Update: This topic has generated a lot of conversation and comments here, on Facebook and Twitter. Leaving it up as the lead story.
The NASCAR on FOX gang will be returning the core group of on-air talent for this season's coverage, but there will be one significant addition.
Michael Waltrip will take a seat in the Hollywood Hotel beginning with the Daytona 500. His role will be to appear on the pre and post-race shows, as well as providing analysis as needed during the race. In the event of rain, Waltrip and infield host Chris Myers will quickly become the show.
Moving aside is Jeff Hammond, the NASCAR on FOX on-air personality perhaps most identified with this infield position. This season, Hammond will become a roving reporter and has said he was absolutely fine with the change.
In 2011, FOX-owned cable TV network SPEED paired Darrell and Michael Waltrip in the TV booth for several races. The family dynamic between the two was interesting and the FOX executives loved the result.
"Michael is simply one of NASCAR’s most gregarious, genuine personalities and we loved the dynamic between him and Darrell when we paired them up on occasion last season," said FOX Sports Media Group Executive Producer Eric Shanks in a release.
"Michael has also been featured in numerous television commercials over the last decade, which makes him familiar to a much broader audience," continued Shanks. "I expect a lot of ‘gotta see’ TV coming out of an all-Waltrip Hollywood Hotel next season."
Shanks also made it clear that Michael Waltrip will remain in the Hollywood Hotel during and after the race. Waltrip will not be attending to his multi-car team duties, but dedicating himself to providing analysis for the full TV telecast.
This means that Mike Joy and Larry McReynolds in the TV booth will have to deal with the sometimes overbearing presence of Darrell Waltrip upstairs and now the powerful and very vocal media personality of Michael downstairs.
"The TV Lightning Rod" was a post from last season. We discussed the much more emotional and sometimes out of control aspects of Darrell Waltrip's last two seasons in the booth for FOX. Click on the title to read the entire post.
"Waltrip Negotiating To Purchase Red Bull Racing" is a post from Dave Moody's Sirius Speedway blog. Click on the title to read the story. This is part of the very real issue on the NASCAR on FOX table.
The younger Waltrip is actively involved as a multi-car Sprint Cup Series team owner. He will also drive a limited schedule in the series, focusing on restrictor plate races. Waltrip-Pastrana racing will run at least seven Nationwide Series races in 2012 with driver Travis Pastrana. Waltrip's K&N East team appears to have been shut down for this coming season due to lack of sponsorship.
The younger Waltrip has been embroiled in the normal controversies involving changes of personnel, driver contracts and sponsor issues for years now. His off-track issues are well-documented and his continuing presence on social media outlets is legendary. His tweets tell the story of perhaps a lonely man, working hard to establish his place in the sport and reclaim happiness in his personal life.
Against this complicated backdrop comes the most challenging television assignment of his career. A veteran analyst on SPEED's Camping World Truck Series telecasts, Waltrip has plenty of practice up in the broadcast booth. On FOX, however, after his time in the pre-race show is done his role will be quite different.
This time, Waltrip will literally be waiting in the dark for an opportunity to add his opinion into a telecast that already has his older brother squarely positioned as the star of the show. There is little doubt that the on-air dynamic at FOX will be significantly different than it had been with Hammond in that position.
SPEED indicated years ago that the reason it was permissible to have Waltrip in the truck series TV booth is because he did not own any teams in that series. There could be no claims of favoritism, questions about his agenda or suggestions that his comments on other teams were motivated by an ownership perspective.
Now, the new management at FOX Sports is brushing aside those issues and banking on the fact that the reaction to the younger Waltrip, both good and bad, will lead to a bump in the TV ratings. Despite the PR spin of last season, NASCAR TV ratings are far below the popularity of the sport only four or five years ago.
The point is well taken that the senior Waltrip will be 65 years old in February and has been doing this for a very long time. FOX is beginning the final three years of an existing TV contract and will be opening negotiations with NASCAR this year to determine the network's role in the future.
It may well be that Shanks is investing in what he sees as the potential successor to be the lead announcer for NASCAR on FOX. Should the network continue in the sport, the younger Waltrip will have three seasons of experience under his belt and perhaps the torch will simply be passed within the same family in 2015.
