NASCAR to seek top dollar for rights
If we were talking horse racing, this would be a big-money claiming race. You put your heart and soul into sculpting a winner, only to have someone buy it for top dollar.
That's the position Fox and NBC find themselves in with NASCAR.
Five years ago, the auto racing folks opted to leave cable and cast their lot with the Fox-NBC partnership. The result has been spectacular for NASCAR. In the national ratings, it's the No. 2 sports property, trailing only the National Football League. Remember, there are no local rights with NASCAR as there are with MLB, the NBA, and the NHL.
The Fox and NBC deals run out after next season. NASCAR has opted not to exercise its two-year option to extend the Fox half of the deal.
That opens the way for a profitable (for NASCAR) bidding war among ABC/ESPN, Fox, and NBC. Even
''We love the partnership with NASCAR and hope it continues," said NBC spokesman Mike McCarley, ''but NBC also has a track record under Dick Ebersol of being prudent financially."
In the past, NBC has eschewed overpaying for properties, and it may find NASCAR's price too rich to continue. However, it will reap the benefits of NASCAR-NFL doubleheaders next year. NASCAR races on Sunday afternoons, including the season-ending Chase to the Nextel Cup series, which will be NBC's lead-in to its inaugural season of ''Sunday Night Football."
ABC and ESPN want back in, and Fox Sports president Ed Goren said last week on a national conference call that ''five years ago, NASCAR decided to move to broadcast TV at the time the NBA went from a predominantly network sport to a predominantly cable sport. We were believers when we got into this. We're confident we can work out a new deal. We continue to talk. That's always healthy."
Fox wrapped up its half of the season Sunday on the road course at Sonoma, Calif., one race where NASCAR drivers have to turn right as well as left. Left behind with that checkered flag is analyst Darrell Waltrip's race-starting calls of ''boogity, boogity, boogity" and ''crank it up." Coming is NBC's more restrained approach with its ''through the field" updates.
For its 13 weeks, Fox averaged a 6.0 rating (14 share) nationally, a 7 percent increase over 2004's 5.7 rating. This year's signature event, the Daytona 500, did a 10.9 rating, tying for its highest.
Now it's NBC's turn, starting with tomorrow night's Pepsi 400 (Channel 7, 7:30).
NBC will air its races in high definition. TNT has a preview, ''Race to the Chase," at 4 this afternoon, followed by pole qualifying at 4:30.
Bill Weber takes over as NASCAR race announcer, having impressed the NBC brass when he filled in for two races last year while Allen Bestwick recovered from a broken leg. Bestwick joins the pit row crew of Dave Burns, Marty Snider, and Matt Yocum. Weber will work the booth with Bennie Parsons and Wally Dallenbach.
Wheel life drama
Outdoor Life Network celebrated its 10th birthday yesterday. It's got a new logo, revamped website, but one constant: Lance Armstrong, who makes his quest for a seventh straight Tour de France victory this month. OLN comes on the air with its Tour coverage at 8:30 most mornings (6:30 July 10 and 13; 7:30 July 14, 17, and 24), starting tomorrow when a three-hour preview precedes the opening time trial, which will be covered live at 11:30. Familiar OLN faces (and voices) Phil Liggett, Paul Sherwen, Bob Roll, and Al Trautwig handle the commentating.''While this is Lance's last Tour, we're ready for Life After Lance," said OLN president Gavin Harvey. ''There are a lot of great riders we've profiled in the past several years and will continue to make familiar to US viewers. Next year's race should generate tremendous interest in seeing who will succeed Lance."
Garvey listed some enhancements for this year's coverage. ''We're also hoping to have live rider telemetry -- heart rates, elevation gain or loss -- and some riders miked," he said.
In past years, Comcast has added OLN to its lineup temporarily for the Tour de France in communities where it wasn't on the channel lineup. This year, the addition is permanent with OLN becoming Channel 65. Elsewhere, check your local listings.
There's a variety of European sports viewing the next two mornings: In addition to the Tour de France, Speed has the French Grand Prix (qualifying at 7 tomorrow; prerace at 7:30 and green flag at 8 Sunday); NBC has the Wimbledon women's final (Channel 7, 9 a.m.) tomorrow and men's final Sunday (9 a.m.); and the Golf Channel has the European Open at 10 each day.
Boston accent to ESPYs
The Red Sox and Patriots have five nominations each at the 13th ESPYs, which air July 17 (ESPN) at 9 p.m. Both teams were nominated for ''Best Team," with the Sox adding nominations for Best Game (ALCS, Game 5), Best Coach/Manager (Terry Francona), Best MLB Player and Best Championship Performance (Curt Schilling). The Patriots also got a nomination for Best Coach/Manager (Bill Belichick), Best Player (Tom Brady), Best Championship Performance (Deion Branch), and Record-Breaking Team Performance . . . ''Friday Night Fights" (ESPN2, 10) originates from Memorial Hall in Plymouth tonight with Joe Tessitore and Teddy Atlas calling the main event, a US Boxing Association light heavyweight title bout between George Khalid Jones and Freddy Moore. Doors open at 6 with the first bout at 7:30. ''New England Ringside" will do a show from the site this evening (1510 AM, 6-8) . . . NECN has a five-part series, ''Fenway Park, Behind the Scenes," tentatively set to launch on ''Sports LateNight" Wednesday. For Part 1, Mike Giardi worked as a ''Ball Girl" on the first base line. NECN sports director Morry Levine says some of the footage is classic, especially on a shot down the line by David Ortiz. Kelly Barons, who usually works the third base line, was KO'd from a game earlier last month by a shot off the bat of Ken Griffey down the first base line. ''It's not as easy as it looks out there," she said . . . Another ''behind the scenes" program is ABC's look at what it takes to put on a PGA telecast. Unlike a normal sports stadium or arena, where one camera can follow the action, shots on a golf course are being taken on 18 holes. The show, ''Countdown to Air," will be broadcast Sunday (Channel 5, 2 p.m.), leading into the final round of the Western Open . . . Doesn't anyone in New York City want to work the overnight or are the folks at WFAN (660 AM) trying to tell us something by bringing in Providence's Andy Gresh regularly. He's doing the early Sunday (2-6 a.m.) show again this week.
