TV Police: Sprint Cup Series From California On FOX (Day Two Of Comments)

Ponch and John had something in common while patrolling the highways of California. They both looked good. In Hollywood, that certainly counts for a lot. On the racetrack, it's all about performance.

A drizzle made for dreary weather at the Auto Club Speedway. The Hollywood Hotel was the home for Chris Myers, Darrell Waltrip and Jeff Hammond. The pre-race show was a mix of topics that somehow always try to tie-in to Hollywood.

Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds called the race. The pit reporters were Steve Byrnes, Krista Voda, Matt Yocum and Dick Berggren.

The wide racetrack made for lots of green flag racing and limited passing once the field was stretched out. Denny Hamlin went out of the race after an engine problem and was interviewed quickly.

FOX made good pictures and had no technical problems. The telecast started in typical FOX style with tight shots and in-car cameras as the primary video. With about 60 laps to go, wideshots began to be used to show the intervals between cars.

The network was in commercial for the first round of green flag pitstops. This was surprising given that radio traffic indicated when the teams would begin to pit. The pit reporters were good with information and often provided a news item when the telecast slowed down.

FOX seemed confused in terms of what to cover on the track and often followed cars in the lead without providing a field recap of moving back to tell the stories of other teams. Eventually, Waltrip and McReynolds kind of ran out of things to say about the same few cars being covered.

The way that radio solves the problem of a boring race is by going back and telling the stories of the teams that are struggling or coming back from adversity. FOX has a problem doing that in any kind of coordinated manner. It is just not a part of the telecasts and has never been.

A restart with less than 10 laps to go jump-started the telecast and allowed it to end with some actual racing. Joy brought the race home and it was thankfully done.

Update: I am being flooded with email about fans not seeing their driver finish the race. FOX has consistently shown only the winner cross the finish line this season. Feel free to leave a comment referencing that topic below, but it does not appear that this is going to change.

This post serves to host your post-race wrap-up comments on the FOX telecast. To add your TV-related comments, just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting. Thank you for taking the time to stop by The Daly Planet.

Live Blogging Sprint Cup Series From California (FOX - 2:30PM ET)

Mark Martin just does not cut it as a Go Daddy Girl, so Jillian Michaels came to the Auto Club Speedway and drummed-up a bit of publicity by working out some of the TV and media personalities in the sport.

ESPN's Allen Bestwick and David Newton were alongside FOX's Krista Voda and SPEED's Rutledge Wood. Three of the four made it through unscathed. Pictures of Wood on the floor in the fetal position beside a trash can were making the rounds shortly after the workout session was over.

Now it's Sunday, Michaels is nowhere to be found and the only thing at the speedway is rain. Luckily, it's a fine mist and the weather is supposed to be clearing. The journalists were grumpy because the free pace car rides were cancelled. It's a tough life.

The conflict between FOX and fans continues. Ratings were down last week and into the awful range. Media members pointed to ticket sales, expensive hotels and the price of gas as the problems. Thousands of fans on TDP pointed directly at FOX.

This season, the conflict between director Artie Kempner and the fan base has hit critical mass. Kempner has completely disconnected from NASCAR fans. When FOX is done, Kempner is off to other assignments and does not return until Daytona in February. Unlike the SPEED and ESPN folks, Kempner can simply walk away from the train wreck he has helped to create.

Many people said that last week's FOX coverage from Bristol was perhaps the worst NASCAR race ever produced by that network. From the start, the issue was the pictures. There is no RaceBuddy for the Sprint Cup Series races. There are no free in-car camera feeds. FOX is the only game in town.

We labeled Kempner's insane approach to NASCAR racing on TV as "hyper-tight" coverage. Single car shots, extended in-car cameras and essentially no perspective on the actual race itself are the hallmarks of his NASCAR efforts. The topper is showing only the winner of the race crossing the finish line.

Kempner has decided that the race is over when the leader finishes. Unfortunately, fans of the other top teams and drivers have made the commitment to watch FOX for four hours. Not seeing their driver race to the finish has caused them to simply walk away from the TV coverage.

Saturday, ESPN telecast the Nationwide Series race from ACS. The coverage was solid and featured one key element. The director kept all the cars racing for position in the camera shot being sent to viewers. In-car cameras were, for the most part, used to embellish the coverage and not provide primary video.