We welcome your thoughts on this topic. To add your opinion, just click on the comments button below. TDP does not allow profanity, hateful speech or derogatory comments. Please do not post links to other websites. Comments will be moderated before posting. Thank you for taking the time to stop by The Daly Planet.
83 comments:
I guess that means more of the radio guys this season.
I have a hard time believing Michael Waltrip will drop his owner hat once the cameras go on. His former driver, Reutimann, just announced he joined Tommy Baldwin's team for 2012. I can't wait to hear Michael Waltrip's commentary if Reutimann happens to make it into the 500.
Also, there was an interesting quote in an update on Jayski yesterday from NASCAR On Sirius: "...Michael Waltrip could also compete in the 2012 Daytona 500, but is believed unlikely to do so in an MWR Toyota..." This is probably just a loose rumor, but certainly raises hypothetical questions. Why is his name still being thrown around when he has his FOX commitment and already determined races in the #55?
Fox is betting on the Waltrips. I am betting on a good MRN stream. I will not listen to those 2 sponsor/ego driven loudmouths drool over Jr and Kyle. No one other than those 2 will be able to talk. Maybe they will drown each other out? One could only hope.
Not interested in anything to do with the Waltrips. Will not watch and generally don't care about NASCAR as much as I used to. Sorry for being negative, but TV execs just don't care what the people who ultimately pay the freight want.
I will watch start of the Daytona race, but that will be it. I reached my limits of all Wal's and refuse to watch, or listen to, any more of their garbage. fox could not care less about what we think. MC
Eric Shanks reinforces the position I've stated on this site for several years. Planeteers routinely complain about the lousy coverage of Nascar races across all of the Networks. My position has always been that things are the way they are because the powers that be WANT them that way. It makes complete logic to Mr. Shanks that the Waltrips are an excellent fit to cover Fox's races. He clearly stated what he believes to be the many positive attributes of the brothers. My guess is that if a proper viewer poll were conducted, that their would be little support for the pair. Perhaps it's just the hard core fans who don't like Waltrips. All I know is that I have no use for the Waltrips and the Wallaces and will not listen to them. My best guess is that they will be around for a long time. The Networks can do anything that they want. That's their perogative. I have choices too and I'm not going to subject myself to it. There are so many serious issues with Nascar and the Network broadcasts, but as long as the number of eyeballs watching increases, little will be done to improve the Broadcasts.
All radio, all the time for me.
Not happy about this at all and will be listening to MRN more. We have put up with DW's loud and overbearing mouth for way too long and to add Mikey doing the very same thing is not acceptable at all. He may be well like by many of the media people, but what about what we fans want. Personally I would love seeing the new contract going to Versus and let them use the Indy Car team do the races. When I had the choice, I found myself watching the Indy Car Series over NASCAR.
I have a hard time believing that M Waltrip can be neutral in his broadcasting, especially in the Sprint Cup races. He has several dogs in that fight including his personal racing plans. Rusty has shown that there are occasions where he cannot be neutral in the Nationwide races and it has damaged credibility for that team. They often have not handled issues with Steven and the 66. This plan to use the Waltrips, plural, is unfortunate and I believe it will ultimately bite Fox coverage in the tush.
Under no circumstances should an active car owner be an analyst on any network. That would be like Robert Kraft calling a NFL game or Mark Cuban calling a NBA game. So I don't understand why the networks covering NASCAR would think this is fine. There are plenty of other former drivers and car owners out there that would make for a great analyst.
"If people don't want something, give them more." Nice philosophy, and good luck with that.
Until NASCAR and their tv partners realize that promoting themselves rather than promoting the races doesn't work, this sport is in big trouble.
Unknown to many as sunspots garbeled the transmission what Mr. Shanks actually said was:
"I expect a lot of ‘gotta see if there is something else on ’ TV coming out of an all-Waltrip Hollywood Hotel next season."
We don't have Nascar radio coverage in Houston so it's always the tv broadcasters for us. I like to listen to Mikey because I find it interesting that sometimes he doesn't even take a breath between sentences. Well, guess we'll soon find out how it will be.
