NASCAR on NBC podcast

Through the eyes of its founder and several prominent drivers, how a computer programming class project mushroomed into one of the must influential media outlets in NASCAR and the most heavily trafficked clearinghouse for racing information on the Internet. Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

The driver whose roller-coaster ride has captivated NASCAR over the past year on what the mood was like at the Niece Motorsports shop after the Iowa disqualification (2:30); why a $50,000 loss led to a lot of “very bone-jarring words” (4:30); the case for the punishment exceeding the crime (6:00); a plea for NASCAR to “quit listening to everybody” (7:30); trying to encapsulate the “stranger than fiction” nature of the past year for Ross Chastain (9:30); on whether he leans on his experience in overcoming challenges (11:45); the praise from veteran Cup drivers for a driver who hasn’t always made friends on the track (13:45); why it stung even more that he lost the Iowa win to Brett Moffitt, who has a budding rivalry with Chastain (15:30); the decision to switch to running full time in the truck series and Niece’s emergence as championship contender (18:00); what team owner Al Niece is like (20:30); how his Cup (Premium Motorsports) and Xfinity (Kaulig and JD Motorsports) were impacted by his commitment to Niece (23:00); “there was a while there where every race team I drove for was mad at me” (24:30): how the logistics work of racing in so many series (sometimes in separate states on consecutive days) (26:30); the saving grace of charter flights (29:00); the advantages to racing as much as possible (30:30); how often he retreats to the solace of his family’s watermelon farm (32:30); the support of the watermelon industry in Chastain’s career (34:30); “I am falling behind in a lot of aspects of people my age who go into the industry” (36:00); a funny story about Elliott Sadler and getting his first victory (37:30); where Chastain feels like his career stands six months after the stunning loss of his Xfinity ride at Ganassi (38:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

The NASCAR Hall of Famer and Fox Sports analyst reflects on what he has seen change the most in NASCAR over the past 19 seasons as a broadcaster (2:30); whether he thought NASCAR’s popularity ever would wane from its high-water mark and the reasons why he believes some longtime fans “felt abandoned” (5:00); the encouraging signs he sees for attracting the next generation of fans (6:45); on the impact of the playoffs and stage racing (9:00); what he has seen change in how races are broadcast over the past two decades (12:15); how DW believes NASCAR might be overexposed … but by necessity (14:00); why the term “industry” drives him crazy, along with the many “councils” in NASCAR (15:30); DW’s best and most memorable races to broadcast (16:30); answering his critics who say he is disconnected from the garage and its major players (19:00); on how he relates to the new wave of youthful drivers and what remains constant about driver attitudes (21:30); “I was the best driver I could possibly be, but I was a damn crew member. I had to work on the car.” (23:45); how his relationship with NASCAR brass has changed as he’s “mellowed” (25:15); Mike Helton’s respect and thinking about the bigger picture (27:30); what blowback was like from the drivers and teams who disagreed with his on-air analysis (29:15); a regret he has about a recent description of Jimmie Johnson (30:15); his response to those who say Fox has too much fun (31:30); whether he knows who might replace him at Fox and why he thinks a two-man booth might make sense (32:30); becoming good buddies with boothmate Jeff Gordon (33:30); the active drivers who might make good broadcasters (34:30); his relatively perfect attendance record in TV and why the job is much harder than it seems (35:30); the legacy of fan education and relativity that he wanted to leave in NASCAR TV and his defense of “Boogity Boogity Boogity” as an appealing concept (37:00); why it’s harder to retire from broadcasting than driving … and why he might not be at the racetrack nearly as much in the future (39:45). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

Chris Nicholson is a NASCAR fan and long-haul truck driver who combined his passion and profession this year in taking a new job within racing. From piloting 18-wheelers down the concrete banking of Bristol and Dover to turning laps in Air Titans, here are a few of his stories from the road and how he has rekindled his racing passion. Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

The multifaceted NASCAR on NBC analyst/pit reporter and part-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver on how his 2019 season has unfolded with Gaunt Brothers Racing and what’s ahead (1:30); on his impressive performance in the Coca-Cola 300 and beating $100 million in competition (3:30); on the plight of the underfunded and the small team that is hailed for having a sound business model (6:00); how a small team exploits the inefficiencies of competing in NASCAR’s premier series (7:30); “racing is probably one of the only professional sports in the world where the athlete actively has to think about the business model” (9:30); the multilayered decision-making of being behind the wheel with a lesser budget (11:00); and a potential parallel to the PGA (12:00); the areas where the competition gap is permanent in racing (13:45); Parker makes the case again for banning wind tunnels (16:00); how he went from possibly closing the chapter on his Cup career to racing the Daytona 500 virtually overnight (18:30); the Talladega win that turned more heads than Parker realized (20:30); “I’m not a sad story, I’m a success story” (22:30); thoughts on whether younger drivers have a mindset advantage on veterans with the 2019 rules overhaul (24:30); an interesting theory of setup optimization (27:15); a segue into V8 Supercars and “The Enforcer and The Dude” (29:30); and then Black Noon and the Indianapolis 500 (31:15); the hybrid discussion in NASCAR (33:30); a cautionary tale of electrical applications in Formula 1 (35:15); Parker’s radical idea for promoting efficiency with the internal combustion engine (36:15); his take on Formula E (38:15); how Parker’s first season as an eNASCAR iRacing owner has gone (40:00); why digital racing is the most egalitarian racing series in the world (41:15); turning a fellow NASCAR on NBC analyst into an eSports believer (44:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

