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NHRA ANNOUNCES FULL THROTTLE SERIES TELEVISION SCHEDULE FOR 2010 SEASON ON ESPN2, ITS 10TH ON THE WORLDWIDE LEADER IN SPORTS
GLENDORA, Calif. (Feb. 1, 2010) — NHRA will launch its 10th anniversary season with ESPN, the worldwide leader in sports television, with a primetime telecast of the most highly anticipated Full Throttle Series race in many years at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona: the 50th Kragen O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Valvoline, Feb. 14 from 8-11 p.m. ET.
Highlighting the complete 2010 schedule, released today, is a commitment to consistent broadcast times for Sunday’s race day action with 17 of the 23 events scheduled in the coveted Sunday night prime-time slot on ESPN2. Once again, the most prestigious drag racing event in the world, the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis, will feature more than 10 hours of wall-to-wall coverage beginning with qualifying on Sunday, Sept. 5 and concluding with a five-hour broadcast on Monday afternoon, Sept. 6 from 1 – 6 p.m.
In all, the network will dedicate more than 100 hours of original programming to the world’s quickest, fastest and most intense motorsport with live or same-day coverage of qualifying on Saturday and eliminations on Sunday. All broadcasts will be aired in high definition on ESPN2HD.
Not only does the season open in Southern California, the Series will also return to Pomona for the season-ending Auto Club NHRA Finals., Nov. 11-14, the sixth and final race in the NHRA Full Throttle Series’ Countdown to 1.
Additionally, the popular pre-race show that debuted in 2007, NHRA Race Day presented by Lucas Oil, will be back in 2010, once again being produced on-site to allow fans attending the Sunday race a chance to watch – and participate – in the show. It will air on each of the 23 Sundays that the NHRA Full Throttle Series is racing.
The shows are developed by the production team at ESPN, which has been producing NHRA programming since 2001. Paul Page returns to the broadcast booth as host alongside former drag racer Mike Dunn, who will provide expert analysis and insight on the racing action. Dave Rieff and Gary Gerould will return as pit reporters. Veteran announcer John Kernan, who joined the NHRA broadcast team in 2007, will serve as a third pit reporter at select races.
NHRA Race Day presented by Lucas Oil, will be hosted once again by Rieff and Dunn, and originate from NHRA’s Nitro Alley. NHRA Race Day presented by Lucas Oil sets up the day for fans at home with must-see match-ups, interviews with the stars of the sport, driver features, news and analysis, a review of qualifying and what to watch for during the all-important Sunday action.
In addition to coverage on ESPN2 and ESPN2HD, NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing will be aired and distributed internationally through ESPN International. ESPN2 is now available in 98.7 million households.