My enthusiasm for the start of 2012 racing just tanked. I cannot imagine having two Waltrips shoving their ego-driven drivel down my throat before, during, and after a race. Mr Shanks should be fired for adding to the displeasure of NASCAR fans who are fed up with decisions made by people who know nothing about them. If it weren't so disgusting, this decision would be comical. Not many people will be laughing though. Thank God for radio.
AR...lol.
This last season I was pretty lazy about turning on the radio instead. I'm thinking I'll be making more of an effort now. You know, it's kind of a shame. When they are taking it seriously, they can both be good broadcasters. We've noted many times that Darrell sometimes seems to be the only one actually watching what's going on. But unfortunately, the powers that be seem more interested in making them clowns than in making them broadcasters. And we've already heard both of them dancing around the Reutimann dismissal as 'just business'...acting as if it was no big deal how poorly it was all handled. So I expect more biased garbage from the team owner and his brother gushing over all things Toyota and yes, Kyle Busch is the greatest race car driver in the history of the world. Frankly, I see Michael as a jack of all trades, master of none--how can he seriously run a multi car team on race day and do this at the same time? I suppose you could use Tony Stewart as an example of multi-tasking, but he appears to know better when to change hats than Michael does and he has better personnel in place. The performance of the MWR teams would indicate that they could use more of their bosses attention.
It's a shame they can't segregate
the muted TV ratings from the
the regular broadcasts. I think
the advertisers would be greatly
awakened. Thank goodness for
MRN & PRN!
Well that makes it a losing bet for me. I seldom turn on the pre-race shows now and this addition will not inspire me to watch.
I have trackpass that will allow me to hear the radio broadcast, I'll tune in to that.
I am thinking more about downgrading my cable TV plan - this is the sort of programming decision that makes that more likely.
Two comments about this...
1. How would you like to be a driver who knows his owner is more concerned with getting his face on TV than staying in the garage and the pits with the teams like Jack Roush, Richard Childress, Rick Hendrick and Joe Gibbs do. This is why Mikey will NEVER accomplish what those owners have, and why none of his cars will EVER win a championship.
2. Why do I care about this anyway? For the first time since I've been watching NASCAR on TV, I WILL NOT turn my TV on until the green flag flies on FOX. The folks at FOX who pay attention to ratings can go ahead and count me as a no-show. The Waltrips will completely destroy what was already an unwatchable pre-race show.
Does this guy really think people watch because of the on-air talent? The waltrips will not bring in viewers but they for sure can make viewers leeave.
What a huge blunder for Fox.
Darrell is annoying but bearable if he isn't dialed up to "10".
Michael is annoying as soon as he opens his mouth.
Some people love both Waltrips some people can't stand either one. Why would FOX choose such polarizing figures for their broadcast.
Well at least FOX only has the first 15 races. I guess I will get my pre-race fix on Speed and forget about FOX's prerace. I won't put myself through that torture.
I watch NASCAR on FOX in spite of, not because of the sounds emanating from my television.
I'll pass on the pre=race shows with the motormouth twins. And if DW gets too annoying during the t.v. broadcast, I'll be watching what I can online with the t.v. muted.
I always have been and always will be a fan of DW on tv. Little brother drives me nuts though.
I've said this before.... but can we write down the name of everyone on here that claims they will not watch or listen to the pre-race show. Nor the race itself. And then compare that list to the comments section during and after the Daytona 500.
NASCAR nor Fox are holding anyone hostage, forcing them to watch and listen to the broadcasts.
What else can most Planeteers say on this subject? We're tired of DW flip-flopping and stomping over the whole broadcast, we don't trust Mikey anymore to be impartial about either individual drivers or NASCAR overall, and the less said about Chris Myers' extremely worn-out goober routine the better. While certainly not the main reason, it is definitely a factor why I will be only "running a part-time schedule" when it comes to NASCAR TV watching in 2012.
I have trouble listening to either Darrell or Mikey both on at the same time isway too much. All they will do is pat each other on the back.
Both of them have been bias in the past and nothing will change. all you will hear is will be about Toyota, Jr, Kyle Bush, and what i would do.
Fox bets on 2 Waltrips and they'll crap out at the dice table. 2 Waltrips is 2 Waltrips too many. I don't watch the pre-race and post-race as it is and now Fox is trying to make sure I don't watch the race? Dumb gamble on their part. I sure hope MRN & PRN enjoy the boost in the number of listeners they get in 2012.
