted to HEAR more of KS ...did anybody else hear that on SPEED REPORT? It was not repeated on VL except I did miss 5 minutes of that show and could have missed it.
I wanna know WHAT HAPPENED to the cars that wrecked. Now I am KICKING myself for not getting out the radio for MRN but we have had the best boombox in the house break recently (got knocked off a table) and it's heck getting the station to come in.
I bet MRN had more explanation maybe...What did the MRN guys say ABOUT THE FINISH of the race. I heard Hunter explain it on VL and I heard Despain repeat it on WT...but boy, NASCAR really does not have a rule book of clarity. Heck I would just like to SEE their rulebook.
Quote: At least on Fox, NBC, and TNT there was nothing for NASCAR to compete with except for the "Gravity Games", volleyball, and Law & Order re-runs so we knew we would see every race in its entirey on ONE channel.
ReplyDelete--Not anymore. If the Cup Chase races were still on NBC, they would get cut for Football Night In America and Sunday Night Football.
And for instance, in today's race, where would NBC have moved the Cup race to? Bravo? The Sci-Fi Channel? They wouldn't have kept it on NBC with primetime football (last Sunday's game was the top rated show of the week in primetime) on tap.
I hate them moving races but at least ESPN presents some options.
NBC would have moved the race to CNBC. They put the post race show on CNBC many times last season.
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ReplyDeleteAnon:
ReplyDelete"Why does it seem like it's mostly the "also rans" are talking to ESPN during a rain delay and not the chase guys or Dale Jr.? Talk about a double edge sword....the 2nd and 3rd tier teams get no attention during the race, but these are the guys that are "good enough" to talk to them during the rain delay. Sponsors should pray for rain every week."
Since ESPN had over 3 hours to kill (both rain delays), it was only a matter of time before they got to the non-chasers and the drivers that were not Jr. The other 40+ (including the ones that did not make it this week), have every right to be interviewed during a rain delay. They work just as hard, if not harder, than the top drivers. It's pretty sad that that is the only time they are usually mentioned during a race.
Now if ESPM listened to the NASCAR officials during the 2nd delay, they would have known at 5:30, that they were predicting that it was going to take 1.5 hours to dry the track. They could have re-aired any of the shows in their library or a previous race which I'm sure that they had.
Good thing I had the scanner and my friends to keep me occupied througout the delay.