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On the first day of the new year, NASCAR announced a new home for its races in 2022, as a select few events will be televised on the USA Network.
Early last year, NBCSN decided to shut down operations by the end of 2021. The likes of EPL, NHL, IndyCar and NASCAR moved to the USA Network. NASCAR fans are keenly waiting to see how the move impacts the sport's coverage.
In a memo to his staff, NBC Sports Chairman Pete Bevacqua mentioned the transition of certain races to the USA Network.
Along with Next-Gen cars and a new network, 2022 marks the start of a new era for the sport. The tweet could also be hinting towards a new NASCAR docuseries.
NASCAR docuseries "Race for the Championship" greenlit
According to a press release by NASCAR, the Race for the Championship docuseries is set to premiere in 2022 on USA Network. Over eight episodes, the series aims to engage with viewers by taking them inside the lives of NASCAR drivers and teams both on and off the track.
The docuseries is produced by NASCAR Productions, alongside NASCAR's Tim Clark, Matt Summers and Amy Anderson, who will serve as executive producers. Race for the Championship is set to feature a backdrop of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs and Championship.
The documentary series will possibly hope to mirror the success of Netflix's Formula 1 series Drive to Survive.
A brief history of NASCAR TV coverage in the new millenium
Until 2001, race tracks had individual agreements with various networks to broadcast races. In 1999, NASCAR announced that television contracts would be centralized in order to capitalize on the growing popularity of the sport.
From 2001-2006, Fox Sports, FX, NBC and Turner Sports have held the NASCAR television rights, dividing the races up between themselves. In 2005, NBC announced they would no longer televise the sport, and ABC/ESPN picked up the slack from 2007-2014.
NASCAR announced new deals with Fox Sports Media Group and NBC Sports Group in 2012 and 2013 respectively. They which took effect in 2015, and will see the two networks televising the races through 2024.
