Sunday, May 15, 2011

Live Blogging Sprint Cup Series From Dover (FOX - 12:30PM ET)


It's overcast at Dover with a 50% chance of rain. After a hard crash shook-up teams and crews on Saturday, the Sprint Cup Series races on one of the fastest mile tracks on the circuit.

Clint Bowyer got turned on his side and almost rolled it into the inside wall on the final laps. A rear spring from his car struck one of his pit crew members. It gashed his leg, chipped a bone and put him in the hospital overnight. Dover is one of the most dangerous tracks on the circuit.

The NASCAR on FOX trio of Darrell Waltrip, Chris Myers and Jeff Hammond appeared live during SPEED's RaceDay show. They were inside the Hollywood Hotel, so it looks like there will be no outdoor pre-race set this week. Rain is the likely reason.

Two items. First, veteran NASCAR reporter Mike Mulhern passed along that he heard Waltrip was pushing FOX to bring Micheal Waltrip into the FOX booth and move Larry McReynolds out. Secondly, Jeff Hammond joined Twitter and it should be interesting to see how he interacts with fans during the live race.

The new SPEED and FOX executives have fully enabled Waltrip as the star of NASCAR TV. Love him or hate him, Waltrip has four more seasons at FOX and SPEED and the contract is signed. After his failure to describe Kyle Busch's actions last week vs. Kevin Harvick, it should be interesting to hear Waltrip's comments in the pre-race.

Mike Joy sat back last week and the long periods of silence were a commentary on just how awkward these FOX telecasts have become. Despite his best efforts to communicate what is going on in the race, Joy is constantly trampled in the booth by Waltrip. This happened again on the final lap last week.

It's been a long fall for Larry McReynolds. Removed from his Trackside program. NASCAR Performance became a show taped during the week. FOX ended his "Reach up and pull the belts tight" catchphrase. Now, the rumor that he may be out at FOX in the booth.

The corps of pit reporters are waiting in the wings to step-up and get more involved in the telecasts. Steve Byrnes, Krista Voda, Matt Yocum and Dick Berggren are experienced and incredibly underused. With all the potential for mayhem at Dover, this crew may finally get some quality air time.

Say it with me: Tight shots, single car views, in-car cameras, lack of field recaps and no aerial views. FOX made a decision of how to produce these races and they are sticking with it to the bitter end this season. So, here we go again.

This post will serve to host your comments on the NASCAR on FOX coverage of the Sprint Cup Series race from Dover. To add your TV-related 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.

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Live Blogging Nationwide Series From Dover (ESPN 1:30PM ET)


It's been a rainy day in Dover. Nationwide Series qualifying was rained out. There is a break in the precipitation and the frontstretch is drying. That photo is courtesy of scenedaily.com reporter Bob Pockrass.

Rusty Wallace has the weekend off. Allen Bestwick is in the Infield Pit Studio with Brad Daugherty and Dale Jarrett. Marty Reid will call the race with Jarrett and Andy Petree. Vince Welch, Dave Burns and Jamie Little are the pit road reporters. Tim Brewer is on-site with the Tech Garage.

Green track and threatening weather means drivers will be racing carefully with the intention of getting to the halfway point that makes the race count. As that point approaches, teams will play their hands in terms of tires and fuel.

The truck race on Friday had few surprises. Top Sprint Cup cross-over drivers dominated and Kyle Busch ultimately won. Some of the series regulars made a strong showing simply by being careful and staying out of trouble.

Rusty Wallace is off because his sponsor is heavily involved in this race. He also has a third car entered today. ESPN documented the insider trading deals where three "start and park" teams were bought out of the event so the final Wallace car and two others with sponsors could start. Welcome to the new NASCAR.

Coverage should be interesting, especially if it is extended because of rain. ESPN has been making great progress with picture selection for these live events, but Marty Reid is just having a struggle in the TV booth. It should be interesting to see how today works out in the long run.

This post will serve to host your comments on the TV coverage by ESPN of the Nationwide Series race from Dover. 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.

Raining In Dover Saturday - Track Activity Stopped








The rain promised by the weathermen arrived in Dover early Saturday morning. Currently, all track activity is stopped (10:40AM). The pictures above are being sent from the teams and the TV crews at the track in the rain.

Update: Nationwide and Sprint Cup Series qualifying cancelled, not looking good for the NNS race this afternoon.

The Nationwide Series qualifying has been rained out. Unfortunately, it does not look good right now for the Nationwide Series race scheduled for this afternoon.

We will be providing rain updates on this post throughout the day. Check back to see how things are going. You can also check The Daly Planet Facebook page or follow us at twitter.com/thedalyplanet on Twitter.

If you have a comment or a question, please feel free to click the comments button below and add it.