Entitled Drivers and Safer Barriers

I actually missed all the fun at California's Auto Club Speedway in Fontana this last weekend.  It's a huge, D-Shaped oval and I've seen the racing there before.  So I had scheduled a bunch of honey-do things to tackle on Sunday.  I didn't even turn the TV on.  I've seen the races from the D-ovals before.  Apparently I missed some live carnage and good racing.

Was it Really Exciting?

First thing I heard about was how it was a fantastic race.  I have yet to catch the replay of the event, but I'm curious if these references involve the actual race or just the usual emotional anchor attached to an exciting finish that usually labels an entire race as exciting?  If the entire race was fun for all, then dang, I guess I did miss something.

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Entitled Drivers

Second thing I've heard come out of the weekend, and seen numerous sound bytes and video recaps, was that of Joey Logano blocking Tony Stewart on a restart, and then after the race, Tony Stewart and team going after Joey and his team for his seeming terrible actions on the track.

My perception of any sporting event, is that they usually involve tactics.  Those being both offensive and defensive.

I also know of way too many times when Tony Stewart has actually gotten defensive and blocked people.  I believe there might have been a rather highly publicized block that took place back at Talladega last year.  I think that block involved twenty-five cars?  Just wondering.  So I am not sure I can add much to what anyone else is saying about the one-sided perception of Tony Stewart, but since I like grinding out a weekly piece on the race that was, well, hey...

Tony has got to stop getting mad at people that use his own tactics.  Since the incident, I've seen nothing but trash-talk about the driver and how only he can be allowed to block cars trying to pass him.  I'm thinking if he really hates blocking, I hear IndyCar has rules against real tactics blocking.  Maybe he'd like to go to that racing league instead?

I just find it short-sighted on how angry he got.  And crass that he had to take a shot at Joey's lineage and upbringing.

And just when I was starting to think Tony has his s*$! together and maturing from owning multiple teams.

But this isn't the first time I've heard this from a NASCAR driver.  How often do we hear the grumblings of drivers who have been blocked, or the radio chatter where someone starts bitching about being blocked.  Sure, when Juan Pablo Montoya is 10 laps down, his blocking may seem irritating.  But at his core, he's a racer, racing.  (I'm not saying I approve, but I see where he's coming from.)

These millionaires have become such because they have the talent to get to the front. And they've proven it in fields of competitors who they have bested.  And I'm betting they've done enough blocking on their parts somewhere in the past.  But when I hear drivers complain about a fellow competitor being in their way, I take a step back and start to question exactly what is this?  Isn't this racing, where the end goal is to race around everyone and win the race?  Or is it a gentleman's sport?

Driver 1 to Driver 2:  "Excuse me good sir!  I was able to catch you and would like to pass on your left please!  I shall turn my lane-change signal on now!"

Driver 2:  "By Jove, I am terribly sorry for being in the way while trying to race to the number one spot in the pack.  Here good man, let me move aside like the spineless jellyfish I am and let you dust my arse, my sponsor's arse and incur the wrath of my fans while I'm at it!  Have a dashing good day sir!"

Driver 1: "By god, it's about time you got out of my way.  For a moment there, I thought I would have to scrub some extra tire wear off, and use some sort of competitive tactics and driving talent in trying to circumvent you.  For a moment, I thought I might have had to work for it and earn it!!!"

No, you only see that in the classic race leagues where teams are running 100-year-old cars and they don't want to ding up their one-and-only version of their car.  I expect my drivers in NASCAR to get the front by racing.  If it were a gentleman's sport, what's the point of different shaped and sized race tracks?  Where would be the fun of short-track events?  But that's just me.  I'm weird that way.

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Safer Barriers Have No Place To Not Be

Many people today and wondering why all walls at a race track aren't covered in safer barriers?  And I'm right there with them.  Sure, it might have been a cost-savings measure in a tight, economic times.  But this is racing and if you don't think it's happened in the past, and hence, won't happen in the future, I don't think that's a good premise.

Right now Denny Hamlin is suffering from smacking the inside wall at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana.  As far as I'm concerned, any track should have the safer barriers on every wall that a car at speed, has some form of potential access to.

And that's that.

