SIRIUS XM Radio Announces Comprehensive Broadcast Coverage of Indianapolis 500
XM subscribers and SIRIUS subscribers with the “Best of XM” will hear live broadcast of the Indy 500 plus exclusive programming leading up to the race
For first time, Indy 500 is available to both XM and SIRIUS listeners
SIRIUS XM Radio the Official Satellite Radio Partner of the Indy Racing League (IRL), the sanctioning body for the IndyCar(R) Series and Firestone Indy Lights, announced that it will offer comprehensive coverage of the Indianapolis 500 to both XM subscribers and SIRIUS subscribers with the “Best of XM” programming package.
SIRIUS XM will broadcast “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” the Indianapolis 500, live from Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 24 on Indy Car Series Racing, XM channel 145 and SIRIUS channel 211 (part of the “Best of XM”). Motorsports fans will hear pre-race programming, including pre-race commentary and analysis by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network broadcast team, interviews with drivers and live coverage of driver introductions. When the green flag drops at 1:00 pm ET, SIRIUS XM listeners will hear live wheel-to-wheel action on the track through every turn and straightaway.
In addition to the Indy 500, SIRIUS XM will broadcast the Firestone Freedom 100 race from the Firestone Indy Lights Series on Friday, May 22 (12:15 pm ET) on Indy Car Series Racing, XM channel 145 and SIRIUS channel 211 (“Best of XM”). The 100 mile race from the Indy Racing League’s developmental series features some of the world’s best young open wheel drivers. After the race, SIRIUS XM will air IMS Radio Network’s review of all the action from Carb Day, offering a recap of the day’s Indy 500 practice, the Pit Stop Challenge and the Indy Lights Series race.
On Community Day, Wednesday, May 20, SIRIUS XM’s exclusive all-sports talk channel, Mad Dog Radio, will broadcast a special Indy 500 preview live from the infield at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (10:00 am – 2:00 pm ET). Host Gary Williams will preview Sunday’s race, interview some of the series’ top drivers, team owners and past Indy 500 champions, and talk with IndyCar fans from around the country. Mad Dog Radio is available nationwide exclusively on SIRIUS channel 123 and XM channel 144.
SIRIUS XM’s coverage will include live broadcasts of all Indy 500 qualifying sessions, including “Bump Day” on Sunday, May 17, the final day of qualifying. “Bump Day” allows teams and drivers who did not qualify for the field of 33 on the first three days of time trials one last chance to drive their way into the grid.
IndyCar(R) Series races have aired on XM Radio since 2005. This year marks the first season the races will be available to both SIRIUS and XM subscribers.
For more info visit www.xmradio.com/irl.
SIRIUS XM’s motor racing coverage on Sunday, May 24 will also include the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race from Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte, NC (5:45 pm ET on SIRIUS channel 128 and XM channel 128 with the “Best of SIRIUS”) as well as the Formula One(TM) Monaco Grand Prix from Monte Carlo (8:00 am ET on SIRIUS channel 126 and XM channel 242).
Source: SIRIUS XM Radio
Ferrari Challenge Season Continues at Infineon Raceway
The North American Ferrari Challenge Series 2009 season continues May 1-3 at Northern California’s Infineon Raceway.
Boardwalk Ferrari’s Scott Tucker, who is leading the series championship, will look to hold onto his position this weekend at Infineon but not without stiff competition from the rest of the drivers. Ferrari of Silicon Valley teammates Zak Brown and Henri Richard, who have both shown impressive speed this year, will be looking to take their places on the podium over Tucker. Also proving to be a threat to Tucker’s lead this year are Mark McKenzie and Richard Fant from Ferrari of Houston. McKenzie, who is currently second in the standing, is looking for a strong weekend to close the point gap to Tucker, while Fant’s consistent speed this season could put him in contention for the podium on Sunday.
