NBC Sports to Present Back-to-Back NASCAR Playoff Coverage This Weekend

NBC Sports heads to "The Lone Star State" for comprehensive coverage of NASCAR Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series racing from Texas Motor Speedway. XFINITY series racing returns Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC after a two week hiatus. Elliott Sadler and Daniel Suarez lead the XFINITY Chase standings, with the remaining six playoff drivers jockeying for Championship contention. NBC Sports' Sprint Cup coverage begins Sunday at 1 p.m. ET as NBC presents the first of three final races before the Champion is crowned at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Before Sunday's green flag falls, pre-race coverage includes interviews with all eight Chase drivers, two special guests in Jeff Burton's on-track car, and Rutledge Wood doing what he does best, interacting with unique fans, including some that traveled all the way from Antarctica.

NBC PRESENTS NASCAR SPRINT CUP PLAYOFF RACING FROM TEXAS SUNDAY AT 1 P.M. ET

NBC Sports kicks off its "big" Sprint Cup coverage Friday with practice at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, followed by a special afternoon edition of NASCAR AMERICA at 2 p.m. ET. Qualifying wraps up the evening at 6:30 p.m. ET, streaming on the NBC Sports App and NBCSports.com. Qualifying will also be available on select regional sports networks, including CSN Bay Area and CSN Mid Atlantic.

Saturday's coverage includes practice at 10:30 a.m. ET on CNBC, followed by final practice at 1:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Race day coverage begins Sunday on NBC at 1 p.m. ET with Countdown to Green, followed by green flag racing from "The Great American Speedway." The checkered flag is immediately followed by an on-site post-race show on NBCSN, as well as Victory Lap beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

Race announcer Rick Allen calls this weekend's action alongside analysts Steve Letarte and Jeff Burton. Pre- and post-race coverage is handled by host Krista Voda, and analysts Kyle Petty and Dale Jarrett. Marty Snider, Mike Massaro, Dave Burns and Kelli Stavast report from pit road. Rutledge Wood contributes to NBC's coverage on Sunday.

XFINITY SERIES RACING RETURNS SATURDAY AT 3:30 P.M. ET ON NBC

NBC Sports' XFINITY coverage from Texas Motor Speedway begins Friday with practice at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Final practice at 5 p.m. ET wraps up the day, streaming on the NBC Sports App and NBCSports.com, and available on select regional sports networks, including CSN Chicago, CSN Bay Area, CSN Northwest and CSN Mid Atlantic. Saturday's race day coverage begins at 11:30 a.m. ET on CNBC with XFINITY Qualifying. Countdown to Green kicks off the pre-race coverage at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC before the green flag falls on the second race on the Round of 8.

SUNDAY'S SPRINT CUP RACE FROM MARTINSVILLE WINS MOST WATCHED CABLE SPORTS TELECAST OF THE DAY ON NBCSN

NBCSN's presentation of the NASCAR Sprint Cup playoff race from Martinsville Speedway averaged 2.7 million viewers and a 1.6 HH rating. Sunday's race marked the most watched cable sports telecast of the day and drove NBCSN the No. 1 cable network during the race window of 1:30-4:45 p.m. ET. Sunday's NASCAR viewership peaked in the final 14 min of the race with 3.4 million viewers watching as Jimmie Johnson captured the checkered flag. Season to date, consumption of NASCAR content via NBCSports.com, the NBC Sports app and connected devices has earned 86 million minutes and 696,000 unique devices, up 58% and 49% respectively vs 2015.

TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY PRESIDENT EDDIE GOSSAGE JOINS NATE RYAN ON THIS WEEK'S NASCAR ON NBC PODCAST

Texas Motor Speedway's President, Eddie Gossage, joins Nate Ryan on this week's NASCAR on NBC podcast. Gossage, an endeared member of the NASCAR community, discusses why his track is pumping out Chuck Norris memes this week, his parting gift for Tony Stewart and his thoughts on some hot topics in NASCAR.

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