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Now I have to go find myself an encore performance of the race.  Word on the street is that the TV ratings for this event were overall, 30% higher than they were last year.  Of course, that's not all good.  Next year, if the numbers flub a little, the media will be all over the fact that ratings are down 10%.  It seems most ratings reports focus on the numbers that way.  But that's just an observation.  It's the train wrecks that get the attention.

Until my next Race Rant!!!

It Seems That My SiriusXM Subscription Is Getting Ad Heavy

I don't know about you but when I pay for a service, I sort of expect it.  And since I am paying for a service, I don't expect as many ads as I might get on terrestrial radio or basic TV networks.  You would think.  But today, was a beast of a different color from my SiriusXM subscription.

First things first:

My Sirius Satellite radio rarely ever strays from the NASCAR channel, unless they change then number, then I change my channel.  And I love the content.  Before the day is out, you pretty much are up-to-date.

With that said, today was an interesting experience that I had not thought about, but the amount of ads on the NASCAR channel are starting to grow to an obnoxious rate.

I say that because today I had the opportunity to get in my truck for multiple 5 to 10 minute spells. 
My first ~10 minute spell, I had mostly ads, and a minute of content.
The second ~10 minute spell, just before my lunch break, nothing but ads.
The third ~10 minute spell, mostly ads and teasers about what's coming up.
The fourth bit of time, preview of the upcoming show (no content) and ads.
And my fifth bit or spell of time, several minutes of ads and an obscure piece about the White House.  No NASCAR.

Today was interesting and most disappointing.

Now I get that being in the vehicle for short spats is not the kind of consumer this product is aimed at.  But these random times that I turned on the radio could serve as a statistical random sampling.  They weren't at the same time in each hour, but just when I had the time to hit up the truck to go somewhere.  And the other aspect of the process was that the ads seemed louder.  Seriously?  Hmm.

I've been noticing this inundation of ads on and off over the last few weeks, but I've never been in my truck as often today as I usually am and I am starting to rethink my subscription here.

If there were any other reason for having my SiriusXM radio, I'd probably drop it.  But the NASCAR news content does eventually pay out with good information.  You just have to put up with a lot of useless advertising for my libido, my truck driving career, the Hopper and a few other supporters of the subscription service.

Now I know that advertisers keep the wheels turning (no pun intended) on any entertainment business.  It's how the world works.  But dang, I'm paying someone to advertise to me and out of approximately 50 random minutes, I had about 10 or so minutes of content today.  Not a good day for me for news.  At least through this venue.

Now sure, if I were hauling down the road in a regular 20 - 40 minute commute, I would have been apprised of about an estimated 25 minutes of content.  But today, my random sampling left me wanting more than sound bytes for my testosterone.

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Some Say The Cup Series Racing (Gen-6 Car) Will Be Getting Better

I don't know about you, but the racing seemed on par or maybe a bit sub-par from Las Vegas last weekend.  I've always enjoyed the racing action from Las Vegas, but then the nature of the beast changed when they repaved and reconfigured the track.  It became more of a down-force track, in my humble opinion.

But be it as it may, it seemed that the racing for the checkered flag was again a lone car holding off a smaller pack behind them as Matt Kenseth gave himself a birthday present and won the race.

But there is a strong contention that say that the car will get better and is getting better with every race.

I had been listening to Dave Moody and Angie Skinner on SiriusXM when a caller said that he's done watching the racing because the new Gen-6 car did not seem to make anything better.  He said something to the effect that there's no point in watching Talladega, considering how the car looked at Daytona.  (Paraphrased from memory)

Boy was he in for it!

Dave Moody first said that there were only two races (This was before Vegas ran last weekend) run with the new car and that every single race will see an improvement on the car.  Because face it, when you do something, do you do it to the best of your ability and try to improve on it every time you try?

I like Moody's enthusiasm and I love his well-grounded take on issues that get distorted by fan emotion.  But I had a quite disgruntlement about the "only two races" statement.  That, and I'm not seeing any news where NASCAR is making any real changes to improve or change the new car.  Well, unless you count drivers like Denny Hamlin getting fined for even mentioning the COT from last year.

