Motorsports This Week on ESPN and ABC

NASCAR Nationwide Series Live from Iowa on ABC

The NASCAR Nationwide Series races at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa, this weekend and ABC will have a live telecast of the race on Sunday, May 22. NASCAR Countdown airs at 1:30 p.m. ET with the race’s green flag at 2:14 p.m.

Allen Bestwick will call the action with analysis by Dale Jarrett, the 1999 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion, and two-time champion crew chief Andy Petree. Two-time champion crew chief Tim Brewer will report from the ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage, while pit reporters will be Dave Burns, Mike Massaro and Shannon Spake.

NASCAR Countdown from the ESPN pit studio will be hosted by Nicole Briscoe with analysis by Jarrett and Brad Daugherty, a team owner in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series. The studio team will interact with the booth during the telecast of the race.

Classic Track Tour on NASCAR Now

NASCAR Now, ESPN2’s daily NASCAR news and information show, will take viewers on a five-day tour featuring classic racetracks of the sport starting Tuesday, May 17, with a different track each day through Saturday, May 21. ESPN the Magazine’s Ryan McGee will visit Bowman Gray Stadium, Hickory Motor Speedway, Rockingham Speedway, North Wilkesboro Speedway and Greenville-Pickens Speedway. Guests will include Richard Childress and Ned Jarrett. NASCAR Now airs at 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 11:30 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday with host Michelle Bonner.

On Monday, May 23, NASCAR Now’s Monday roundtable discussion program will air from the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C. ESPN analyst Dale Jarrett and NASCAR Now lead reporter Marty Smith will be panelists with host Allen Bestwick. Special guests will include Bobby Allison, Ned Jarrett and David Pearson, Hall of Fame inductees.

NASCAR Now will preview the NASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in a one-hour edition airing Saturday, May 21, at 11 a.m. Bonner will host and Smith will report from the track.

NHRA Action from Topeka on ESPN2, ESPN3.com

The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series races this weekend in the NHRA Summer Nationals at Heartland Park in Topeka, Kansas. ESPN2 will air action from qualifying on Saturday, May 21, at 5:30 p.m. ET and coverage of eliminations airs Sunday, May 22, at 7 p.m. NHRA fans also can watch the full day of eliminations live on ESPN3.com starting Sunday at noon.

Sprawling multipurpose Heartland Park Topeka has been a Midwest favorite since it opened in 1989, but its dragstrip has gained the majority of headlines. The event, originally in the fall, has featured numerous record performances, the most significant of which was the shattering of the quarter-mile four-second and 300-mph barriers in Funny Car in 1993. The event moved to its current spot on the schedule in 2001.

Paul Page anchors for ESPN with analysis by 22-time NHRA winner Mike Dunn. Gary Gerould, and Dave Rieff report from the pits.

Also this week, ESPN2 airs highlights of the NHRA Get Screened America Pro Modified Series event at Atlanta Dragway on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. In addition, an episode of NHRA Thrills and Spills airs Saturday at 5 p.m.

ESPN.com Offers RacingLive! During NASCAR All-Star Race

NASCAR fans looking for an online gathering during ESPN’s telecasts of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series now have a place to go on ESPN.com.

RacingLive! on ESPN.com is a live blog where fans can engage in debate and discussion with ESPN.com writers and editors during the NASCAR Sprint Cup races. On Saturday night, May 21, RacingLive! All-Star will kick off to coincide with the NASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Fans can join ESPN.com’s NASCAR experts in dissecting every aspect of the race live at http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/.

ESPN.com motorsports writer David Newton will be onsite at the race to report on the weekend’s action and news.

ESPN Radio Raceday Airs Saturday, Sunday

Each weekend morning, ESPN Radio’s RaceDay starts its engines at 6 a.m. ET with host Pat Patterson anchored from Daytona Beach, Fla. Patterson also originates the broadcast from several racetracks with key races during the season. On both Saturday and Sunday mornings, ESPN Radio’s RaceDay listeners get an hour of news, previews and analysis, as well as profiles and interviews with NASCAR’s biggest names and newsmakers and the involvement of listeners via calls and e-mails.

Additionally, many of ESPN’s NASCAR reporters and analysts contribute each week as ESPN networks televise the entire NASCAR Nationwide Series and the final 17 NASCAR Sprint Cup races, including the 10-race “Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup" championship. A list of ESPN Radio affiliates can be found at www.espnradio.com.