FOX SPORTS NOTES, QUOTES & ANECDOTES
FOX Sports Day-Night Doubleheader Features MLB Action and NASCAR Saturday
Braves/Nationals, Giants/Cubs, Rays/Red Sox at 12:30 PM ET
NASCAR Sprint Cup Action Gets Bigger in Texas at 7:00 PM ET
The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale Airs Saturday Night on FX; Weigh-In & Prelims on FUEL TV
UFC’s Road to the Octagon Previews Henderson vs. Melendez Sunday at 5:00 PM ET
Chelsea & Manchester City Battle Sunday on FOX Soccer
UFC’s Hendricks & NASCAR’s Harvick Size Each Other Up in Special Prerace Feature During Saturday’s Race at TMS
HARVICK & HENDRICKS GO TOE TO TOE IN SPECIAL PRERACE FEATURE SIZING UP UFC & NASCAR WORKOUT REGIMES – UFC top contender Johny Hendricks put NASCAR superstar Kevin Harvick through a rigorous MMA-style workout from his training facility today. The special session airs during FOX Sports’ prerace coverage Saturday, April 13 at 7:00 PM ET leading up to NASCAR Sprint Cup Racing from Texas. The two world class athletes show the similarities and differences between the regimes that keep them at the top of their respective sports. Harvick, an avid MMA fan, proved to be up to the task, getting first-hand instruction on proper footwork and striking style. “His conditioning and strength were impressive,” said Hendricks, who is coming off a decisive victory over Carlos Condit last month at UFC 158. Hendricks will attend the race this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway as an honorary member of Harvick’s crew.
MLB ON FOX SEASON ROLLS ON – Week 2 of the FOX SATURDAY BASEBALL GAME OF THE WEEK gets an earlier start time, 12:30 PM ET, Saturday, April 13, with live regional coverage of three major league matchups. NL East rivals meet as Justin Upton and the Braves travel to the nation’s capital to face Stephen Strasburg and the Nationals. In Chicago, the Cubs welcome Buster Posey and the Giants to Wrigley Field. Also, the Red Sox host the Rays in an AL East battle.
Coverage begins with the FOX SATURDAY BASEBALL PREGAME SHOW, a full 30-minute program originating live from MLB Network’s state-of-the-art Studio 3 in Secaucus, NJ. The show is hosted by longtime FOX Sports and MLB Network broadcaster Matt Vasgersian who is joined this week by analysts Harold Reynolds and Mitch Williams.
For instant updates during the week from the entire MLB on FOX crew, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/MLBONFOX, on Instagram at http://instagram.com/foxsports
GAME
Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals Justin Kutcher & Eric Karros
Nationals Park – Washington, D.C. Ken Rosenthal
MARKETS INCLUDE: Atlanta, Austin, Birmingham, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas, Dayton, Detroit, Greensboro, Greenville, Houston, Jacksonville, Knoxville, Memphis, Minneapolis, Nashville, New Orleans, Norfolk, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Richmond, San Antonio, Tulsa, Washington
Probable Pitchers: Tim Hudson, RHP (1-0, 3.27 ERA) vs. Stephen Strasburg, RHP (1-1, 4.38 ERA)
San Francisco Giants at Chicago Cubs* Thom Brennaman & Tim McCarver
Wrigley Field – Chicago, IL
MARKETS INCLUDE: Albuquerque, Chicago, Denver, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Louisville, Milwaukee, Phoenix, Portland, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, St. Louis
Probable Pitchers: Madison Bumgarner, LHP (2-0, 1.32 ERA) vs. Edwin Jackson, RHP (0-2, 5.73 ERA)
*On FOX Deportes
Tampa Bay Rays at Boston Red Sox Kenny Albert, Tom Verducci
Fenway Park – Boston, MA
MARKETS INCLUDE: Baltimore, Boston, Buffalo, Fort Myers, Hartford, Miami, New York, Orlando, Providence, Seattle, Tampa, West Palm Beach
Probable Pitchers: David Price, LHP (0-1, 8.18 ERA) vs. TBA
JOHNSON SEIZES CONTROL IN NASCAR – The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series take the primetime stage on Saturday, April 13 at 7:00 PM ET, with NASCAR Sprint Cup Racing From Texas. Jimmie Johnson comes off a big weekend last week at Martinsville; capturing the pole, the checkered flag and first place in the series standings. Johnson looks to pad his lead this week at Texas Motor Speedway.
Coverage begins with the FOX NASCAR 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 Hall of Fame pitcher and Texas Rangers CEO Nolan Ryan welcomes fans to the first primetime race of the season and the great state of Texas by voicing the open.