Technically, Moody is right.  There have been only two points races with the new car.  But if you count the Sprint Unlimited, the 2 Daytona qualifying races and the Daytona 500, adding those to Phoenix, I have personally seen FIVE races with the new car.  I was a little disappointed in Dave Moody's funnel vision on the technicality, but then again, he's a well-grounded traditionalist about how racing is for the points in a season.  And his focus is on those points.  Hence, I get where he came from.  There were 2 points races.  I just don't agree with the argument angle with that particular caller.

He and Angie both backed the premise that everyone is working to make the car better with every single race.  In that, I believe he meant the united effort of all the teams and NASCAR.

But for me, I see the teams as having to struggle with and work within the confines of what the head office of NASCAR gives them.  I've also seen single file winners at every racing event so far. 

For me, I think whatever change takes place to help more side-by-side checkered flag winning moments, might just be changes that get handed down from the top office and not from within the teams.

It still seems that if a car gets into clean air, they are gone!  And maybe I'm wrong, but I thought that one of NASCAR's premises with the new car was to eliminate the clean air advantage?  I could be mistaken there, and that's fine.  There's a lot of hope and hype that came with the new Gen-6 car and a lot of conjecture tossed out via many websites and radio shows.

But clean air is clean air.  If you give 43 teams large boulders with wheels, the lead rock will still have the benefit of clean air and that lead boulder is still going to chop up the air for the cars behind them.  No matter what NASCAR does.  You can't defeat physics.

But enough on that... 

I'm sticking with Moody's take where I hope that things will improve, because the last two seasons of racing built up an appetite for close finishes that warranted office chatter the following Monday.  So far, I haven't seen that, but I think Bristol, for me, will be the make it or break it weekend.

If the winner at Bristol is again all by themselves while the pack is jockeying for a place in line for 2nd through 5th, I think my official disappointment of the season will start to form a club.  But I seriously am not expecting that.

But hey, at least the cars on-track look like their street models!  That's something cool!  And the drivers have extra levels of safety installed.  Again, something great to see.  But so far, the racing at the end of an event, hasn't been the top-notch fun I've seen from the previous years. 

--  Bruce, AKA, BruSimm

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Official Race Results From Las Vegas

Race Comments: Matt Kenseth won the Kobalt Tools 400, his 25th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory. Prior to the green flag, the following cars dropped to the rear for the reason indicated: #1 & 42 (engine changes).


Failed to qualify: (1) #19 Mike Bliss
TIME OF RACE:  2 hours, 44 minutes, 16 seconds AVERAGE SPEED:  146.287 mph MARGIN OF VICTORY:  0.594 second(s)
COORS LIGHT POLE AWARD: None - due to inclement weather
3M LAP LEADER: Kasey Kahne (114 Laps)

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES OFFICIAL RACE REPORT No. 3
16TH ANNUAL KOBALT TOOLS "400"
LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY

Las Vegas, NV - March 10, 2013
1.5-Mile Oval
267 Laps - 400.5 Miles Purse: $6,439,381

Fin				Series	Bonus		Leader
Pos	Driver	Laps	Points	Points	Status	Times	Laps
1	Matt Kenseth	267	47	4	Running	2	42
2	Kasey Kahne	267	44	2	Running	6	114
3	Brad Keselowski	267	42	1	Running	4	12
4	Kyle Busch	267	41	1	Running	5	27
5	Carl Edwards	267	39	0	Running
6	Jimmie Johnson	267	39	1	Running	3	66
7	Dale Earnhardt Jr	267	37	0	Running
8	Martin Truex Jr	267	36	0	Running
9	Kevin Harvick	267	35	0	Running
10	Paul Menard	267	34	0	Running
11	Tony Stewart	267	33	0	Running
12	Joey Logano	267	32	0	Running
13	Jamie McMurray	267	32	1	Running	1	2
14	Mark Martin	267	30	0	Running
15	Denny Hamlin	267	30	1	Running	1	3
16	Aric Almirola	267	28	0	Running
17	Greg Biffle	267	27	0	Running
18	Ricky Stenhouse Jr #	267	27	1	Running	1	1
19	Juan Pablo Montoya	267	25	0	Running
20	Kurt Busch	266	24	0	Running
21	Austin Dillon	266	0	0	Running
22	Marcos Ambrose	266	22	0	Running
23	Trevor Bayne	266	0	0	Running
24	Dave Blaney	266	20	0	Running
25	Jeff Gordon	266	19	0	Running
26	Jeff Burton	266	18	0	Running
27	Clint Bowyer	265	17	0	Running
28	David Gilliland	265	16	0	Running
29	Casey Mears	265	15	0	Running
30	Bobby Labonte	263	14	0	Running
31	David Ragan	263	13	0	Running
32	David Stremme	261	12	0	Running
33	Danica Patrick #	261	11	0	Running
34	David Reutimann	261	10	0	Running
35	Josh Wise	260	0	0	Running
36	J.J. Yeley	259	8	0	Running
37	Ken Schrader	258	7	0	Running
38	Ryan Newman	234	6	0	Engine
39	Travis Kvapil	217	5	0	Engine
40	Joe Nemechek	216	0	0	Running
41	Scott Speed	143	3	0	Transmission
42	Landon Cassill	66	2	0	Vibration
43	Michael McDowell	21	1	0	Vibration

