Auto racing

Chase for NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Coverage Begins Sunday at New Hampshire

September 10, 2007 -- The first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race televised on ABC since July 2000 delivered an increase in ratings and viewership for the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway. The telecast by ESPN on ABC delivered a 4.2 fast national rating with more than 4,731,000 households and more than 6,750,000 viewers.

The households represent a 33 percent increase (up from 3,568,000) and the viewership increased 28 percent (up from 5,288,000) from last year’s Richmond telecast.    » read more »

September 10, 2007 -- ESPN on ABC will have live coverage of all 10 races in the Chase, beginning this Sunday at New Hampshire International Speedway. It will be the first time since NASCAR instituted the Chase format that all races will be televised by the same network.

The Chase Is On - NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Live on ABC Sunday from New Hampshire    » read more »

September 11, 2007 -- ESPN analysts Rusty Wallace, the 1989 NASCAR Cup Champion, and Andy Petree, two-time NASCAR champion crew chief, dish on the 12 drivers in the chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup:

JIMMIE JOHNSON

Wallace – “He can absolutely repeat his title. The team seemed to get a little lost while crew chief Chad Knaus was suspended. Now that he’s back, the consistency seems to be back and his five wins this year makes him a definite contender.”    » read more »

Friday, September 07, 2007 -- Where does the dream of being a stock car driver begin? And what does it take to get the top? It's a steep ascent to the upper echelons of NASCAR, and few manage to make the climb. Only 43 drivers qualify each week to race in the elite NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series. Some drivers struggle to make the cut, while only a talented few seem to find the right combination of consistent speed, lightning fast pit spots, great team communication and luck in avoiding wrecks. Many never even come close. What differentiates those who succeed in NASCAR from those who don't?    » read more »

NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Returns to ABC

September 4 , 2007 --
Q – What does it take to run well at a track the size of Richmond?

Wallace: “You have to drive it like a short track and you have to treat it like a short track. There’s going to be a lot of bumping and banging and it’s hard on brakes. Drivers that do well in Martinsville and Bristol are generally the people that run well at Richmond. It takes that same kind of aggressive driving to get around there well.”

Q - What should ESPN viewers watch for during the Richmond telecast?    » read more »

NASCAR NEXTEL Cup at 7 p.m. ET Sunday on ESPN; NASCAR Busch Series at 9:45 p.m. ET Saturday on ESPN2

August 30, 2007 -- The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup and NASCAR Busch Series head west to California Speedway in Fontana this weekend for night racing on the 2-mile oval.    » read more »

Tim Brewer Reports Live During NASCAR on ESPN Events from the ESPN DISH Tech Center

August 28 , 2007 --
Q - The Cup and Busch teams were just at Michigan International Speedway, the sister track of California Speedway. Are there many differences in the setups between the two tracks?    » read more »

August 28, 2007 - ESPN on ABC is the home for the final 11 races of the 2007 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series, including the 10-race Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup. For the first time since NASCAR introduced the Chase format four years ago, all 10 Chase races will be televised by a single network.    » read more »

NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Live in Prime Time on ESPN from California Speedway

August 27, 2007 -- The fast and competitive California Speedway near Los Angeles will host the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race presented by Principle Financial on Sunday, Sept. 2, for 500 miles of prime-time racing. ESPN will have live coverage from the 2-mile Fontana, Calif., oval beginning at 7 p.m. ET with the pre-race NASCAR Countdown program.    » read more »

Different Tune, Same Old Song: Bristol Motor Speedway Gets a Facelift

August 25 , 2007 -- ESPN NASCAR PLAY BY PLAY ANNOUNCER DR. JERRY PUNCH - “What a match-up – The Car of Tomorrow vs. the concrete of today.”    » read more »

- NASCAR NEXTEL Cup at 7 p.m. ET Saturday on ESPN
- NASCAR Busch Series at 7:30 p.m. ET Friday on ESPN2

August 23, 2007 -- The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup and NASCAR Busch Series head to Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee this weekend as drivers and teams get ready to lay down rubber on the newly resurfaced concrete racing surface. Fans will see sparks fly with the high speeds and close quarters of Bristol night racing.    » read more »

August 21, 2007 -- Rusty Wallace won nine times in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup competition at Bristol and is tied with Dale Earnhardt and Cale Yarborough for second in all-time wins at the track.

1) What made you such a successful driver at Bristol, and how special is the track to your career?    » read more »

NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Live in Prime Time on ESPN from Bristol Motor Speedway

August 20, 2007 -- One of the most popular events on the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series schedule looms this Saturday night as the series makes its annual visit to Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway for 500 laps of night racing. ESPN will have live coverage from the half-mile concrete oval beginning at 7 p.m. ET with the pre-race NASCAR Countdown program. The race telecast will be presented by Pennzoil.    » read more »

August 19, 2007: NASCAR DRIVER JEFF GORDON TO ESPN PIT REPORTER JAMIE LITTLE ON THE EMPHASIS OF EARNING EXTRA POINTS FOR WINS IN THE CHASE FOR THE NEXTEL CUP CHAMPIONSHIP - “If we were in the Chase we’d want to get bonus points for leading laps, leading the most laps, every point and every position counts. I think that you’ve got to give a lot credit to NASCAR in making the changes this year and pushing guys to win races as hard as you are. Last week was proof of that. I was pushing really hard, I wanted that win and had the opportunity to get it. I pushed too hard.    » read more »

EA delivers the heart-pounding thrill and excitement of pure competition

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. August 15, 2007 – Electronic Arts Inc. today announced the start of the 2007 EA SPORTS™ Challenge Series which kicked off July 26 with the EA SPORTS Craftsman NASCAR Challenge in Indianapolis. The EA SPORTS Challenge Series is a series of gaming competitions taking place across North America over the next six months.    » read more »