NASCAR on FOX hits Thunder Valley for
NASCAR Sprint Cup Racing from Bristol Sunday at 12:30 PM ET
Waltrip: Kenseth Makes All The Right Moves
Glazer Details Gonzalez Scoop
Barclay’s Premiere League Doubleheader Sunday on FOX Soccer
NASCAR ON FOX NAVIGATES ‘THE WORLD’S FASTEST HALF-MILE’ – It’s still early in the NASCAR Sprint Cup season, and big moves are already being made in the standings. Fresh off his win in Las Vegas last week, Matt Kenseth vaulted 11 places in the series standings all the way to seventh. The pack is still following Jimmie Johnson, who leads by the slimmest of margins over Brad Keselowski, as FOX Sports heads to Tennessee for NASCAR Sprint Cup Racing from Bristol on Sunday, March 17 (12:30 PM ET). Coverage begins with the FOX NASCAR SUNDAY prerace show hosted by Chris Myers, providing up-to-the-minute reports, live interviews with drivers, crewmen and officials shaping the day’s action and analysis from Darrell Waltrip and Michael Waltrip.
Once the green flag drops, race announcer Mike Joy is alongside analysts Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds to call all the twists and turns on the track while Steve Byrnes, Krista Voda and Matt Yocum patrol the pits for reports on teams and pit stops. FOX Sports’ Jeff Hammond serves as the network’s roving analyst, taking fans from the garages to pit road and everywhere in between. This week, the prerace show debuts a lighter side of last week’s winner Kenseth.
For instant updates during the week from the entire NASCAR on FOX crew, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/NASCARONFOX
MCREYNOLDS: BRISTOL STARTS WITH TRACK POSITIONING – NASCAR on FOX analyst Larry McReynolds previews this weekend’s race in Bristol and talks about some of the challenges the short track presents: “The race starts on Friday in qualifying because track position, even in a 500-lap race, is so important. When you qualify up front, obviously on a very tight pit road you get a great pit selection, but it also means your driver doesn’t have to use the equipment up. If you start at the rear of the field or the mid-pack, you almost want to get off-sequence. Maybe you want to pit, hoping the leaders will stay out, and once they pit, you’re going to get that track position.”
WALTRIP: KENSETH REWARDED FOR BEING BOLD – Last weekend in Las Vegas, Matt Kenseth became only the third driver to notch a NASCAR cup series victory on his birthday. NASCAR on FOX analyst Darrell Waltrip notes that the 41-year-old might not have reached that achievement had he not made some bold moves in the offseason: “The decision that Matt made to leave Roush Fenway Racing
at the end of 2012 was a very bold move. When you are at that age and at that point in your racing career, deciding to make a change can be a little dicey and can be a gamble. He could not have picked a better organization to team up with. Coach Joe Gibbs and his son J.D. Gibbs are two of the greatest people I know, and they run a first-class organization. Matt had an opportunity to go over there and immediately become a team leader. Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch need a mentor like that. Neither has been able to win a championship yet, but I think Matt can be a great example and resource for what it takes to put it all together.”
For more from Waltrip on what Kenseth means to Joe Gibbs Racing and his thoughts on the Denny Hamlin fine, click here: http://on-msn.com/16sC63v
HAMMOND SAYS PATIENCE IS KEY FOR PATRICK – In his latest column for FOXSports.com, NASCAR on FOX analyst Jeff Hammond reminds the racing community that Danica Patrick is a rookie with just one year of stock car racing experience under her belt, and urges fans to have patience: “Give her time. She is a rookie, and like we always say, there will be highs and lows all season long. This weekend at Bristol will be a good test for her. She raced here last year. There are no nuances to get used to when it comes to aero-balance at Bristol. Back in August of last year when she was here for the night race, she had a pretty good little run going before being wrecked out, so she should feel comfortable when we take to the track this weekend.”
