Live Blogging Sprint Cup Series From Kentucky (TNT - 6:30PM ET)

The good news is that the track is a sellout tonight. The bad news is that for those of us watching on TV, full-screen commercials are back.

Kentucky Speedway is an odd duck. Located where few wanted a major speedway, Bruton Smith wound-up buying the place and leveraging one of his own race dates to bring a Sprint Cup Series date to a track that had hosted Nationwide and Truck Series races for over ten years.

Tonight, TNT plays to a packed house. Lindsay Czarniak is up first hosting the Countdown to Green pre-race show. Kyle Petty and Larry McReynolds will be on the TNT Infield Rig with her for the hour show.

Adam Alexander will then pair with Petty and Wally Dallenbach Jr. for the call of the race. Chris Neville, Matt Yocum, Marty Snider and Ralph Sheheen will be handling pit road.

This is a track known for a narrow groove, little passing and fuel mileage races. That makes it a big challenge for TV. Pit strategy, including tires will be a key to the race. Passes for the lead may well happen off pit road.

The number of cautions will feed into the number of double-file restarts. Long green flag periods will make it tough for TV. The producer is going to have to chase the best racing on the track and go after the stories unfolding on pit road.

Kentucky makes good pictures under the lights as ESPN and SPEED have shown over the years of producing NNS and truck races. The challenge is for TNT to make this telecast as memorable as possible by continuing to frame it as a first time opportunity for drivers in the field.

This post will serve to host your comments on the TNT coverage of the Sprint Cup Series race from Kentucky Speedway. To add your TV-related comments, just click on the comments button below. Thanks for stopping by.

NASCAR "RaceDay" On SPEED From Kentucky Speedway

There is a sellout crowd today at Kentucky Speedway for tonight's inaugural Sprint Cup Series race. Before the on-track action, there is a two-hour RaceDay show on SPEED.

John Roberts is hosting with Darrell Waltrip and Kenny Wallace on the panel. This might be the biggest crowd of fans in the history of the many years of the program.

Reporting will be Wendy Venturini and Hermie Sadler. There is a lot going on inside the track, but one big story is what is going on outside. There has been a monumental traffic jam all day long that has delayed fans and even some drivers from getting to the track. Let's see if SPEED reports on this story.

Rutledge Wood is back on RaceDay and he will be interviewing NFL veteran Chad Ochocinco. Not too sure what the agenda is or why TV is interested in this person, so we will find out together.

Kentucky Speedway's sellout will push issues like no SAFER Barriers on portions of the track and bad traffic jams aside. It's going to be fascinating to see the drivers working before a full house of fans truly excited about the sport.

Wallace has a tough time working with Waltrip on this program. While Kyle Petty tends to be inclusive, Waltrip is the opposite. His opinions are spoken as fact and often Wallace's only option is to agree with the Hall of Famer. That dynamic should be the key to the two-hour show.

As we have in the past for select venues, we are offering you the opportunity to comment on this program before, during or after the show. Feel free to voice your opinions about the content, personalities or production of NASCAR RaceDay on SPEED. To add your comments, just click the comments button below. Thanks for stopping by.

Live Blogging Nationwide Series From Kentucky (ESPN - 7PM)

It's been a rainy day in Kentucky, with activities at the track interrupted several times. Luckily, ESPN has all eleven NASCAR announcers in place to fill any time needed.

Allen Bestwick is on ESPN at 7PM with NASCAR Countdown. He has Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty alongside for a scheduled thirty minute pre-race show. Upstairs in the TV booth is Marty Reid, Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree.

Over in the Tech Garage is Tim Brewer. On pit road are Dr, Jerry Punch, Jamie Little, Dave Burns and Vince Welch.

The good news is that the weather is clearing, but showers are still possible and this track has been plagued by "weepers" in the past. Those are the pesky spots in the seams of paving on the track that let water "weep" through even after the track itself is dry.

The pressure of this race telecast is clearly on Marty Reid. Allen Bestwick has been filling-in for Reid as he worked the IndyCar races and has done an outstanding job. Some poor choices in what Reid has said on the air this season and some bad decision-making in what he has not is resulting in a pretty vocal fan backlash.

Our feedback in comments on this blog, Facebook and Twitter has not been positive. With the Chase coverage looming, this is a good opportunity for Reid to step-up and get back in the groove of providing quality play-by-play for a primetime Nationwide Series race.

ESPN has been having a solid season in terms of beginning to understand the concept of showing the best racing on the track and the developing stories. This is a long way from following the leader and only focusing on the stories discussed in the pre-race show. We call that following the script.

The challenge tonight is to essentially preview for TV viewers what they will be seeing when the coverage of the Sprint Cup Series switches to ESPN in July. The last four seasons have been rough. It should be interesting to see what changes between now and then in terms of on-air personalities or coverage.

We invite your comments on the ESPN coverage. To add your TV-related opinion, just click on the comments button below. Thank you for stopping by The Daly Planet, some comments may be moderated before posting.