FOX Betting On Waltrip Brothers in 2012.
Here's a sure bet: I won't be watching.
We all know what FOX and the Murdochs stand for.
The Waltrips fit Brian France and TV sponsor specifications. They have determined that the Waltrips attract the marginal fan most likely to respond to sponsor "messages".
I would prefer to listen to the MRN or PRN radio broadcast over FOX anyday, especially now that it is the Waltrip show. However, that option is not available in the Minneapolis radio market.
Quote: "Michael is simply one of NASCAR’s most gregarious, genuine personalities and we loved the dynamic between him and Darrell when we paired them up on occasion last season," said FOX Sports Media Group Executive Producer Eric Shanks in a release. Unquote.
The trouble with most tv shows these days is that hardly anyone is genuine anymore. Most people (including some fans or so called fans)think their own opinion is the only one that is right or matters.
Sad, sad when when we have to make choices to watch or not based on biased announcers and insincere people. I don't like it but unfortunately I still like racing so I will watch only the race show but no pre or post shows.
GA Red
Glad to see FOX betting on the Waltrips, I am sure the Ruttimans will be tuning in, along with all the rest of OL'DW's pals, and Mikeys legion of fans, NOT! I hope they finally get the wake up call they deserve. Moving Hammond out of the show is typical of the WALTRIP LOYALTY lesson. I will NOT be watching FOX.
The coverage in the past has been horrible, total disconnect from the actual races, nobody I know can stand the Waltrip brothers and when I first read about this my stomach did a flip flop and got a headache, no I am not lying..Fox ruined the season for me before it even started. They "execs" are out of touch...how unbearable..Will not watch.
Oh no way! Heard some interesting facts about M.Waltrip (and some other drivers) from another driver whom I won't name because it was a private conversation but I will say this will be a downfall for Fox and there will be some downfall for his low tier teams. He has lost an enormous amount of respect from some of the recent stunts he has pulled. Michael Waltrip needs to do some changing, he is going to be reaping what he has sown and it is not good.
If the network execs were to conduct an honest pole they would get their head out of their butts and realize that the majority of racing fans cannot stand one ecotistic waltrip much less two. now it will be interesting to see them overtalking each other with their meaningless dribble. Also i agree with most that there is no way an active car owner should be in the booth, specially one that is as opinionated as mw, last but not least just what we need another nascar suckup in the booth. Watch the TV ,listen to MRN.
looking forward to listening to both Waltrips this season on FOX...
i do not believei have ever seenso may comments in total agreement on any subject posted on this forum. maybe fox may read these and reverse this crazy decision.
Why insist that an analyst is neutral? As long as everyone knows his perspective (and I think most know Michael's), having an active owner/driver can add insight. This is no different than all of the popular cable news analysis programs where the anchor has a known ideology.
Now liking (or disliking) Mikey is another manner. But given his capability to attact sponsor funding (to expand his team where most others are contracting), makes me think that the "likers" significantly outnumber the "haters".
It's strange to me , obviously no TV execs read this column. I remember a time when I actually liked the Waltrip brothers and even rooted for DW in the Western Auto car. But ever since they became TV people I have grown to despise them. The fact that they are so self absorbed and shamelessly self promote grates on me to no end. It must be the casual fan that TV is going after because they are ignoring the long time fans.
Mike Joy stated this a few years ago, Tv wants people from the same mfg. doing the broadcasting, and now you see that Toyota has taken over, look at all the people that are on the air, do you see any Ford,Dodge or Chevrolet people doing the talking. Also look how much has been put out about the pace car for Daytona. People wake up they never have had a real race car, so NASCAR gives them what they want.
No No Say It Ain't So...To much Toyota/MWR comments already over the years & I'm sure Kentucky will become the greatest track of all time (if you listen to these two ...I Can only see this getting worse & We'll hear far more about mickeys teams then we used to...Really don't like how Reutt (the franchise) was handled ...Fox should be able to drive rating down enough to get a good future deal negotiated...Earner
It won't change my habit of ignoring pre-race shows; the limited informative content is outweighed by the amount of nonsense. It won't change my opinion that an infield studio brings nothing worthwhile to the broadcast. My opinions in these areas apply to all three current Cup-level partners, not just Fox.