For instant updates during the week from the entire NASCAR on FOX crew, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/NASCARONFOX
ROSENTHAL CALLS HALLADAY’S STRUGGLES “PAINFUL” – In his latest column for FOXSports.com, MLB on FOX reporter Ken Rosenthal writes that he finds Phillies’ right-hander Roy Halladay’s struggles “painful” to watch. Rosenthal quotes a scout who says, “From a stuff standpoint, there’s nothing there,” and writes: “It’s painful to say that bout Halladay, painful to write, painful to think about. No one who cares about the game wants to see a pitcher as accomplished as Halladay struggle the way he has in the first two starts, the way he did last season.”
CRUZ PREDICTS FABER AND TATE VICTORIES AT THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER 17 FINALE – FUEL TV televises three shows around this weekend’s THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER 17 FINALE: FABER VS. JORGENSEN, and UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz joins the announcing team as an analyst. He predicts that bantamweight superstar Urijah Faber will prevail over longtime 135-pound contender Scott Jorgensen in the headlining bout: “Jorgensen creates a lot of problems in durability and with his wrestling ability that will make Faber think. But Faber’s explosiveness, speed and technique are going to win the fight.” In addition, Cruz predicts Miesha Tate will take out Cat Zingano in the second-ever UFC women’s fight: “I have to go with Tate. She’s got the cleaner technique on the grappling end.”
FUEL TV kicks off coverage of THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER 17 FINALE with the live WEIGH-IN Show on Friday, April 12 (6:00 PM ET), hosted by Karyn Bryant, with Cruz and UFC middleweight Michael Bisping adding analysis. FUEL TV televises THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER FINALE PRELIMS live on Saturday, April 13 (7:00 PM ET) with host Jay Glazer and analysts Cruz and Bisping. The main card is telecast live on FX (9:00 PM ET), with Kenny Florian and Jon Anik calling the fights. Coverage wraps later that night with the live POSTFIGHT SHOW (12:00 AM ET), with Glazer, Cruz and Bisping breaking down all the fights and highlights.
FOX PREMIERES UFC’S ROAD TO THE OCTAGON SUNDAY NIGHT – FOX Sports gets ready for next weekend’s FOX UFC SATURDAY with UFC’S ROAD TO THE OCTAGON on Sunday, April 14 (5:00 PM ET). UFC’S ROAD TO THE OCTAGON is a one-hour special that goes behind the scenes and inside the lives and training camps of UFC fighters as they prepare for their upcoming bouts. FOX UFC SATURDAY returns on Saturday, April 20 (8:00 PM ET), with a quadruple-header of top fights, highlighted by UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson defending his title against top contender Gilbert Melendez. Also on the card are heavyweights Frank Mir vs. Daniel Cormier, lightweights Nate Diaz vs. Josh Thomson and welterweights Jordan Mein vs. Matt Brown.
PAGES’ THREE UNIQUE TRICKS SET HIM ABOVE THE REST AT RED BULL X-FIGHTERS – The exciting freestyle motocross tour RED BULL X-FIGHTERS heads to Dubai for the second stop of the year, and FUEL TV televises the finals live on Friday, April 12 (1:00 PM ET). Frenchman Tom Pages looks to win his second straight event, says FUEL TV host Andy Bell: “Pages has three tricks that he’s doing in his runs that no one else is, and he’ll be hard to beat because of that. But if Dany Torres, Levi Sherwod or Josh Sheehan can bring one of these tricks, maybe they can pull the upset.”
CHELSEA AND MANCHESTER CITY BATTLE THIS SUNDAY ON FOX SOCCER – The FA Cup returns this weekend to FOX Soccer with a high-profile semifinal matchup between Chelsea and Manchester City, live Sunday, April 14 (11:00 AM ET). This clash at Wembley Stadium features reigning FA Cup champions, the Blues, against reigning Barclays Premier League champions. With the Barclays Premier League title all but handed to Manchester United, both teams are eager for silverware and will be treating the final four meeting as if it’s the championship game. Manchester City has not conceded any goals in the cup competition thus far, and star striker Sergio Aguero looks to take advantage of tired legs as Chelsea will be going into the game following a midweek UEFA Europa League quarterfinal second-leg against Rubin Kazan (live Thursday, April 11 at 11:50 AM ETon FOX Soccer). Rafael Benitez’s side will rely on its experience to move one step closer to the trophy, with four FA Cup titles in the last six seasons.
Recent Comments