NBC to Cut Full-Screen Ads During Green Flag at Daytona, Atlanta and Talladega Cup Races
Have you ever watched a NASCAR Cup Series race and thought to yourself, "Man, this is entirely too many commercials." Well, you're not alone. It's one of the biggest critiques of the television coverage of America's fastest sport. On Wednesday morning, NBC Sports announced that they'll take steps in three upcoming races to make things better for the viewer.
Beginning with this weekend's Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway and continuing in the upcoming events at Atlanta Motor Speedway (September 8) and Talladega Superspeedway (October 6), NBC Sports broadcasts will go "NASCAR Nonstop" during all of the green flag portions of the events. This means there will be no full-screen commercials during green flag action at three of the most exciting races remaining on the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series schedule.
The decision was made to better the experience for NASCAR fans.
“We always strive to deliver the best broadcast for the NASCAR viewers at home,” said Jeff Behnke, NBC Sports’ vice president of motorsports production. “NBC Sports’ ‘NASCAR Nonstop’ gives the fans what they want for these pivotal races at Daytona, Atlanta and Talladega – live coverage of every green flag lap of superspeedway racing.”
As part of NASCAR Nonstop, the green flag action at Daytona, Atlanta, and Talladega will still have split-screen advertisements, but at no point will fans not have access to a portion of the screen showing what is happening at the three race tracks under green flag conditions.
Daytona, and Talladega are superspeedway tracks, and Atlanta following a 2022 reconfiguration is a mini-superspeedway track. At these three tracks, drivers cannot pull away from the pack, and the drivers rely on drafting their way from the front to the back of the field. The action is close, and nail-biting because essentially every driver in the field has a chance to win the race. However, around every corner is the possibility of a slight mistake, which will trigger a massive crash involving multiple cars due to the tight packs.
The Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway is set for Saturday, August 24, with television coverage beginning on NBC with Countdown to Green at 7:00 PM ET.
Toby Christie is the Editor-in-Chief of Racing America. He has 15 years of experience as a motorsports journalist and has been with Racing America since 2023.