Mazda Road to Indy Broadcast Schedule and Talent Confirmed
The 14 rounds of Indy Lights action will be showcased in 10 shows which will include full coverage of single race events, and highlight coverage of the 40-minute "sprint" race rounds within full coverage of the standard 60-minute feature races at the four double-header events. Seven of the 10 shows will air either immediately before or after the IndyCar Series race broadcast, with the Freedom 100 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway airing live on May 23. International rights are held by ESPN International.
The Indy Lights broadcast team will be led by veteran play-by-play and radio announcer Kevin Lee, reporter for the NBC Sports Network's coverage of the IndyCar Series. Adding color commentary will be Anders "The Viking" Krohn. Krohn made 16 Indy Lights starts during the 2010 – 2012 seasons and is now active on the racing front with CoForce International, which provides racing and corporate development services. Handling reporting duties from pit lane will be Jake Query, who also serves as a pit/turn announcer on the IndyCar Series for the IMS Radio Network.
Pro Mazda and USF2000 competition will continue to be featured in four one-hour highlight shows on the NBC Sports Network which will be hosted by Lee and Krohn. A new format will be utilized this year featuring content on both series in each broadcast split equally. Each show will include one featured race per series plus additional round results. All highlight shows will also be carried by MOTORS TV in Europe.
Indy Lights drivers will garner additional exposure through mentions and interviews during IndyCar Series race broadcasts, and the rising stars in Pro Mazda and USF2000 will be introduced with booth and pit lane interviews during Indy Lights race coverage.
All Indy Lights races will be carried live on the IMS Radio Network to Sirius XM Satellite Radio, indycar.com, indycarradio.com and the INDYCAR app from Verizon. Mark Jaynes, who has held over a decade-long role as an announcer for the network, will continue his duties as anchor with driver Pippa Mann as analyst, IndyCar Series pit reporter Nick Yeoman on pit lane alongside Rob Howden, owner of Howden Media Group, who is the "official" voice of the Mazda Road to Indy serving as PA announcer and ceremonies host for the three ladder series. IMS Radio Network coverage will also include Pro Mazda and USF2000 news and results.
"I am very pleased with the programming we have in place to showcase the talent in our three series," said Dan Andersen, Owner and CEO of Andersen Promotions. "IMS Productions and the IMS Radio Network are great partners, and we have the same goals – to promote and provide as much exposure as possible to our competitors. We have outstanding veteran announcers in place and Anders Krohn and Rob Howden will be great additions with their passion and enthusiasm.
"Our new partnership with Replay XD as the Official Camera of the ladder series will further enhance our broadcasts with high-quality HD onboard footage, and new initiatives we will be unveiling this month including a Cooper Tires #Hashtag marketing campaign for competitors and fans and our RoadToIndy.TV program will continue to ramp up our efforts on exposure for the Mazda Road to Indy. It's an exciting time and I want to thank everyone involved for all of their efforts to maximize our resources."
Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires 2014 Broadcast Schedule
|
DATE |
EVENT | TIME | COVERAGE |
| April 4 | Streets of St. Petersburg | 4:00-5:00 pm ET | Delayed |
| April 13 | Streets of Long Beach | 2:30-4:00 pm ET | Same Day |
| April 27 | Barber Motorsports Park | 5:30-6:30 pm ET | Same Day |
| Week of May 19 | Indianapolis Motor Speedway (RC) | TBD | Delayed |
| May 23 | Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Oval) | 12:00-1:00 pm ET | Live |
| July 6 | Pocono Raceway | 4:00-5:00 pm ET | Same Day |
| July 20 | Streets of Toronto | 6:00-7:00 pm ET | Same Day |
| August 3 | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course | 6:00-7:00 pm ET | Same Day |
| August 17 | The Milwaukee Mile | 6:00-7:00 pm ET | Same Day |
| August 24 | Sonoma Raceway | 7:00-8:00 pm ET | Same Day |
2014 Highlight Show Broadcast Schedule NBC Sports Network
| Date | Time | PRO MAZDA | USF2000 |
| May 24 | 1:30-2:30 am ET | Barber Motorsports Park | Streets of St. Petersburg |
| June 13 | 2:00-3:00 am ET | Indianapolis Motor Speedway (RC) | Indianapolis Motor Speedway (RC) |
| August 24 | 2:00-3:00 am ET | Streets of Houston | Streets of Toronto |
| Sept. 5 | 2:00-3:00 am ET | Sonoma Raceway | Sonoma Raceway |
2014 Highlight Show Broadcast Schedule MOTORS TV
| DATE | TIME | PRO MAZDA | USF2000 |
| June 3 | 6:54 pm GMT | Streets of St. Petersburg | Barber Motorsports Park |
| June 24 | 6:54 pm GMT | Indianapolis Motor Speedway (RC) | Indianapolis Motor Speedway (RC) |
| Sept. 2 | 6:54 pm GMT | Streets of Houston | Streets of Toronto |
| Sept. 16 | 6:54 pm GMT | Sonoma Raceway | Sonoma Raceway |