Showtime to Premiere “Inside NASCAR” in 2010

This just in, Showtime continues its foray into increased sports programming with a new highlights show to premiere right after the season finale of “Inside the NFL”. It’ll be called “Inside NASCAR” and will last the entire Sprint Cup season. No hosts have been announced as of yet, but this gives NASCAR another outlet to show its highlights.

SHOWTIME SPORTS® LAUNCHES “INSIDE NASCAR”

Premium Network Teams With NASCAR Media Group

To Produce Weekly, 38-Episode Series;

Premieres Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2010

At 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME®

NEW YORK (December 8, 2009)—SHOWTIME Sports has signed a multi-year deal with NASCAR, America’s No. 1 spectator sport, to produce and televise premium television’s first weekly highlights and analysis show dedicated to auto racing. “Inside NASCAR” will premiere on Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2010 (10 p.m. ET/PT) on SHOWTIME® immediately following the season finale of Inside The NFL, and will consist of 38 one-hour episodes corresponding with NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ 38-week season.

Produced in conjunction with the Emmy® Award winning NASCAR Media Group, Inside NASCAR will be taped at the new, state-of-the-art production facility at NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C. The host and analysts for Inside NASCAR are to be announced in the coming weeks.

“NASCAR is one of the most powerful sports brands in the country,” said Ken Hershman, Senior Vice President and General Manager, SHOWTIME Sports, “and we are proud to team up with them on this compelling new series.”

Inside NASCAR will feature narrated highlights and in-depth analysis from each week’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, exclusive audio and video of never-before-seen aspects of race week and in-depth feature stories plus forecasts on upcoming races and opinions on America’s No. 1 form of motor sports.

Inside NASCAR is a natural extension of regularly scheduled SHOWTIME Sports programming, which includes the Emmy® Award winning Inside The NFL, live boxing and mixed martial arts events, and the critically acclaimed, behind-the-scenes documentary series Fight Camp 360°: Inside The Super Six World Boxing Classic, among other titles.

“Given the level of access to drivers, tracks and teams afforded by NASCAR, we can offer something truly unique to both hard core and casual race fans,” said Hershman. “We’ll take viewers into new areas of the sport, into the hearts and minds of the world class drivers and teams, and give them inside access to stock car racing and NASCAR like never before.”

“SHOWTIME really understands these back stage, inside access shows,” said Jay Abraham, Chief Operation Officer, NASCAR Media Gr
oup. “Inside NASCAR will provide unique insights and sharp commentary appealing to all NASCAR fans. Partnering with a brand such as SHOWTIME for a high-end weekly NASCAR magazine news show in primetime is big news for our fans going into a brand new season.”

So with this along with HBO’s 24/7 series on Jimmie Johnson’s preparation for Daytona, NASCAR will have some increased exposure in 2010.