I'm not happy about this, but I think y'all are being naive if you don't think that most NASCAR-related broadcasters have conflicts of interest of one kind or another.
I believe that Mike Joy is the largest distributor for SUNOCO racing products in the Eastern U.S. Larry Mac has a son who is racing, looking for sponsorship, and will someday be looking for a seat in a national series. Jeff Hammond has his pit crew school. It goes on and on.
I'll judge the value of the Waltrips working together after a couple of races when I have real experience and not simply prejudices.
I have to figure out how to get both the scanner and MRN/PRN. And I need to do it before Daytona. :(
There was a broadcast last year when DW said the driver lets go of the steering wheel during a crash so he doesn't break his ankles. My kids and I wondered why they would be steering with their feet. Seriously....DW said that. I like Mikey okay, but thanks goodness for PRN and MRN. Also, why has nobody said anything about Hammond. He sure got kicked down the curb. Can't wait until the "b" team show up on the other networks. Much better stuff.
I'm thinking it's more like ‘gotta flee’ TV. This is depressing, and I hope it's not an indication of what we can expect on SpeedTV as well. I already cringe and hit the mute button when they wave the initial green flag and that one guy utters that hideous b-word 3 times. Ugh. Other comments are convincing me I need to find a way to get the radio feed to overlay on the TV image. I hate that this is driving many of us away from Larry Mac and Mike Joy.
Regarding the comments about this being what the likes of Shanks and Fox want, I think it's more that they don't know any better. It seems that this move is shoving NASCAR back into the southeast corner of the country. I know too many people who won't watch largely because of that, what I call ‘The Boogity Factor’. That we still have Steve Matchett, Bob Varsha, David Hobbs and Will Buxton for the Speed's F1 coverage, at least as far as we know, is a miracle. I hope this does not bode poorly for them as well.
I'm afraid. Hold me…
I won't change my viewing/listening the first 15 races, tv on,MRN on, just hate having to miss Mike Joy, Dr. Dick, and most of the rest, really don't understand how any thinking person can enjoy the worn out act by the Wals.when they're on with Moody,I turn it off too, just so tired of it.
While it may be true that most of those involved with the on air broadcast of the races have a vested interest connected to the racing industry, they have managed to keep it out of how they cover the races. Both Waltrips, however, have not found a way to do that, In fact, they go overboard promoting their own interests while supposedly calling a race. It's discouraging to hear DW, who can offer great insight when not in 'self promotion' mode, make such a fool of himself. Both Waltrips get so caught up in hearing their own voices that it tends to devolve into blather. It's too bad that Fox can't find a way to use them in a way that enhances, rather than detracts from their race telecast.
I've always enjoyed Darrell's race commentary because he is almost always right about what went wrong with a car or why someone crashed. He pays attention. His brother is another story entirely, and I will try to avoid anything having to do with Michael.
P.S. More Andy Petree, please
NASCAR's credibility can't get much lower, now FOX wants to double our dose of the Waltrip's.
DW and Mikey are good ole boys. I thought NASCAR wanted to get rid of the perceived redneck image. No better place to start than inside the booth.
DW loves the attention and the money. DW will continue with his antics until someone shows him the door.
Longtime fans like myself aren't leaving the sport because of the idiots in the booth.
10 years from now, I'll still be a fan. It's going to take that long to undo the damage Brian France has done to the sport.
KudzuCarl, I think you have brought up an extremely valid point. Probably more than any other sport, racing is a family from top to bottom and side to side. It is indeed true that hardly anybody involved with it would be completely free of some sort of conflict of interest.
I do not believe that anybody with a possible conflict of interest should be automatically disqualified from working in NASCAR television. It seems to me that most people that have been in the business during my lifetime have been able to separate the sponsored parts of their lives from the portion where their job is to report or comment.
Now, KudzuCarl, here is where I disagree...in a friendly and respectful way so I hope you will not take offense as absolutely none is intended.