For more from Hammond on Patrick, click here: http://on-msn.com/Z0sIwu
GLAZER DETAILS TONY GONZALEZ SCOOP – FOX Sports analyst Jay Glazer joined FOX Sports Radio’s “The Dan Patrick Show” to talk about Tony Gonzalez’s return to the Atlanta Falcons: “He called the day before, and then he called about 2:00 AM, then 3:00 AM, then 4:00 AM, which is part of the reason I was exhausted yesterday. We kept talking about it, and it was ‘Hold off right now,’ and well, look dude, it’s three in the morning, I’m not putting anything out right now – don’t worry about it. And normally I don’t write anymore; I just kind of tweet out and put out a little hit on FOXSports.com, but this was different. This was Tony Gonzalez, the greatest who’s ever played his position, and I felt it was a lot more than just a tweet or a pop on FOXSports.com, and I wanted to put his quotes out. I’ll tell you right now that there was absolutely no doubt whatsoever, up until the final play of the NFC Championship Game, that that man was retiring. There was zero doubt. But that night, Michael Strahan and I had gone out to dinner with him after the game, and it was the first time that Mike and I looked at each other and said, ‘You know what? That’s the first time the door’s been open.”
ROSENTHAL SAYS TEAM USA IS A WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC CONTENDER – In his latest column for FOXSports.com, MLB on FOX analyst Ken Rosenthal says that despite not having some of its biggest stars playing in the event, the United States might still be good enough to win the World Baseball Classic: “If the United States has a weak link, it probably is the starting rotation, but left-hander Gio Gonzalez’s five scoreless innings against Puerto Rico perhaps changes that perspective as well. Gonzalez and R.A. Dickey – the third-and first-place finishers for the National League Cy Young Award last season – are lined up to pitch the semifinal and final in San Francisco, if the US qualifies.”
For more from Rosenthal on the WBC, click here: http://on-msn.com/WIhqTm
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE DOUBLEHEADER THIS SUNDAY – FOX Soccer and FOX Soccer Plus are home to the Barclays Premier League this weekend as top-four clubs Chelsea and Tottenham look to grab three points from their matches, with only two points separating both teams. The action begins live on FOX Soccer Plus with Tottenham vs. Fulham on Sunday, March 17 (10:53 AM ET)
followed by kick-off on FOX Soccer as Chelsea takes on West Ham at 11:30 AM ET. Fulham travels to White Hart Lane to face third-place Tottenham after the Spurs’ 12-game unbeaten streak was snapped last week against Liverpool. With a quick turnaround following midweek Europa League action, Tottenham manager Andres Villas-Boas’ is counting on in-form duo Gareth Bale and Aaron Lennon to provide the magic. In the second match of the doubleheader on FOX Soccer, West Ham heads to Stamford Bridge as it pushes for a position in the top half of the table. Rafa Benitez’s fourth-place Chelsea side, also playing in European competition, is coming off a thrilling 2-2 FA Cup draw at Old Trafford against Manchester United last weekend. The Hammers caused a 3-1 upset against the Blues when the two squads met back in December at Upton Park and hope to be the first team to do the double over Chelsea this season, despite only picking up 11 points out of 14 matches on the road.
UFC TONIGHT’S FLORIAN CAUTIONS CHAMP ST-PIERRE IN BOUT AGAINST DIAZ AT UFC 158 On Saturday, March 16, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) heads to the Bell Centre in Montreal for the world welterweight championship battle between current champ Georges St-Pierre (GSP) and challenger Nick Diaz. FUEL TV’s UFC TONIGHT analyst Kenny Florian cautions the champ to stick to his game plan against Diaz: “There are two ways you lose to a Diaz brother. If you’re not disciplined and if you try to brawl with them – that is, stand in front of them. If you do that, Diaz will destroy you, and Diaz is my favorite fighter, as far as excitement. However, St-Pierre has the perfect game to beat Diaz.” FUEL TV kicks off the weekend with the live UFC WEIGH-IN on Friday, March 15 (4:00 PM ET), with Jon Anik hosting, while UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz and UFC light heavyweight contender Chael Sonnen offer analysis. The live UFC PRELIMS on FX begin Saturday, March 16 (8:00 PM ET) with the UFC 158 POSTFIGHT SHOW on FUEL TV hosted by Anik, with Sonnen and Cruz offering analysis, and Ariel Helwani conducting fighter interviews from Montreal. For UFC 158 predictions by Sonnen and Florian, please check out: http://youtu.be/7_MMB93id6E
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