NASCAR is set to strike a new media rights deal next season that will see one of racing's greats join its new television team.
Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. will join Amazon Prime Video and TNT Sports as a commentator for both networks when NASCAR's new television deal begins in 2025. The two-time Daytona 500 winner has been an analyst for NBC's NASCAR coverage since 2018. However, his contract with the network was scheduled to expire by the end of 2024.
TNT Sports will broadcast NASCAR races for the first time since 2014, and Earnhardt Jr. will serve as an on-air commentator for NASCAR Cup Series races. He will also be contributing to his series of Bleacher Report content, “Special Guests in the Passenger Seats'' while driving each of his five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series trucks on TNT. We will interview him and document his thrilling NASCAR experience.
“This is an exciting time to welcome TNT Sports back to NASCAR,” Earnhardt Jr. said in a statement. “I remember watching the races on TNT back in the day, and I really miss them coming back to the sport and being part of the team.”
Next year, Amazon Prime Video will join the NASCAR world, giving the streaming service another big name in live sports coverage. When Amazon began streaming the NFL's “Thursday Night Football,” it brought in prominent announcers Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit to call games. At Amazon, Earnhardt Jr. will be the race broadcaster, with other roles yet to be announced.
“I'm honored to be a part of Prime Video's entry into NASCAR,” Earnhardt Jr. said in a statement. “Having the opportunity to offer our NASCAR fan base a new way to watch this sport is an exciting opportunity. We are excited to see the innovations Prime Video will bring to our sport and our fans. is exciting.”
NASCAR's new media rights deal runs from 2025 to 2031 and includes NBC and Fox Sports in addition to TNT Sports and Amazon. NBC and Fox Sports will each host 14 NASCAR Cup Series races, while TNT Sports and Amazon will split the 10 midseason races. Amazon also won the rights to broadcast this year's practice rounds and qualifying events, and TNT Sports will broadcast the season's final practice rounds and qualifying rounds on Max and truTV.