For me in the case of the Waltrips, I have personally seen and heard more than enough of their biases as well as their overall shtick...and it's not like they are new to the television business and still developing. Both of their acts were cute and playful at first especially with Mikey on the glory days of IWC/INC. However, as they have grown as media stars, I have perceived a great change that I have come to dislike intensely...and, if you do not remember, I was one of the Planeteers that defended Mikey for the longest time until the final straw of him saying on TWIN that people like me were not real fans (yeah, I've only been following the sport since 1970, Michael, please educate me...sheesh).
KudzuCarl, I am honestly glad you and others still have it in your heart to give them a chance. Who knows, maybe you will like what you see and post a comment here sometime down the road that might make some of us change our minds and give them another shot. For now, I've had more than enough of them and would need some pretty strong convincing that a Fox pre-race show in what I fear will be like a lame Sunday morning kids show -- The Three Stooges & Digger, Too! -- will be worth watching.
J.D.,
Don't you think those Waltrip brothers must have Q-ratings that're through the roof? (Q-ratings are a metric measuring how well known a person, television show, product or service is, and to what degree is that person or item is considered positive or negative.)
The stakes are too high for someone like Mikey to get a gig because David Hill likes to play golf with him.
WCK
terri, if you buy trackpass from nascar.com with the pitcommand option, you can get both the scanner option and the radio broadcast on your computer. I've used it for years and for me it's worth the $. I mute the TV and that way I can actually enjoy the race.
Since I multi-task with this blog and twitter to follow the race, I have my computer on anyway, so it's no big deal IMO.
It's a shame IMO that I used to really enjoy the tv broadcasts, esp by Fox, but they have negated that for me when it became more about the "cult of personality" and less about the actual race. I realize that the topic is having multiple Waltrips in the booth, but I feel the same way about the way all of the tv partners have chosen to cover the races -- or quite often - NOT cover the races.
Despite the Waltrips, I will watch the races from the green flag to the checkered flag. No more than that. Somehow, I am able to tune the Waltrips out most of the time as it is background noise to me. My own little protest is to avoid purchasing anything that sponsors anything a Waltrip has an interest in or anything the Waltrips mention. I avoid NAPA Auto Parts and wouldn't even consider a Toyota. It has been said that the NASCAR fan is the most loyal customer of products related to NASCAR. I figure it works both ways and we should avoid any product that supports anyone we don't like. That is the only thing big business understands.
You guys are stupid. Sorry to start a fight here. But lil waltrip is very good In the tv booth. I will agree over the past few years darrell is annoying and loud mouthed. But Michael is better and will be great for FOX I love what he does for SPEED.
With 2 Waltrips and 1 Myers, I have 0 reason to watch the pre-race show now.
Double Waltrip gives me one more reason not to watch, or hit the mute button and listen on radio,
I am a devoted NASCAR FAN!!! I have an opinion too!! I love NASCAR on FOX. That said, I am a huge Waltrip Fan as broadcasters. I am a fan of Hendrick Motorsports and am damn happy to b e able to Darrell's stories. Michael is a dork,but that's what I like about him. I am not too happy with what happened to Reutimann, or Trevor Bayne for that matter. But,we can't change that. I won't watch any other sport. So, bring it on. Having withdrawals at this point.
I think i must be the only person here who doesn't mind DW, there are plenty of worse alternatives they could have broadcasting.
That being said i haven't made an effort to watch a pre-race show in a long time and the addition of Mikey isn't going to change that (Like him doing truck commentary though)
An owner/investor in a race team shouldn't be getting paid to comment on a series they are involved with, doesn't really work on ESPN, doubt it will work on Fox
Well, it looks like Fox has as much respect for NASCAR fans as ESPN does, which is zero. MRN/PRN for me again this year. I don't have any local affiliates, but I can usually find a good feed from them on the Internet.
It just boggles my mind how clueless the senior management of Fox and ESPN in particular have no clue what the fans really want to see and hear when watching sports. I'm not talking just NASCAR either. ESPN has screwed the fans with piss poor coverage across the board and Fox isn't much better. Their NFL broadcasts, at least the games I can get here in MI, leaves a lot to be desired. Even their "A" team of Buck & Aikman have lost their touch.
If the networks are doing Focus Groups to see what the fans want, all I can say is who the hell is in these focus groups? Not real sports fans.
So sorry Fox for this fan it's going to be the MUTE button and MRN/PRN on my audio.