SUNOCO ROOKIE OF THE RACE: Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Caution Flags: 5 cautions for 25 laps. [Beneficiary in Brackets]
66-70 (Debris [39]);
161-165 (Car #9 Spin Turn 4 [11]);
196-199 (Car #47 Spin Turn 2 [14]);
225-230 (Fluid On Track [22]);
237-241 (Fluid On Track [42]).
Lap Leaders: 22 lead changes among 8 drivers.
Keselowski 1-9, Kahne 10-43, Keselowski 44, Ky. Busch 45, Kenseth 46,
McMurray 47-48, Kahne 49-66, Keselowski 67, Kahne 68-74, Johnson 75-117,
Stenhouse Jr 118, Johnson 119-137, Kahne 138-160, Keselowski 161,
Johnson 162-165, Ky. Busch 166-180, Kahne 181-195, Ky. Busch 196, Hamlin 197-199,
Ky. Busch 200-208, Kahne 209-225, Ky. Busch 226, Kenseth 227-267.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES TOP 12

Driver

Points

Wins

1 - Jimmie Johnson

129

(1)

2 - Brad Keselowski

124

(0)

3 - Dale Earnhardt Jr

119

(0)

4 - Denny Hamlin

102

(0)

5 - Carl Edwards

98

(1)

6 - Mark Martin

95

(0)

7 - Matt Kenseth

93

(1)

8 - Greg Biffle

93

(0)

9 - Clint Bowyer

89

(0)

10 - Aric Almirola

88

(0)

11 - Ricky Stenhouse Jr

87

(0)

12 - Paul Menard

82

(0)

The Rookie Points system is pretty interesting, considering Ricky has been trouncing Danica!  (Daytona, her 8th, his 12th; Phoenix, his 16th to her 39th...  Vegas, his 18th to her 33rd.)

SUNOCO ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Driver	Points
Danica Patrick	34
Ricky Stenhouse Jr	32

 

NEXT EVENT: March 17, 2013 - 53rd Annual Food City 500, Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol, TN (266.50 Miles) (500 Laps)
NOTE: The above figures are based upon team winnings and include racing purse and cash contingency awards by participating manufacturers. (3/11/2013)

Did Denny Hamlin Get the Shaft? (And not the Drive Shaft)

The more I think about it and the more I keep hearing about Denny Hamlin's fine for disparaging the sport of NASCAR, the more I feel he's getting the shaft, just because he referenced the old car versus the new car.

I don't think that anything Hamlin said when comparing the development phase of the new (Gen six) cars versus the COT cars of the last few years, or as they've been rebranded as by NASCAR, the Gen Five cars.

Many folks seemed pretty down on the COT cars over the last few years but it seemed that it was coming along pretty nicely.  The last few years provided consistently exciting finishes with this car, and I'm not talking about the G-W-C finishes.  And so far, not so much with the new car.

But when NASCAR does something like come down so hard on Denny Hamlin for making nothing more than a comparative statement about this to last years' car, I have to start wondering how sensitive NASCAR is about the image of the COT.  And are they that worried about any associations between the G-5 and G-6 cars?

At least to me, this heavy-duty fine levied at Hamlin seems to possibly drive that very point home.  Or, to be more accurate, this perceived or guessed at point.

