“THE SWEETEST KISS IN MOTORSPORTS” – NBCSN PRESENTS NASCAR SPRINT CUP RACING FROM THE BRICKYARD SUNDAY AT 2:30 P.M. ET

Jeff Gordon Comes Out of Retirement to Drive the No. 88 This Weekend

Tony Stewart Looks to Continue Solid Streak As He Returns to Hometown Track

Sprint Cup Race from New Hampshire Marks NBCSN’s Best Network Delivery Since November

Danica Patrick Stars in this Week’s “Phone A Fan” Social Web Video

Chase Elliott and Rico Abreu Join Nate Ryan on NASCAR on NBC Podcast

STAMFORD, Conn. – July 20, 2016 – NBC Sports Group rolls into its fourth weekend of 2016 NASCAR racing coverage with 19 hours of trackside action from Indianapolis Motor Speedway. NBCSN’s race coverage from Indianapolis kicks off Saturday with XFINITY Series racing at 3 p.m. ET, followed by Sprint Cup racing Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET.

Highlighting a news-filled week in motorsports, it was officially announced earlier today that Jeff Gordon will come out of retirement to drive the No. 88 this weekend in place of Dale Earnhardt Jr., who is suffering from concussion-like symptoms. NBCSN surrounds Gordon’s return to the speedway where he has kissed the bricks before as a five-time winner. Tony Stewart also returns home this weekend amid a solid final Sprint Cup season. After his second place finish last weekend in New Hampshire and his win in Sonoma earlier this season, “Smoke” heads to Indianapolis Motor Speedway with the confidence of a potential 2016 Chase Champion.

NBC Sports Group provides complete on-air, online and social media coverage all weekend of both Gordon and Stewart’s hometown return via NBCSports.com’s NASCAR All Access page.

Sprint Cup Race from New Hampshire Marks NBCSN’s Best Network Delivery Since November

The Sprint Cup race from New Hampshire drew 3.3 million average viewers, the best NBCSN network delivery since the Nov. 1, 2015 Sprint Cup race from Martinsville. Viewership peaked between 4:30-4:43 p.m. ET with 4.3 million viewers and a 2.71 HH rating. The race also grew +3% among average viewers, compared to last weekend’s Sprint Cup race from Kentucky (3.2 million). The race helped drive NBCSN to the No. 1 network on cable among average viewers Sunday afternoon (1:45-4:45 p.m. ET). Live streaming of the NASCAR Sprint Cup race via NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app generated 2.8 million live minutes, up +42% vs. the same event in 2015.

NBCSN PRESENTS SPRINT CUP SERIES COVERAGE FROM INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY

NBCSN begins its full day of trackside Sprint Cup coverage from Indianapolis Friday with Sprint Cup practice at 1:30 p.m. ET and Sprint Cup final practice at 4 p.m. ET. An on-site edition of NASCAR America wraps up the evening at 5:30 p.m. ET from the pagoda of Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Saturday’s coverage begins with a special 30-minute edition of NASCAR America Saturday at 1 p.m. ET followed by Sprint Cup qualifying at 1:30 p.m. ET. Sunday’s race day coverage begins at 2 p.m. ET on NBCSN with NASCAR America Sunday live from the pit road. Coverage rolls into Countdown to Green at 2:30 p.m. ET, with race coverage officially starting at 3 p.m. ET. On-site coverage wraps up with the Sprint Cup Series post-race show at 6 p.m. ET. NASCAR Victory Lap closes out the weekend at 7 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, Kelli Stavast and Dave Burns report from pit road. Features reporter Rutledge Wood again brings viewers closer to the sights and sounds of the racing capital of the world.

NBCSN PRESENTS XFINITY SERIES RACING FROM INDIANA

XFINITY coverage from Indiana begins Friday with practice at noon ET, followed by final practice at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Race day coverage begins Saturday with qualifying at 11:40 a.m. ET followed by Countdown to Green at 3 p.m. ET. Race coverage begins at 3:30 p.m. ET, and a 30-minute on-site post-race show wraps up the night at 6 p.m. ET. NBCSN reporter Alex Hayden joins on-site coverage, contributing to Friday and Saturday’s XFINITY practice and qualifying.

DANICA PATRICK STARS IN THIS WEEK’S “PHONE A FAN” SOCIAL WEB VIDEO

Danica Patrick stars in this week’s new NASCAR on NBC “Phone a Fan” web video, where unsuspecting fans receive calls from their favorite NASCAR drivers. In the video released today on the NASCAR on NBC Facebook page and twitter accounts, Patrick catches numerous racing fans by surprise and even finds a fan who proclaims his love for her while his wife is conveniently out running errands. Check out the full video here.

Chase Elliott and Rico Abreu join Nate Ryan on a NASCAR on NBC podcast doubleheader this week. In a special episode released yesterday, the Hendrick Motorsports rookie discusses his love of flying since earning his pilot’s license last year and his amusing refusal to kiss the bricks after his father’s 2002 Brickyard 400 victory. In today’s podcast, Abreau describes his rookie season in the Camping World Truck Series and how simulator practices have improved his confidence. Available on NASCAR Talk, iTunes, AudioBoom, Google Play, Spotify, Stitcher and podcasting apps, the NASCAR on NBC podcast discusses the latest NASCAR news each week with the major players in the sport.

UPCOMING NASCAR PROGRAMMING

*taped

All of NBC Sports Group’s NASCAR coverage is available to stream on NBCSports.com and via the NBC Sports app. The NBC Sports app is powered by Playmaker Media, and is available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire.

NASCARTalk on NBCSports.com brings racing fans up-to-the-minute news, video and information on NASCAR drivers, teams and industry news. For all the latest NASCAR content socially, fans can follow @NASCARonNBC and @NASCARTalkNBC on twitter and like the NASCAR on NBC Facebook page.

For more information about NBC Sports Group shows and properties, including press releases, photos, talent and executive bios and headshots, please visit NBCSportsGroupPressBox.com.

— NBC SPORTS GROUP —