Now in its 16th racing season in the U.S., the Ferrari Challenge Series (utilizing race-prepared F430 Challenge vehicles) offers Ferrari owners the opportunity to compete against other Ferrari owners in a highly competitive racing series at world-class venues throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Showcasing the best of Ferraris past and present, the Shell Ferrari Historic Challenge will be sharing the track this year at Infineon featuring authentic, original competition Ferraris and Maseratis built prior to 1980, as well as pre-war Alfa Romeos as raced by the Scuderia Ferrari.
The Ferrari Challenge is one of the numerous “exclusive” experiences that Ferrari offers its customers — and whether owners are actually racing in the series, dining in the luxurious VIP hospitality tents, participating in weekend driving clinics or socializing with those that share their enthusiasm for Ferrari, the weekend provides a unique atmosphere and incomparable experience.
General public can enjoy the races, peruse the paddock areas, and enjoy the overall Ferrari-festival type of atmosphere.
The season will then continue to Road America in Wisconsin [June 26-28], Mt. Tremblant in Canada [July 24-26] and Motorsports Park in New Jersey [Sept. 18-20].
The Ferrari Challenge Series is organized by Ferrari North America, Inc., and sanctioned by the Grand American Road Racing Association. Complete Challenge information can be found on www.ferrarichallenge.com. Tickets for the Infineon Raceway Ferrari Challenge weekend can be purchased directly at the track.
Ferrari North America, Inc. is headquartered in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., and is the exclusive North, Central and South American importer of Ferrari vehicles including the 599 GTB Fiorano V-12 sports coupe, F430 Berlinetta, F430 Spider convertible sports car, 430 Scuderia, California Gran Tourer and 612 Scaglietti (luxury performance 2+2). For more information please visit www.ferrariusa.com.
Source: Ferrari North America, Inc.
Ferrari F430 Shows Its Natural Track Skills in Start of Racing Season
Powerful V8 Dominates ALMS Opener and Shows-off in the Ferrari Challenge Series Opener
The Ferrari F430 opened strong in Florida over the weekend with dominant finishes in the season opener of the American Le Mans series at Sebring and fast paced action at the start of the Ferrari Challenge series at Homestead.
The 2009 ALMS series kicked off at Sebring, FL where the #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari of Pierre Kaffer, Jaime Melo and Mika Salo won the GT2 class race in a dominant fashion – leading the season-opening Twelve Hours of Sebring from the second hour until the finish. Finishing eighth overall, they led home a Ferrari 1-2, and the team’s Krohn Racing drivers Tracy W Krohn, Nic Jonsson and Eric van de Poele rounded off an excellent day for both the team and Ferrari with a sixth place finish.
The #62 Ferrari’s showing was all the more remarkable as it had started from the back of the grid at the start of the race. It took Mika Salo less than 50 of the 332 laps that the #62 Ferrari completed to get from it starting position of 10th to the head of the class. The win, Salo’s 14th and Melo’s 13th, was the second in three years for the pairing (following the record-breaking 2007 GT2 finish), and Kaffer’s first on his debut with the team.
The Ferrari Challenge season, which utilizes race-prepared Ferrari F430s, got off to a competitive start in Homestead, FL with the 2008 favourites showing their strength in the 2009 season with some new faces threatening to steal the show. Leading the standing after the first weekend is Boardwalk Ferrari’s Scott Tucker, who finished second in the 2008 Challenge series and who put in a strong performance capturing both race wins as well as a pole position over the weekend. A strong performance was also turned in by 2008 Rookie of the Year Mark McKenzie who scoring two podium finishes over the weekend, securing both a second and third place finish. 2007 Challenge champion Mike Zoi, returned to form and captured a second place finish on Sunday.
Source: Ferrari North America
Craftsman to Sponsor ESPN’s Innovative Tech Garage During 2009 NASCAR Racing Season
Multimedia Sponsorship Includes On-Air, Online, Print and Radio Elements
Craftsman, the official tools of NASCAR, has teamed up with ESPN to present the ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage, an innovative mobile television studio used throughout the network’s NASCAR coverage. This mobile studio gives ESPN the ability to originate segments from an enclosed, controlled environment with no external noise interference. ESPN’s Tim Brewer, a two-time NASCAR champion crew chief, and other ESPN analysts report from the unit during race telecasts to teach viewers about the technical and mechanical aspects of NASCAR racing, using the Craftsman tools trusted by NASCAR.