Denny called it as he saw it, and he called it "The Truth," and he's bothered by the issue that he can't speak the honest truth on a matter.  And he did.  Passing is an issue and there was a lot of single file racing.

I'm still confused that NASCAR, who will "draw the line" at negative commentary on the new car, thinks that Denny's comparison was some evil, off-handed remark...  Now had he said, "This car sucks," well, there ya go, that I'd understand.  But not this.

Right now, Denny has filed an appeal with NASCAR on the fine.  I hope some light can come of this.

In the meantime, fans will be left in the dark about how drivers really feel because they aren't allowed to speak their minds on some issues. This is nothing new in professional sports, but it's disappointing to know that what we get in a post-race interview is a carefully worded reply that will echo the same thing each and every weekend.

Is that what we really want?

Denny Hamlin's Opinion Is A Costly One And Never Compare the Gen5 to the Gen6 Car, EVER!

Apparently after the Phoenix NASCAR Sprint Cup race, Denny Hamlin said that the Gen six car,

"Did not race as good as our generation five cars. This is more like what the generation five was at the beginning."

To me, that sounds like an observation.  Not a brash opinion.  And to me, it makes sense.  All new things need a break in period.  And this statement is just that, a constructive and EXPECTED statement.

And most of us out here in the land of fans may have never heard of the statement had NASCAR not lobbed a $25k fine at Denny Hamlin because,

"The sanctioning body will not tolerate publicly made comments by its drivers that denigrate the racing product."

I did not see Denny's comment as such.  Did you?  He did not call it a flying brick.  He did not say it sucks.  He just suggested (to me) that it still needs some work.

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As far as I know, most professional sports have guidelines and rules about bad-mouthing their sport.  It's a bit of a defensive posture that protects the sponsors and backing entities of the sport.

When I was a professional bowler, there were distinct rules about not trashing on the bowling alley or its staff and various other guidelines.

But I saw nothing derogatory from Hamlin.

At this point in time, he's declared that he's not paying the fine and they can suspend him if they want.

He's also said he's done making commentary,

"I'll be honest. I'm not going to say anything for the rest of the year, as long as it relates to competition."

I can't blame him either.  So now the community knows that no one dare compare the Gen six car to the COT (AKA, Gen five) car.

Though I suspect they might be getting sensitive to the single-file car.  I don't make that statement in a negative tone, but from the observations I've seen so far of the up-front racing in the last few events from Daytona and Phoenix.

The product was incredible over the last few years, but so far, well, I'm still trying to reserve my judgement.

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And despite the rules, events or moments like this take some steam out of the fans expectations.  Now we are always going to wonder what was really going on in anyone's head.  And anything that they say, may very well only be obliging the rules, daring not to cross that line.

Drivers have been fined for various statements and phrases.  This overly stern oversight, if not more carefully balanced out, could make for a very vanilla looking sport.  Everyone is going to be just like Jimmie Johnson.  Well, without the Lowe's suit.

I suspect Denny's agent or team owner will step up and have a chat with him and we'll more than likely hear the prerequisite apology that's necessary in this world of sports and politics.

He'll pay his fine and move on with it.

But again, another odd and interesting eye-opener comes out of NASCAR.

   NASCAR-Bits-and-Pieces on Twitter & Facebook & G+.
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"Fox Sports 1," The New SPEED Channel (W/ The Official Press Release)

SPEED Channel to become FOX Sports 1, with more standard sports coverage, while still covering NASCAR.  See my thoughts and the full press release with all the information involved.

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Back in October of 2012, I apprised my readers that this change from SPEED to FOX Sports was coming.  If you're a regular reader of NB&P, this news is no surprise.  Now it's confirmed via a Fox press release from yesterday, (3/5/13) that the FOX Sports Media Group made the name change official, as they announced their plans for this new FOX Sports network. (There's a huge bundle of information in the press release...)

FOX Sports is in its 20th year of covering sports and FOX Sports 1 is set to debut on Saturday, August 17th, 2013 and it's estimated that it will premiere into over 90 million homes with nearly 5,000 hours of live events slated to be covered. (Annually)

But as we warned you back in October, they're including a lot more material aside from NASCAR or auto racing,

"A robust schedule of live events forms the backbone of FOX Sports 1's programming from Day 1, with college basketball, college football, NASCAR, soccer and UFC all on tap between launch and year's end."

