"NASCAR Now" Preemptions Continue

Monday should have been a huge day for ESPN's NASCAR Now. Host Allen Bestwick has worked very hard to put together a 5PM Monday hour of solid NASCAR TV. Normally, Bestwick and three panelists review the weekend, preview the upcoming races and talk with a NASCAR newsmaker.

This Monday, ESPN2's time-shifted coverage of the NHRA US Nationals was scheduled until 6PM. Instead of airing NASCAR Now at that time, SportsCenter crossed over from ESPN and took the 6PM timeslot. SportsCenter then jumped over to ESPNEWS at 7PM and ran for three additional hours.

Once again this week, the Tuesday through Thursday 5PM editions of NASCAR Now have been preempted. The US Open tennis tournament also pushed NASCAR Now off the air last week. Tennis has not been kind to the series this summer.

ESPN switched most of it's Sprint Cup Series races from ABC to ESPN in order to deliver a more focused audience, be more flexible with time issues and keep NASCAR content on cable.

ESPN2 is home to the only "support programming" that NASCAR gets on the ESPN family of networks. The single TV series that has aired in support of the sport since 2007 is NASCAR Now. There are no other regularly scheduled NASCAR programs on the ESPN networks.

In 2006, ESPN became the major TV rights holder for NASCAR in a multi-year contract that exceeded a billion dollars. ESPN was back and NASCAR was elated. Just last week, NASCAR media executive Paul Brooks spoke to reporter Dustin Long from Landmark Newspapers.

Brooks told Long that the cross-over promotion on ESPN programs will really help the TV ratings for the actual Sprint Cup Series races. "They're turning the dial up at a time when we need it most," Brooks said of ESPN. "We've worked pretty hard with ESPN to get this to a pretty good place. We're anxious to see the results of this."

Well, Brooks is going to have to stay up late to see his results. The Tuesday through Thursday NASCAR Now shows air at midnight Eastern Time or later with no re-airs. The Monday show was cancelled.

After racing since February, this is the week leading up to the final race before The Chase for the Championship. The entire point of ESPN returning to the Sprint Cup Series was to provide a comprehensive multi-network media platform for NASCAR content.

Once again preempting the original airing of ESPN's daily NASCAR TV news program at this critical time does not seem to fall in line with "turning up the dial."

We welcome your comments on this topic. To add your opinion, just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting. Thanks for taking the time to stop by The Daly Planet.

Your Turn: Sprint Cup Series From Atlanta on ESPN

Marty Reid is getting his first taste of the NASCAR TV telecasts that have to handle multiple storylines. The race, The Chase and the bubble boys dominated this telecast of the Sprint Cup Series race from Atlanta.

Allen Bestwick started things off with Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty from the Infield Pit Studio. College football caused this show to come on a couple of minutes later than scheduled. Tim Brewer was in the Tech Garage.

Once again, the pre-race show featured pre-recorded packages that had been used earlier on the week on NASCAR Now and other ESPN TV outlets, including ABC. Erin Andrews may have some promotional value on other channels, but in a pre-race show for a very important race re-airing her laps with Dale Jarrett was an interesting choice.

Marty Reid is handling his first season of Sprint Cup Series races for ESPN. This has proven to be a challenge. Reid is used to calling the action, but juggling the various themes that ESPN throws his way has been rough. In this race, Kyle Busch was the early theme and then Greg Biffle took the attention.

Points as they run right now is a term that some fans hate. ESPN thumped TV viewers over the head with the Chase and the points until the real racing began with about 40 laps remaining. Suddenly, it was never mentioned again.

Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree have been working together for several seasons. They have been through many difficult times with the NASCAR on ESPN team. This is their best season ever matched with Reid in the booth and Bestwick hosting from the infield.

Jamie Little, Dave Burns, Dr. Jerry Punch and Mike Massaro were the pit reporters. They tried several times to interview crew chiefs during the race, but mostly ran into the stone cold wall of silence when it came to decision making and updates.

There were no technical problems, no weather issue and the sound was outstanding from the race. Coverage was the normal ESPN style of moving from one small group of cars to another. Commercial timing was tough with several cautions and key passes for position happening while the network was away.his post is you opportunity to offer your own TV wrap-up of the ESPN coverage of the Sprint Cup Series race from Atlanta. To add your opinion, just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting. Thanks as always for taking the time to stop by.

Live Blogging Sprint Cup Series from Atlanta (ESPN - 7Pm ET)

This holiday edition of the Sprint Cup Series race from Atlanta Motor Speedway is ready to roll under the lights tonight.

Allen Bestwick starts the coverage with Brad Daugherty and Rusty Wallace from the Infield Pit Studio. Tim Brewer is in the Tech Garage. This is a short pre-race show so the pace should be fast. Expect ESPN to focus on the Chase and the guys on the bubble.

Marty Reid, Andy Petree and Dale Jarrett are going to call the race from the TV booth. On pit road are Dr. Jerry Punch, Jamie Little, Dave Burns and Mike Massaro.

This high-speed track has been the cause of much frustration in the garage. Tires fade away quickly and may be the story of the race. The field stretches out quickly and clean air is important for passing. Quick pit stops are crucial.

ESPN repeated a frustrating scenario on Saturday night during the Nationwide Series race. Rarely was the aerial camera used and the director continued the pattern of slowly zooming in with the cameras during each segment until only two cars were being featured. The actual racing on the track was often lost.

Races this time of year are critical and only good fundamental TV coverage by ESPN tonight is going to hold the attention of fans who have lots of other sports TV options.

This post will serve to host your comments on the ESPN coverage of the Sprint Cup Series race from Atlanta. To add your TV-related comment, just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting.

Thanks for taking the time to stop by The Daly Planet.