“By working with ESPN on the Craftsman Tech Garage, we are not only enhancing our long relationship with NASCAR, but sharing knowledge from the place we believe champions originate – the garage,” said Erik Rosenstrauch, Craftsman director of marketing. “Pairing the NASCAR experts at ESPN with America’s most trusted brand in tools gives fans a way to experience our brand as if they’re on the track. And by using ESPN’s multiple touch points, we can communicate with NASCAR fans like never before.”
“Craftsman has had a long and successful association with NASCAR,” said Ed Erhardt, president, ESPN Customer Marketing and Sales. “Their involvement with ESPN’s NASCAR coverage helps us build that authentic experience we strive to deliver to fans each and every race week.”
In addition to extensive on-air coverage through prominent Craftsman signage in the garage, the multi-faceted, season-long sponsorship includes extensions in print via ESPN the Magazine and through a weekly Tech Garage feature in the morning race-day show on ESPN Radio. An online component will bring a virtual tech garage to life on ESPN.com, allowing fans to interact with the set and understand just how NASCAR works.
The ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage makes its debut during coverage of the NASCAR Nationwide Series season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, Feb. 14, at noon ET on ESPN2. In addition to ESPN and ESPN on ABC’s coverage of the final 17 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, segments from the ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage will air during ESPN’s exclusive, season-long coverage of the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The unit also is used throughout ESPN’s leading non-television media platforms.
The enclosed studio contains the ESPN Chevy Cutaway Car used in ESPN’s NASCAR coverage. The studio also has room for displays of other race car elements such as engines, transmissions and shock absorbers. Elements of the ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage include:
- Two tractor-trailer rigs — a studio trailer and a support trailer
- An 80,000-pound Featherlite Expandable trailer with dual slide-outs
- Five miles of wiring
- A rear-opening trailer which serves as the entry/exit point for the Chevy Cutaway Cars
- Two Chevy Cutaway Cars — a NASCAR Sprint Cup car and a NASCAR Nationwide Series car. Only one is in the studio at a time, depending upon which series is being televised, although both could fit.
- More than 100 Craftsman products and tool sets
- Removable lights, cameras, props and cars that are torn down and loaded after every telecast in three hours
- A 53-foot, 65,000-lbs support trailer that carries the two Chevy Cutaway Cars and all of the props used in the tech center (parts, pieces, power train unit, Craftsman tools).
- Multiple plasma television monitors
Source: Sears, Roebuck and Co.
USA TODAY Sports Weekly Publishes Special Edition: NASCAR Preview 09
A special edition of USA TODAY Sports Weekly devoted to NASCAR hits newsstands today. The Sports Weekly NASCAR Preview ’09 edition gives motor racing fans an in-depth look at the drivers and tracks they’ll encounter during the 2009 season.
Featured in this 56-page special edition:
- A cover story looking at how NASCAR and its teams will navigate through these turbulent economic times.
- Profiles of drivers Tony Stewart and Mark Martin, who will try to win his first championship at age 50.
- An in-depth look at 36 top drivers.
- The lowdown on the 22 tracks that will be used this season.
The Sports Weekly NASCAR PREVIEW ’09 special edition will be on sale at newsstands through February 23rd at a cover price of $4.95. This issue can be ordered by calling 1-800-872-5149 or by visiting www.usatodayservice.com/specialeditions. USA TODAY Sports Weekly publishes special editions throughout the year covering special events in sports.
USA TODAY Sports Weekly covers baseball and football with detailed analysis and in-depth cover stories on the players and issues that shape two of the most popular sports in America. There is no off-season for Sports Weekly – readers will find complete coverage in all 52 issues throughout the year. USA TODAY Sports Weekly is published by Gannett Co., Inc. .
Source: USA TODAY