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SPEED Notes: From Bristol To Austin USGP Promoter On Wind Tunnel
Austin USGP promoter on Wind Tunnel With Dave Despain Sunday...
Megan Englehart  |  Posted August 18, 2010   Charlotte, NC
Dave Despain, the popular host of Wind Tunnel on SPEED. (Image: SPEED)
AUSTIN USGP PROMOTER ON WIND TUNNEL WITH DAVE DESPAIN SUNDAY

NASCAR RACE HUB: The Hub (7 p.m. ET Monday-Thursday) and its newly-named fulltime host, Steve Byrnes, continue to welcome guests to the show’s brand-new set this week.

NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France appeared Tuesday night via satellite from Texas to discuss the upcoming changes to the 2011 schedule, as well as the overall landscape of the sport this year.

On his primary focus heading into the NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup:

“We think the racing action is the best in many years,” France said. “I don’t think there’s even a dispute about that. Everywhere we go, there are some interesting storylines changing around that we’re watching. The Hendrick cars have been so dominant, and especially into the Chase, are not on their best game right now, so there might be some opportunities for someone else to knock the door down. There’s a number of good candidates, so just making the Chase is going to be a feat with the way it’s shaping up.”

On whether returning the sport to the drivers’ hands has played out the way he had envisioned:

“Well I think it has,” France said. “Obviously when we said that, it goes without saying there are limits to that. But generally speaking, we can sometimes over-regulate the sport as we enforce the races week in and week out. We wanted to make sure we weren’t doing that. And we wanted to make sure the drivers really can mix it up and express themselves and felt good about that. That’s why we said what we did and they have. Sometimes a little too much, in the Carl Edwards situation and some others, and when it’s that case, we’ll rein them back in. We’re happy (with) the direction and they’re mixing it up, there’s no question about that.”

The Hub will step aside Wednesday for SPEED’s live coverage of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Series from Bristol (6 p.m. ET) and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race (coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET with NCWTS Setup with Krista Voda).

The Hub returns Thursday with Richard Petty in-studio and a review of Wednesday’s Truck Series race.

For more show information, please visit http://www.speedtv.com/programs/nascar-race-hub/.

TRUCKS IN THUNDER VALLEY: The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series makes a rare Wednesday appearance this week, with SPEED coverage from Bristol Motor Speedway beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET with Krista Voda hosting the popular pre-race show, NCWTS Setup. Rick Allen, Phil Parsons and Michael Waltrip will call the race with Ray Dunlap and Adam Alexander reporting from pit road. Live coverage of qualifying begins at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Last weekend’s return to Darlington Raceway after a five-year hiatus was a welcome one for the Truck Series, as SPEED scored a Nielsen Household Rating of .70 (539,000 households) for its live coverage of the race, a 19-percent increase from the 2009 equivalent race from Nashville (.59). Race coverage on SPEED from Darlington peaked at .83 (637,000 households).

THE MODS: Sandwiched between Truck Series qualifying and race coverage Wednesday at Bristol is the NASCAR Whelen Modified Series. SPEED’s live coverage of the event begins at 6 p.m. ET with Mike Joy calling the action, Dr. Dick Berggren with race analysis and Bob Dillner patrolling pit road.

WIND TUNNEL WITH DAVE DESPAIN: Despain chats with Tavo Hellmund, promoter of the recently-announced USGP in Austin, Texas, on Sunday, as well as Ben Spies, MotoGP rookie. Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain airs live at 9 p.m. ET Sunday.

AMERICAN LE MANS SERIES: The American Le Mans Series is back in action this weekend from Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. SPEED’s live race coverage of the road course event kicks off at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday.

A NEW FACE TRACKSIDE: Krista Voda joins the Trackside party this weekend at Bristol, assuming the host seat occupied for years by Steve Byrnes, who now serves as the fulltime host of NASCAR Race Hub. Voda will anchor the program during eight of the remaining 13 Cup weekends while still fulfilling her hosting duties in the Truck Series. Guests Bruton Smith (Speedway Motorsports chairman and CEO), Larry Pearson (two-time NASCAR Nationwide Series champion who is recovering from a Legends accident at Bristol in March) and Ron Capps (NHRA Funny Car driver) will join Voda and regular panelists Larry McReynolds, Jeff Hammond and Elliott Sadler Friday at 11 p.m. ET.

NASCAR SMARTS: This week’s NASCAR trivia game show pits the regular team of Kyle Petty and Rutledge Wood against Larry McReynolds and son Brandon McReynolds, ARCA Racing Series driver. NASCAR Smarts airs Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.

SPEED™, anchored by its popular and wide-ranging coverage of NASCAR, is the nation’s first and only cable television network dedicated to automotive and motorcycle racing, performance and lifestyle. Now available in more than 80 million homes in North America, SPEED, a member of the FOX Sports Media Group, is among the industry leaders in interactive TV, video on demand, mobile initiatives and broadband services. For more information, please visit SPEED.com, the online motor sports authority.

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