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NBCSN presents 12 Hours of Open-Wheel Motorsports Action This Sunday
By: A.A. Cristi Jun. 22, 2017
NBCSN presents 12 hours of open-wheel motorsports action this Sunday, highlighted by live coverage of the INDYCAR Kohler Grand Prix at historic Road America at 12:30 p.m. ET, and the Formula One Azerbaijan Grand Prix at 8:30 a.m. ET.
In addition, NBC Sports Group continues its coverage of the 2017 LUCAS OIL PRO MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP this weekend with the Tennessee National. NBCSN will present live coverage from Muddy Creek Raceway on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET.
NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app - NBC Sports Group's live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs - will provide comprehensive streaming coverage of this week's motorsports action.
INDYCAR KOHLER GRAND PRIX - SUNDAY AT 12:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
The 2017 Verizon INDYCAR SERIES rolls into iconic Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis., for this weekend's Kohler Grand Prix. Six drivers are within 50 points of drivers' standings leader Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing; 326 points), including last season's champion Simon Pagenaud (Team Penske; 313 points) and the 2017 Indy 500 champion Takuma Sato (Andretti Autosport; 312 points). Team Penske teammates Helio Castroneves (305 points) and Will Power (286 points) are well within striking distance at the midpoint of the 2017 campaign. Graham Rahal sits in sixth (283 points), following his sweep at the Detroit dual race and a fourth place finish in Texas. Power is coming off a victory in Texas two weekends ago, and took the checkered flag at Road America last year.
Coverage from Road America begins Saturday at 5 p.m. ET with qualifying, followed by race coverage on Sunday on NBCSN, which begins at 12:30 p.m. ET.
Kevin Lee (play-by-play) will call the action from Road America this weekend alongside former drivers Paul Tracy and Townsend Bell. Reporters Marty Snider, Katie Hargitt, Robin Miller and Jon Beekhuiswill report from the pits.
NBCSN will also televise the Indy Lights race from Road America on Sunday at 11:30 a.m. ET. Kevin Lee will call the race with Anders Krohn and Katie Hargitt.
Through four races on NBCSN to-date, the 2017 Verizon INDYCAR SERIES is averaging 441,000 viewers, up 27% vs. the three comparable races in 2016. The Rainguard Water Sealers 600 on NBCSN averaged 561,000 viewers to stand as NBCSN's most-watched Texas race on record. INDYCAR on NBCSN has reached a total audience of 2.474 million viewers through four races - up 22% from the same four races last year on NBCSN (2.033 million).
Formula One visits the streets of Baku in Azerbaijan for the second consecutive year this weekend with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, as Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel headline what appears to be a year-long battle between the two F1 stars and manufacturers Mercedes and Ferrari.
Mercedes dominated the Canadian Grand Prix two weekends ago in Montreal, as Hamilton cruised to his sixth win in Montreal, and teammate Valtteri Bottas finished in second. The win, coupled with a fourth-place finish by Vettel, brought Hamilton within 12 points of Vettel atop the Driver Standings, and the Hamilton-Bottas 1-2 finish propelled Mercedes (222) past Ferrari (214) in the Constructor Standings.
NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app will stream Practice 1 live tomorrow at 5 a.m. ET, followed by streaming coverage of Practice 2 on 9 a.m. ET (Practice 2 will air on NBCSN at 2 p.m. ET). NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app stream Practice 3 on Saturday at 5 a.m. ET, followed by qualifying on CNBC at 9 a.m. ET (encore on NBCSN on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET).
F1 Countdown kicks things off on Sunday morning at 8 a.m. ET prior to live race action from Baku at 8:30 a.m. ET, followed by F1 Extra at 11 a.m. ET. NBCSN will air an encore presentation of the race on Sunday at 9 p.m. ET.
Lead F1 announcer Leigh Diffey will call this weekend's action, and will be joined by veteran analyst and former racecar driver David Hobbs, and analyst and former race mechanic for the Benetton F1 team Steve Matchett. F1 insider Will Buxton will serve as the team's on-site reporter from Baku.
NBC Sports Group continues its coverage of the 2017 LUCAS OIL PRO MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP season with this week's event at Muddy Creek Raceway on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Blake Baggett won the overall in the 450 Class last week at High Point and carries the points lead into Tennessee, while two-time champion Jeremy Martin got his first win of the season in the 250 Class. Jason Weigandt will handle play-by-play duties, alongside two-time AMA Pro MOTOCROSS Champion Grant Langston and reporter Georgia Lindsay.