One Waltrip is too many. Two Waltrips are a train wreck.
I'll end on a positive note, the best thing I can say about the Waltrip brothers is it's better than having the Busch brothers.
It'll be interesting to see how this little experiment works out for Fox this year.
If you submitted a comment and it was not posted, please rephrase it and try again.
I don't mind the Waltrips. I generally agree with Darrell's on-track analysis and Mikey brings enthusiasm to the truck races. I don't pay much attention to the prerace shows as they don't tend to have much information.
I do think Mike Joy is wasted when paired up with a colour man who is as talkative as DW is.
I'm still amazed at Andy Petree. Man, he came out of no where and hit the ground running. IMO, best colour man in the biz.
My beef isn't so much with the men in the booth though Rusty and Brad are oxygen thieves (I tell you what, you're 100 percent correct, those cats are flat out talkin'!)Yeesh!!.
My beef is with the camera director. And we've all been through those problems every week. But, if you fix that, you've fixed 90% of the broadcast for me.
And Happy New Year to everyone! It's cold in Canada but the thought of Daytona is warming my heart.
If what makes are breaks your excitment torwards the new season depends on the television lineup and not the racing, then you need to take a good look at yourself. I'm not saying that these aren't issues or that they shouldn't be focused on, but there is one thing that needs to be the focus the most of all: The racing.
Just my opinion.
I'm not sure why this is uncharted territory because Brad Daugherty has been on ESPN recently and he owns a NASCAR team. No on is making a big fuss about this, maybe because (and I am a Bobby LaBonte fan) he driver isn't up running for race wins week in and week out which is what I am betting they are expecting from Clint Boywer.
That being said I honestly prefer FOX's part of the season. Overall I enjoy the interactions and bostrousness of the group as opposed to those on the ESPN group. TNT is in the middle for me in part because Adam Alexander got his broadcast start in my neck of the woods.
Besides what would NASCAR be without boggity boggity boggity...
Nickie, the answer is 'far better off' without that redneck shenanigans. Some of us find it very embarrassing to the sport. Many have also complained about Brad on multiple occasions, check out the archive sometime.
Anon 3:04...what you say might be true for you, but then why are you reading/commenting on a blog about racing on TV? It's what DP is for. Just sayin.
Several things, My opinions, mostly one liners:
1) A current owner should not be in the booth.
2) I am OK with Darrel, intelligent and interesting commentary most of the time.
3)I'm OK with Mikey as an interviewer on a weekly show but not racedays.
4) Fortunately only one Waltrip in the booth calling the race.
5)ESPN's coverage sucks and not only the booth.
6)Will miss Jeff in the booth. Very race savy. Will be great at finding the story in the pits but was great in the booth.
7)Larry Mac does a great job.
8)Larry Mac and Jeff Hammond would be great in the booth.
9) Crew chiefs run the show, a dri ver does what he is given.
10)I miss Buddy Baker.
11)I miss Neil Bonnet.
12) Damn I miss Benny.
13) I know I can't spell and I don't care.
It very obvious, this crew for the most part, are "OLD SCHOOL". not in favor of the lame coverage, and have definite opinions about the Waltrip brothers. I sure hope someone is listening!
I'll mute the tv and listen to PRN, can not stand listening to Mikey, wonder how many times he'll mention his book!
Great just great! More proof FOX & NA$CAR don't have a clue what the fans like! Well, it looks like I am getting the better laptop now! That way I can watch & listen to the races online! I sure as heck am NOT watching Fox with 2 jerks kissing Jr's & Kyle butt all race long! DW was bad enought with his man-love for Kyle & Jr, but 2 of them is more then I can take! New & better laptop here I come!
Thank God for mute buttons, MRN, and Trackpass. DW is tolerable, but Mikey is awful. The combination is sure to be unwatchable. I've never liked the idea of an active owner in the booth.
I know the Waltrips are not favored by most of TDP readers, and I respect that. However, I find them more interesting to hear than non-racing professional sports people in the booth. And I totally respect that they know a great deal of the history of Nascar.
I'm willing to give them a chance. But in return, can we have Mike LaJoie back for the NW races?
