NASCAR President Steve Phelps has promised that fans will know where Cup races will be broadcast in 2025, even though the series has more broadcast partners than last season.
Phelps also discussed the cost and value of the Chicago Street Race and what NASCAR has invested in fan amenities at the tracks it owns during a session Tuesday during the fifth annual Week of the Race. racing industry sponsored by Racer.com. epartrade.com and Speed sport.
Phelps was not asked about the antitrust lawsuit filed by 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports against NASCAR and NASCAR Chairman Jim France. NASCAR and France both filed a motion to dismiss the case on Monday. NASCAR said in its filing that “the complaint is a misguided attempt to disguise the frustrations of private companies under an antitrust suit.”
In 2025, NASCAR Cup races will be broadcast on USA Network, NBC, Fox, FS1, Amazon Prime Video and TNT. Xfinity races will be broadcast on the CW network. Truck Series races will be broadcast on Fox and FS1.
Prime Video will broadcast five races, including the Coca-Cola 600, marking the first time that Cup races will be exclusively streamed. TNT also offers five races, including the Chicago Street Race. NBC and USA Network will broadcast the final 14 races of the season, including the 10 playoff races.
Prime Video, Max and truTV will broadcast Cup practice and qualifying throughout the season, with the exception of the Clash, Daytona 500 and All-Star Race. These training and qualifying sessions will remain at Fox Sports.
Start times and broadcast networks for 2025 NASCAR Cup, Xfinity and Truck races released
The final 14 Cup races – including the 10 playoff races – will be broadcast on NBC or USA Network in 2025.
Regarding fans’ concerns about where they will be able to watch Cup races in 2025, Phelps said: “I believe these five media companies are going to… promote the sport more than it’s ever been and that’s is really important. We need to make sure racing fans know where to go. I’ve heard this from a lot of people saying they won’t know where to go.
“We’re going to have a megaphone and blast out where those opportunities are for racing fans to go watch our races, starting with Fox and then FS1.
“Just consider the first part of the year. Fox will promote the NFC Championship Game, promoting the (Daytona) 500 and the Clash (at Bowman Gray). Then, at the Clash, Fox will promote the Daytona 500. The following week, at the Super Bowl, which Fox is hosting, they will promote the Daytona 500.
“Warner Brothers Discovery with… the product on Max which will be a subscription product, they will promote it in a significant way with the on-board cameras… and that content that will come through there. You’ll have the CW promoting the Xfinity race and the Daytona 500, and then Amazon will talk about practice and qualifying, because that’s going to be the second week when we go to Atlanta (practice and qualifying is going to) be on Amazon.
“So you have all this massive promotion that’s going to happen, and I think it’s a good thing for the sport. The only one that will not promote (at the start of the season) our five media partners will be NBC. They’ll definitely take over when it’s their turn to do so, and they’re doing a great job promoting it and obviously doing a great job with their production value as well.
Additionally, the NASCAR schedule has seen many changes in recent years. The Clash was played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for three years before moving to Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The 2025 season marks the first Cup race in Mexico. The 2025 season also marks the third year of a three-year agreement to bring the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series race to the streets of Chicago.
“Chicago is financially, we’ll just say it’s a tough race for us, but, you know, it costs $50 million, and we unfortunately haven’t sold $50 million worth of tickets and sponsorship and that’s what it is. But was it a smart move for us I think it was I think it actually helped us with the arrival of Amazon and Warner Brothers Discovery. (TNT).
“Both of their CEOs told us this is the case because this is a sport willing to invest in itself and drive the innovation that leads to growth. That’s what we’re going to continue to do, whether it’s the schedule or anything else, frankly.
As for the fans on the track? Phelps spoke about the investments being made at NASCAR-owned tracks, which include Daytona International Speedway, Phoenix Raceway, Talladega Superspeedway and Martinsville Speedway, among others.
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“How to create things that are unique and different for new fans and longtime fans alike,” Phelps said of a goal for NASCAR. “And that’s what we’re going to continue to do because we’ve invested a lot of money.”
“You look at our facilities, every single one of our facilities is wired with high quality internet opportunities… because if you don’t have connectivity at a racetrack, you’re missing out on something, whether it’s phone calls, text messages or anything. . The ability to send videos on your device to family and friends, whether it’s social media or otherwise, is an important thing to us, but it’s expensive.
“We spent $50 million on our 12 race tracks to install them with permanent fiber, to have strong connectivity. This is what the fans are waiting for. They also get it at other facilities that play stick and ball sports. So we need to track what’s going on there and make sure we’re investing in things that make the experience more compelling.