The IndyCar driver on how Rahal Letterman Lanigan celebrated the start of a successful season (1:00); how Rahal’s luck has been tough so far this season (2:00); on David Letterman being at teammate Takuma Sato’s victory and how Rahal played a role in perhaps getting him there (3:00); a week of handling many family requests for a “home” weekend in Southern California (5:00); on how he is spending time with his wife, Courtney, as she takes a hiatus form racing, including killing some monster snakes (7:00); why having her at the track more often is a huge stress reliever (8:45); her work on their foundation (10:00); what it’s like having a street course that’s an event bringing in large crowds (11:00); “this is us, not just NASCAR, but oval racing needs to re-energize itself”(13:00); the idea of IndyCar and NASCAR working together more closely (14:30); what about a Long Beach doubleheader? (16:30); why IndyCar never has been more competitive than now (18:15); on whether he was wistful of losing his record to Colton Herta as the youngest winner (19:45) Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

The IndyCar veteran and 11-time starter in the Indianapolis 500 reflecting on his career (1:30); another way to look at Servia’s struggles with keeping a full-time ride and sponsor in recent seasons (3:30); the record that he holds in IndyCar for number of teams (5:00); did you know cats in Spain actually have fewer lives? (6:00); some similarities between racing and the movie industry (7:00); how it feels for Servia to jump into the IndyCar Series once annually (9:00); the very cool Salvador Dali connection to the Spaniard’s career and helmet (10:00); trying to encapsulate all the changes Servia has seen through two decades of Champ Car, the Indy Racing League and IndyCar (14:00); thoughts on why the IndyCar business model seems to work (16:30); and the evolution of sponsorship and how companies used it in racing (17:30); what Jay Frye and Mark Miles bring to IndyCar leadership (19:00); and how they might differ from previous regimes (22:00); a view on managing international series expansion (23:30); how one first-year team underscores the competitiveness of IndyCar (25:30); Servia’s engineering background (27:30); the erudite reason that Servia loves racing (28:45); some insight into being a pace car driver and his thoughts on the infamous crash last year at Detroit (30:00); Servia’s burning desire to win the Indy 500 and what he’s learned to love about it beyond the driving (31:00); how much longer he might race the Brickyard (34:30). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

The NASCAR on NBC Podcast travels to FedEx's home base in Memphis, Tenn., with driver Denny Hamlin to learn about what makes this long-running driver-sponsor relationship work, starting with a tour of FedEx's largest hub (3:00); the No. 11 pilot meeting one of the FedEx pilots (4:00); Hamlin meets with employees for a Q&A (5:30); he explains the choice that won him the 2019 Daytona 500 (6:30); what Hamlin wants his legacy to be (7:30); why he chose racing and what keeps him going (8:00); meeting some of the FedEx employees who support the No. 11 (10:00); why the sponsorship works financially and emotionally for Fed Ex (11:15); how the company generates a billion impressions through NASCAR annually (12:30); whether FedEx is concerned when other sponsors leave NASCAR (13:30); recalling Hamlin’s first big splash with FedEx (14:30); when Hamlin first got inklings that he might drive the car in 2005 (16:15); the amusing way that Hamlin found out he’d be in the No. 11 car for the first time (18:00); how it felt to represent a major sponsor for the first time (20:00); Hamlin’s role as FedEx’s No. 1 spokesman in sports (22:00); the importance of branding for FedEx and how it still catches Hamlin off guard (24:00); Hamlin’s hopes for staying with FedEx in the future (25:30). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

The NASCAR and IndyCar team owner on a famous scooter ride at Long Beach with Roger Penske and his longtime rivalry with the fellow auto racing titan (1:15), Ganassi’s approach to Twitter and his reasons for promoting American skier Mikaela Shiffrin (4:30); his longtime love of newspapers and journalism and how it was sparked (6:30); the Chip Ganassi method for reading a newspaper and why he believes words are powerful and should be chosen carefully (8:30); reflecting on three decades of success for his team (11:30); on whether the golden age of IndyCar is returning (13:30); the pride in his Pittsburgh roots (15:30); assessing his NASCAR team’s fortunes in 2019 with the addition of Kurt Busch and his impact on teammate Kyle Larson (18:00); assessing his IndyCar team this season (21:00); on the team’s knack for scouting young talent (22:00); the legacy of Scott Dixon as an IndyCar great (24:00); some memories of Alex Zanardi and seeing him again this year at the Rolex 24 (25:30); on the hopes of having NASCAR and IndyCar work more closely together (27:00); the increased interest of manufacturers in auto racing as the bloom fades from autonomous cars (28:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

On the eve of his annual charity ride, the NASCAR on NBC analyst discusses how his dry run went for the longest route in the ride's history (1:30); why you can’t just Google a map for the ride (2:30); why this year's ride feels a lot like the first year (5:00); reflecting on last year’s scenic route through the Northeast (6:00); the necessity for more highways and fewer two-lane roads (8:00); what became of Kyle’s Fairbanks, Alaska, idea (10:00); how his young son, Overton, experienced cross-country travel (11:00); some fun stops on the 2019 ride, including Glenwood Springs, Colorado (13:00); and Kyle’s favorite: Childress, Texas (15:30); the amazing level of hospitality for the riders (17:00); when the ride leaves KP behind and when it brings out the schoolkids (19:30); funny stories from when the ride hasn’t been on schedule (22:00); the logistics for Kyle’s wife, Morgan, of organizing the ride and everything it entails (23:00); this year’s celebrity rider lineup (26:15); the legacy of raising $16 million with some corporate help (28:30); being sentimental about the milestone and remembering those who are gone (29:30); how long Kyle plans to ride (31:30); On the Coffee with Kyle series (33:00); why Kyle thinks it’s important to document NASCAR history (35:00); NASCAR America’s new MotorMouths show (38:00); the 2019 season and shift in thinking about 1.5-mile tracks (40:30); the state of Kyle Petty’s music career (43:00) Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.