And word on the street is that this new sports network will no longer be a special tier cable channel that you have to pay extra for.

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GOODBYE EXTRA BUCKS TO COMCAST (Or your favorite cable outlet).

To be honest, I've always disliked these extra tier fees cable companies charge, just because a channel is favored by the consumers.  I recall back in the mid-90s a huge survey push by all the cable companies asking their consumers what they liked.  And back then I took note how many folks said SPEED channel.

Once the cable companies had their information, it wasn't long after that, that we saw the SPEED Channel get added to a "special" tier.  Special meaning, you want it and we're going to charge you for it.  (This is why I HATE out of the blue surveys or "contests" picking your favorite show crap.)

I thought it was a BS practice they pulled, but what are you going to do?  SPEED allowed it.  Of course, it was only a few bucks more a month, so it wasn't a big deal, right?

But if you have ever wondered how many cable subscribers there are in the U.S., as of September of 2012, there are over 56 million Cable Video Customers.   If you do the math on that "mere" extra fee, 56 million multiplied by $5, equals an additional $280M per month of revenue for that extra tier.

My other issue has been that when NASCAR gets covered outside of basic networks, that culls many potential eyes for the sport.  Being on an extra cable tier, even more so.

I can't tell you how many friends or peers of mine have to sit out and wait for information on events covered by cable outlets like ESPN, SPEED, and other such networks because they simply can't afford the extra channels. 

Now obviously, with FOX Sports 1 being on the standard tier (If that stays true), more folks will be able to have coverage in their homes with the basic cable package.  That means more eyeballs and more useful televised coverage for the sponsors of NASCAR... particularly, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, whose only exposure has been on SPEED.

So good for FOX for finally bringing this back to basic.

And I don't think it will be all bad.  As it was, SPEED had a little too much reality TV for a live sports network, because frankly, considering their subject coverage, they were a bit limited.  Now they can have genuine sports coverage, with auto racing included in that coverage.  And it doesn't seem as if NASCAR Truck series fans are going to lose anything to it.  Food for thought!!!

Plus, if you look over the press release, it notes Sprint Cup Series races being covered in 2015.
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That's the news, and the official press release is included below, with the new cool logo and all!  (Other web guys, if you scrape the press release, some 'via' link love would be appreciated.)

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FOX SPORTS MEDIA GROUP GIVES RISE TO FOX SPORTS 1,

A NEW NATIONAL MULTI-SPORT NETWORK

Officially Debuts Saturday, Aug. 17 in Over 90 Million Homes;

Biggest Sports Network Launch in History

4,800 Hours of Exclusive Live Event, News & Original Programming Planned

Mega-Stars Terry Bradshaw & Regis Philbin Appear Daily

New York – Today, FOX Sports Media Group (FSMG) makes television history, officially unveiling plans to launch a new, national, multi-sport network called FOX Sports 1.  The announcement was made by FSMG Co-Presidents and COOs Randy Freer and Eric Shanks.  Set to debut on Saturday, Aug. 17, just as FOX Sports kicks-off its 20^th anniversary year, FS 1 is available in over 90 million homes, making this the biggest sports cable network launch in history, and one of the largest network launches ever.  At the outset, FS1 boasts nearly 5,000 hours of live event, news and original programming annually.

"Our 'secret,' admittedly a very poorly kept one, is now revealed," said Shanks.  "Fans are ready for an alternative to the establishment, and our goal for FS1 is to provide the best in-game experience possible, complemented by informative news, entertaining studio shows and provocative original programming."

A robust schedule of live events forms the backbone of FOX Sports 1's programming from Day 1, with college basketball, college football, NASCAR, soccer and UFC all on tap between launch and year's end.  In fact, the schedule on Aug. 17 features live events morning, noon and night including a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race from Michigan and "UFC on FS1 1" in prime time.  In 2014, FSMG's new rights agreement with MLB takes effect, bringing regular and postseason games to FS1.

"As a company we haven't been afraid to innovate and take well-calculated risks, added Freer." "We've devoted significant resources over the last few years to acquire and/or extend multi-platform rights with a wide variety of leagues and governing bodies well into the next decade, enough to give us a rich schedule right out of the box."

