In NASCAR fandom, fans have long voiced disappointment about choppy post-race coverage and networks jumping straight to other programs. They find it frustrating when the checkered flag waves, and the story gets cut short by any local news or football previews.<\/p>\n
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This leaves many wondering if a fresh broadcaster could lock in the full experience without those interruptions. And the push for change feels even more urgent as the sport navigates shifting TV landscapes and tough rivals like the NFL grabbing up the majority of airtime.<\/p>\n
Recently, a fan demanded a new broadcaster like ABC after incidents like the Talladega<\/a> race, where NBC cut the post-race feed on Peacock for local or NFL news around 6 p.m. ET, even without any immediate NFL game. On the Reddit NASCAR thread, he posted:<\/p>\n ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cWith the NFL dominating the networks, and NBC immediately dumping the Talladega post-race in favour of the NFL, why doesn\u2019t NASCAR look to a network like ABC who only telecasts MNF? This way they\u2019d be guaranteed to be able to have exclusive coverage during and after the race.\u201d<\/p>\n Just like ABC\u2019s Monday Night Football is a fix for exclusive coverage, free from those abrupt switches, he demands the same thing from NASCAR broadcasters too.<\/p>\n ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n But those hopes crash against reality; the seven-year, $7.7 billion media rights deal announced in November 2023 ties NASCAR to Fox, NBC, Amazon Prime Video, and Warner Bros. Discovery through 2031. ABC and ESPN sat out the bidding, focusing instead on high-revenue staples like NFL and SEC college football, leaving no room for NASCAR<\/a>\u2018s package.<\/p>\n This setup amplifies the NFL squeeze, where football grabs the majority of the eyeballs in the sports, per driver Denny Hamlin<\/a> on his Actions Detrimental podcast. \u201cWhen the NFL has taken such a lion share of those eyes right now\u2026 if football is not on, then I think that you\u2019ve got a legitimate shot of being the next in line,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n His point hits home amid NASCAR\u2019s 2025 Cup Series averaging just 2.52 million viewers, down 13% from 2024\u2019s 2.916 million, while NFL games pull 17.5 million on average. Veteran broadcaster Danielle Trotta echoed this on the Stacking Pennies podcast<\/a>, calling fall scheduling a \u201cself-inflicted wound\u201d against the NFL \u201cbeast,\u201d proposing an early-September end to dodge the conflict. But the deal\u2019s 36-race mandate makes cuts unlikely without slashing revenue.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n