The Auto Club Speedway features passing on pit road and restarts. There is very little passing in the race once the field gets strung out. The stories of the race are fuel, tires and pit strategy. FOX has the best pit road reporters on TV and in Bristol they were rendered useless. This week, they must play a key role or the real stories will never be told.

Darrell Waltrip will have plenty of time to talk with long green flag runs and it should be interesting to see how much he interacts with fans live on Twitter. Waltrip has recently become aware that the fans have strong opinions on the live telecasts and seemingly wants to make things better.

Larry McReynolds and Jeff Hammond have become non-factors this season. Waltrip is the leader and FOX has decided to make him the focal point of the coverage. It should be very interesting to see what topics he decides to discuss and how his opinions on Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kyle Busch are presented.

FOX has all the tools to make this race a treat. A veteran play-by-play announcer in Mike Joy, good analysts and solid pit reporting. Ultimately, with radio offering an alternative to the FOX commentary it may come down to the simple choice of what pictures are being sent to fans.

We will update the rain situation in the comments section and pass along any race delays. As always, we invite your comments on the TV coverage today from ACS. 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.

Live Blogging Nationwide Series From California (ESPN - 5PM ET)

Jennifer Jo Cobb has a new ride for the weekend and a chance to continue to keep her name in the media if she comes through with a solid performance. It's been a wild week for Cobb that included walking away from her former car on the starting grid, appearing on tons of TV and radio show and now jumping into the Rick Ware Racing ride and running the entire race. TV will be keeping an eye on this issue.

Some new faces in new places this weekend for ESPN. Allen Bestwick steps into the broadcast booth as Marty Reid is over in St. Pete working the IndyCars for ABC. Dale Jarrett is off this weekend, so Rusty Wallace will once again fill-in as the Lead Analyst. Andy Petree will be the third man in the booth.

Down in the Infield Pit Studio, it will be Nicole Briscoe and Brad Daugherty. Rusty may or may not be joining that group for the pre-race show at 5PM ET. It might depend on the weather. Friday was rainy and the track had water leaks, called "weepers," coming up in several places. Hopefully, that same situation will not present itself on Saturday.

Dr. Jerry Punch, Dave Burns, Mike Massaro and Shannon Spake will be the pit reporters. Tim Brewer and the Tech Garage rolled all the way to California. Jamie Little and Vince Welch moved over with Reid to work on the IndyCar race.

California is a track that has quickly divided the Nationwide Series teams in the past into two groups. Those with big budgets and Sprint Cup Series drivers who can run at top speed and those Nationwide Series regulars trying not to go a lap down.

I am told by some veteran reporters that this race may feature ten or more "start and park" cars. The teams that towed all the way to the West Coast can apparently get a head-start on traffic if they pull-in before the first set of Goodyear Eagles are out of tread, load up and hit the highway. This issue should be one to watch.

This series continues to be an experiment in marketing and public relations. The Sprint Cup Series drivers winning the races are not getting driver points, so the leader in the points clubhouse and perhaps even the season champion may in fact never win a single race. It would be nice for a regular to break through.

ESPN is going to have to work very hard to get the excitement level cranking once the race settles down. Bestwick has a very good historical perspective on the sport and can ask questions and bring up topics that Reid simply cannot.

This is a track where high speeds look boring on TV until something happens. Then, the intensity of the crash and the distance the cars go until they stop is a quick snap back to reality. Even with a SAFER Barrier, this is a dangerous track.

Veteran fans will remember this speedway has the black marks that are caused by the sealer put down between the strips of asphalt. Those marks have been cursed by more drivers that anyone can count in terms of ruining a good day or affecting a good run. Telling the tale of the challenges on the actual track is going to be key.

Needless to say, both ESPN and FOX need a ratings kick to get things rolling in the right direction. Sometimes, things happen for a reason. Bestwick in the booth might be just what the doctor ordered to change the tone and direction of telecasts that have sometimes bordered on embarrassing. Last week's scoring fiasco comes to mind.

This post will serve to host your comments before, during and after ESPN's coverage of the Nationwide Series race from Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA. 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.