More people consume and care about sports than ever before, so to satisfy that voracious demand FSMG deems the time is now to launch FS1.  For example, when FOX Sports launched in 1994, late Sunday afternoon NFL on FOX games ranked as the 26^th highest-rated program on television. Today, FOX's national doubleheader games rank No. 1 for three years running.

FOX Sports 1 Programming Highlights –

COLLEGE BASKETBALL – Dozens of exclusive prime time games on Monday and Thursday nights, plus Saturday and Sunday coverage of the Big 12, Pac-12 and Conference USA.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL – Led by Notre Dame at Stanford, the Big Ten Championship Game and Pac-12 Championship Game (2014) on FOX, dozens of  exclusive, live games from the Pac-12, Big 12 and Conference USA games on Thursday nights and Saturdays; triple- and quadruple-headers on Saturdays; Saturday pre- and postgame coverage. 

MLB – Beginning in 2014, select League Championship Series and Division Series games; regular-season games over 26 Saturdays; live game-in-progress look-in show.

NASCAR – Select NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races as soon as 2015; NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races; NASCAR Sprint All-Star race; all SpeedWeeks events leading up to the Daytona 500 including: Daytona 500 Qualifying, Sprint Unlimited at Daytona (2014, 2017-22) and the Budweiser Duel, now in prime time; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NCWTS Practice and Qualifying sessions; NASCAR RaceDay, providing pre- and post-race coverage; NASCAR Victory Lane, a weekly wrap-up show; and Race Hub, a daily mid-day studio show with the latest from drivers, owners and garages.

SOCCER – Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday afternoon coverage of the world's most prolific club soccer competitions, the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, and CONCACAF Champions League featuring many of the world's greatest and most successful clubs; the world's oldest soccer competition, the FA Cup; CONCACAF Gold Cup; CONCACAF Qualifiers, FIFA Women's World Cup coverage in 2015 and 2019; FIFA Men's World Cup coverage in 2018 and 2022; delayed matches in prime time; weekly magazine and highlights shows.

UFC – Featured on Wednesday nights; live FIGHT NIGHTS through 2014, the first is scheduled for launch night, Saturday, Aug. 17; FOX event preliminary cards; UFC Tonight, the weekly authority for UFC news and information; 14 Saturday pay-per-view preliminary cards; hundreds of hours of library programs and events.

In addition to live events and studio programs, FS1 introduces FOX SPORTS LIVE, a 24/7 news franchise providing around-the-clock coverage through regularly scheduled programs, hourly updates and an information-rich ticker that provides a network agnostic sports event television schedule.  Thousands of hours of news programming are expected annually from newly minted sets including a nightly program at 11:00 PM ET or immediately following events.  A morning newscast is expected to launch in January 2014 in conjunction with FSMG's expansive coverage of Super Bowl XLVIII.

"Building credibility and trust with our audience is paramount, so naturally we'll provide the staples, like news, scores and highlights, but we'll do it in a FOX Sports way," offered Shanks. "Just as FOX NFL SUNDAY reinvented the pregame show, FOX SPORTS LIVE breaks new ground in the way sports news is presented.  We already have the home-team advantage of significant audiences watching local games on our 22 regional sports networks as a platform to launch our new national news."

Complementing FS1's live events and news coverage at launch are several original programs, highlighted by RUSH HOUR, hosted by Regis Philbin, airing live weekdays (5:00-6:00 PM ET).  Originating in New York City, Regis leads the charge along with a panel of sports professionals, celebrity guests and die-hard fans in this brand new, unpredictable, talk show.  Following RUSH HOUR live every day is FOX FOOTBALL DAILY (6:00-7:00 PM ET), an extension of FOX NFL SUNDAY, the most-watched NFL pregame show for 19 straight years.  FOX FOOTBALL DAILY, hosted by NFL on FOX personalities, including Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Jay Glazer, Gus Johnson, Erin Andrews and Mike Pereira, provides a daily dose of news, interviews and commentary from pro and collegiate football worlds.  Both shows are expected to premiere at launch in August.  Earlier this year, FSMG unveiled a unique and groundbreaking documentary franchise titled BEING:, a deep look into today's greatest athletes, teams and sports icons via unprecedented access.  The first subject to appear this fall on FS1 is BEING: MIKE TYSON, the most feared man ever to step in a boxing ring.  The multi-episode series is now in production.

