ARCA signs new TV deal with Fox Sports for three years
By Alex Herbst
The ARCA Racing Series will continue their relationship with Fox Sports for at least three more seasons, with races to be shown again on FS1 and FS2.
Racing has been a key pillar of how Fox Sports has built their cable network sports startups FS1 and FS2. NASCAR, NHRA, IMSA, and the ARCA Racing Series have been a big part of continuing to build their viewership, and that will continue for years to come. The ARCA Racing Series and Fox Sports have signed a three-year extension for races to be shown on FS1 and FS2.
Fox Sports will continue to carry eight races from ARCA through the 2020 season, down from ten races under the previous contract. Their coverage annually will once again begin with the season opener at Daytona International Speedway, with the remaining seven races to be determined. It is expected that most races shown on FS1 and FS2 will be in conjunction with their coverage of NASCAR races, where ARCA will often run as a support series.
Fox Sports executive director of acquisitions and league operations Josh Oakley had this to say about the new contract with the ARCA Racing Series:
"With more than two decades of working together under our belts, it’s great to be able to secure another multi-year deal with the team at ARCA. We look forward to getting the new deal started as part of FOX Sports’ comprehensive coverage of Daytona Speedweeks in February."
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ARCA President Ron Drager is also excited about the new contract:
"ARCA has a well-established history of investing in long-term relationships, and that certainly holds true in the case of our television network partnership. The FOX Sports agreement is a cornerstone of our overall broadcast strategy, as it has been for more than 20 years. This is a major, mutual commitment between FOX and ARCA to showcase our product to millions of viewers annually in the highest quality live television production format. Our viewers, sponsors, race teams and tracks directly benefit, and it further stabilizes the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards platform for the near term future."
It is surprising to see that Fox Sports has actually decreased their commitment to the ARCA Racing Series with their new contract. While there may be fewer races in recent years that are run in conjunction with NASCAR, there is plenty of resources available at Fox Sports for them to cover all the races. It would also provide more content for FS2, which has very limited live sports coverage and therefore is available in fewer television homes. Also, it is unclear what the status is of ARCA’s contract with MAVTV, which reportedly signed a multi-year deal to cover the remaining races.
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Be sure to tune in for the ARCA Racing Series season opener from Daytona International Speedway on February 10th with the Lucas Oil 200 Driven by General Tire. Race coverage begins at 4:30 pm eastern live on FS1.