Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Live Blogging Sprint Cup Series From Atlanta (ESPN - 11AM ET)


Here we go with the rain-delayed race from the Atlanta Motor Speedway. ESPN is on the air at 11AM with a stripped-down broadcast team. There is no pre-race show.

Allen Bestwick will call the race with Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree. Jamie Little, Dr. Jerry Punch, Vince Welch and Dave Burns will be the pit road reporters.

These rain-delayed races often translate well to TV because many of the bells and whistles set-up for the weekend are gone. Lots of the TV equipment has rolled to Richmond for park, power and set-up.

ESPN is on the hotseat to deliver a solid broadcast. VERSUS had a gangbuster show Sunday with the IndyCar Series from Baltimore and yesterday the NHRA team delivered outstanding coverage of the "Big Go" from Indy.

Next week ESPN goes into hyper-promotion mode with a one hour post-race NASCAR Now show. That seems ironic as that show this week is buried after midnight due to US Open tennis coverage.

The challenge today is to stay with the racing for position as the other teams stay single file and fight tire wear. Passing on this green track may be at a premium as teams are going to work hard managing tires. This is a big concern.

This post will serve to host your comments on the ESPN coverage of the Sprint Cup Series from the Atlanta Motor Speedway. To add your TV-related comments, just click on the comments button below.