FSMG's experimentation with the "double box" commercial format, intended to keep viewers engaged throughout breaks, is expected to be an FS1 staple.  Custom commissioned research conducted this year by Innerscope in concert with FOX Sports advertisers, along with data from IAG and Nielsen, demonstrates how the "double box" format adds value compared to the traditional full-screen break: IAG reported a 62% increase in brand recall; younger viewers are more likely to view "double box" commercials, according to Nielsen minute-by-minute ratings; Innerscope's engagement score for "double box" commercials ranked +13% than average; and viewers see advertiser logos more than three times longer in "double box" versus standard format.

Launching together with FOX Sports 1 will be FOX Sports GO – a groundbreaking mobile sports experience for iPhone, iPad, Android devices, and web. FOX Sports Go will offer more than 1,000 live games and events from across FOX Sports, FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports' 22 regional sports networks, as well as scores, highlights, news, stats, and analysis.  The live games and events will be available to subscribers of participating cable, satellite, and telco providers at no additional cost.

-- FOX Sports 1 --

  

About FOX Sports Media Group

FOX Sports Media Group (FSMG) is the umbrella entity representing News Corporation's wide array of multi-platform US-based sports assets.  Built with brands capable of reaching more than 100 million viewers in a single weekend, FSMG includes ownership and interests in linear television networks, digital and mobile programming, broadband platforms, multiple web sites, joint-venture businesses and several licensing partnerships.  FSMG includes FOX Sports, the sports television arm of the FOX Broadcasting Company; FOX Sports 1; Fox's 22 regional sports networks, their affiliated regional web sites and FSN national programming; FOX Soccer, FOX Soccer Plus and FOX Soccer 2Go; FUEL TV; FOX Deportes and FOX College Sports.  In addition, FSMG also encompasses FOX Sports Digital, which includes FOXSports.com on MSN, FOX Sports GO, Whatifsports.com, FOXSportsNext.com and Yardbarker.com.  Also included in the Group are Fox's interests in joint-venture businesses Big Ten Network, BTN 2Go and STATS, LLC, as well as licensing agreements that establish the FOX Sports Radio Network and FOX Sports Skybox restaurants.

MAJOR FSMG RIGHTS ACQUISITIONS, 2010-2012

Nov. 2010        Acquired rights to Big Ten Football Championship Game from 2011-2016.

Dec. 2010        Acquired rights to UEFA Champions League 2012/13 to 2014/15.

April 2011        Acquired rights to Big 12 Conference. A 13-year agreement for the exclusive cable rights which took effect in 2012. (See 2012 update)

May 2011        Acquired rights to Pac-12 Conference for 12 years beginning in 2012. Deal secures rights to 22 regular-season Pac-12 football games annually; six Pac-12 Football Championship Games in even years beginning in 2012 through 2022 in prime time; 22 men's regular-season basketball games annually; three men's basketball Tournament games, including the championship game, in even years beginning in 2014 through 2024.

Aug. 2011       Acquired rights to Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC) beginning in 2012 through 2018.

Oct. 2011        Acquired rights to Women's World Cup (Canada) in 2015; the Men's World Cup (Russia) in 2018, the Women's World Cup (TBD) in 2020, and the Men's World Cup (Qatar) in 2022.

Dec. 2011        Reacquired rights to the NFL's NFC package. The new nine-year, multi-platform media rights agreement begins in 2014 and runs through 2022.

Sept. 2012       New eight-year agreement with Big 12 Conference. Now, FSMG and ESPN share the Conference's football over-the-air and cable rights. Replaces deal struck in April 2011. Deal begins 2012-13 runs through 2024-25.

Oct. 2012        Reacquired NASCAR rights. The new eight-year, multiplatform media agreement begins in 2015 and runs through 2022. 

Oct. 2012        Reacquired MLB in a new eight-year, multiplatform rights agreement that significantly increases FSMG's television, digital and Spanish-language rights beginning in 2014 on MLB at FOX through 2021.

Nov. 2012        News Corporation acquires 49% stake in the Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network (YES).  The YES Network also announced a media rights agreement that will keep Yankees baseball on the YES Network through 2042. 

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