Anon 3:04 p.m. - the problem is that the racing is NOT good enough to make me not mind who is blathering in the booth.
If the racing were really entertaining, then a monkey could be in the booth and I'd be happy. Unfortunately, that is not so and therefore, the commentators are part of the story and since they want to take center stage instead of the racing, it takes even more away from the broadcast.
SiriusXM Wil be getting more if my money as I will now buy a home dock to listen to MRN/ PRN. I can't stand the bias out of Fox's booth with DW, now with Mikey, I'm done with Fox's telecasts!
I think we've beat the Kardashians or Snookies of NASCAR to death. Maybe if we all shut up and ignore them, the brothers will just go away. I think Fox thinks that any attention given to their celebrities is good publicity.
Well, the revolving door has rotated. FOX added car owner Waltrip, while ESPN’s Rusty Wallace just ended his team. Good for ESPN, bad for NASCAR as more people leave and nobody enters. When NASCAR TV returns from an ill-timed hibernation, all the networks face a very different reality in 2012.
FOX and Eric Shanks like the Waltrips. A quote from JD article says this - "Michael has also been featured in numerous television commercials over the last decade, which makes him familiar to a much broader audience," continued Shanks. "I expect a lot of ‘gotta see’ TV coming out of an all-Waltrip Hollywood Hotel next season."
Mr Shanks must figure things might happen like this - I am over at my neighbors house. I start talking about Michael Waltrip and how is going to be part of the FOX Nascar broadcast. My neighbor says, Who is that? I say, Don't you know Michael Waltrip? Neighbor says No. I say, Have you seen that commercial on Tv about auto parts and a guy gets up from behind a desk and wiggles his butt? Neighbor says, Oh ya, so that is Michael Waltrip. I say, Yes. My neighbor then says, I will be tuning into FOX Nascar and watching it because I know that guy from an auto parts commercial and I want to see more of him.
I am not sure how this will all work out but Mr Shanks is hoping a butt will bring FOX Nascar more exposure.
Vince
Very Nicely said.
Darrell's act is now getting old. The Waltrips bring nothing to the broadcasts. Zero.
Fox really needs to get their act together, ESPN too for that matter.
LOL, Charlie - that is such a perfect description of how decisions appear to be made by the networks.
I wonder if Shanks realizes that the moment I see that commercial begin I change the channel?
Fox is proud of its cartoon lineup on Sunday night...adding another cartoon on Sunday afternoon is no big thing to them. Yet another reason to watch with the sound down. They will run every credible person they have out of their booths, dont kid yourselves, there will be 2 Waltrips in the booth sometime during this season. I would rather watch "Dance Moms" with my wife than suffer through those two morons. What is DW gonna talk about now that he got himself inducted in the HOF?
The Headline should read:
"FOX Shanks fans with Waltrips"
I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes with MW. I'm a fan of both Waltrips and Hammond. I'm going to 'wait & see' how it goes. Then I'll take a page from Mikey's book. If I see something I don't agree with I'll state my opinion, and then offer a potential solution, just as MW does with NASCAR. (Example: Go/Go Home cars used to qualify based on their draw, giving unfair advantage to some, it was changed so they qualified in a group which was a suggetion from MW).
If some aren't Waltrip fans, it's OK with me. If you aren't going to watch or listen because of them, it doesn't bother me. How about taking a page from MW's book and say who you'd like to see and listen to, make suggestions on who to put in the booth, what you would do to make it better.
And, by the way Waltrip fans, how about some of you speaking up. I know there are more of us out there.
FOX and DW are probably the two biggest reasons that I barely watch NASCAR anymore - and I grew up at racetrack (Raceway Park in Blue Island, IL) and was a hardcore fan pretty much from birth until these last few years.
The shameless self-promotion and complete ignorance of the actual race, along with the Brian France-era presentation of NASCAR, has rendered it completely unworth watching in my opinion. Adding Michael Waltrip to the broadcast certainly isn't making me feel like giving NASCAR another shot, that's for sure.
IMO JD, the arrogant look that MW is giving in your current pic pretty much sums it up for alot of us. An owner that really isn't focusing on his team 100%, like the top notch owners in Nascar-welp, I would hope Clint Bowyer is quaking in his boots at his decision...:(
Post a Comment