NBC Sports Gold - NBC Sports Digital's direct-to-consumer live streaming product - is launching a "Pro MOTOCROSS Pass," giving fans access to the entire 2017 LUCAS OIL PRO MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP season. The direct-to-consumer pass, powered by Playmaker Media, will offer fans commercial-free coverage, live and on-demand, online, on mobile, tablets and connected TV devices.
NBC Sports Gold's "Pro MOTOCROSS Pass" features every race in the 2017 season, which begins with the Hangtown MOTOCROSS Classic on May 20, including Qualifiers, Moto 1s and Moto 2s. In addition to the 2017 season, fans can access full event replays of the 2016 and 2015 seasons. The "Pro MOTOCROSS Pass" can be purchased in advance in the U.S. and 13 international territories for $49.99 starting today by visiting NBCSportsGold.com. Click here for more information.
Following is this week's motorsports coverage schedule on NBCSN:
| Date | Program | Network | Time (ET) |
| Fri., June 23 | F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix - Practice 1 | Streaming* | 5 a.m. |
| F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix - Practice 2 | Streaming* | 9 a.m. | |
| F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix - Practice 2 (Encore) | NBCSN | 2 p.m. | |
| Sat., June 24 | F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix - Practice 3 | Streaming* | 6 a.m. |
| F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix - Qualifying | CNBC | 9 a.m. | |
| Lucas Oil Pro MOTOCROSS Tennessee - Qualifying | NBC Sports Gold | 10 a.m. | |
| Lucas Oil Pro MOTOCROSS Tennessee - Moto 1 (250) | NBC Sports Gold | 1 p.m. | |
| Lucas Oil Pro MOTOCROSS Tennessee - Moto 1 (450) | NBC Sports Gold | 2 p.m. | |
| F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix - Qualifying (Encore) | NBCSN | 1 p.m. | |
| Lucas Oil Pro MOTOCROSS Tennessee - Moto 2s | NBCSN | 3 p.m. | |
| Lucas Oil Pro MOTOCROSS Tennessee - Moto 2 (250) | NBC Sports Gold | 3 p.m. | |
| Lucas Oil Pro MOTOCROSS Tennessee - Moto 2 (450) | NBC Sports Gold | 4 p.m. | |
| IndyCar Kohler Grand Prix - Qualifying** | NBCSN | 5 p.m. | |
| Sun., June 25 | F2 Azerbaijan** | NBCSN | 6 a.m. |
| F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix - Qualifying (Encore) | NBCSN | 7 a.m. | |
| F1 Countdown | NBCSN | 8 a.m. | |
| F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix | NBCSN | 8:30 a.m. | |
| F1 Extra | NBCSN | 11 a.m. | |
| Indy Lights - Road America | NBCSN | 11:30 a.m. | |
| IndyCar Countdown | NBCSN | 12:30 p.m. | |
| IndyCar Kohler Grand Prix | NBCSN | 1 p.m. | |
| IndyCar Post-Race | NBCSN | 3 p.m. | |
| F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix (Encore) | NBCSN | 9 p.m. |
*NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app
**delayed coverage
NBC Sports Group will provide comprehensive streaming and digital coverage surrounding its motorsports properties via NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app - NBC Sports Group's live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets - and NASCAR Talk and MotorSportsTalk, NBC Sports Group's digital home for the latest motorsports news.
NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app will provide season-long live streaming coverage of all Formula One practices, qualifying sessions and Grands Prix, including exclusive coverage of practices that will not air on NBC or NBCSN. NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app will stream NASCAR and INDYCAR content that will air on NBC and NBCSN (race coverage and some practice and qualifying), as well as the Lucas Oil Pro MOTOCROSS Championship, RED BULL GLOBAL RALLYCROSS series, and Red BULL Air Race.
MOTORSPORTSTALK: MotorSportsTalk (@MotorSportsTalk) on NBCSports.com brings racing fans up-to-the-minute news, video and information on Formula One, the Verizon INDYCAR Series, and other open-wheel and off-road racing from around the world. The site also serves as the destination for all news, analysis and video from NBC and NBCSN productions of INDYCAR and F1, including contributions from on-air commentators.
Image courtesy of NBC.
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