The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season marked the introduction of the sport's new seven-year, $7.7 billion media rights deal with not only existing partners Fox and NBC but also newcomers Amazon Prime Video and TNT Sports.
To make way for Prime and TNT to air five races each, both Fox's portion and NBC's portion of the broadcast schedule had to be cut down. NBC took a bigger loss than Fox, dropping six races to Fox's four, but it had also been responsible for more races under the previous 10-year agreement.
Fox had been responsible for the season's first 18 races (16 points races), while NBC had been responsible for the final 20. Fox dropped to 14 races (12 points races), and NBC also dropped down to 14.
The big loss from Fox's schedule was the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. That race was moved to Prime for the first time this year, and it kicked off Prime's first-ever five-race stint, which also included races at Nashville Superspeedway, Michigan International Speedway, Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, and Pocono Raceway.
Now TNT's portion of the schedule, which consists of the entirety of NASCAR's new in-season tournament, is underway following last Saturday night's race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and race two of five on TNT Sports this year is scheduled to take place on Sunday afternoon at the Chicago Street Course.
This race had been on NBC in each of its first two years on the calendar, and given the ratings and viewership it generated during those two years, it is a fairly significant loss for NBC.
NBC has also lost a crown jewel race in the Brickyard 400, as Indianapolis Motor Speedway is scheduled to wrap up the tournament on TNT Sports in a few weeks.
The two other races remaining on the tournament schedule are set to be contested at Sonoma Raceway and Dover Motor Speedway.
NBC loses Chicago race for 2025 and beyond
While the Grant Park 165 is by no means a "crown jewel" race like the Coca-Cola 600 or the Brickyard 400 are, it has proven to be a major viewership draw since its addition to the schedule in 2023, and many expect it to be the biggest draw during TNT's portion of the calendar.
TNT Sports' broadcast booth consists of the same trio that called the races on Amazon Prime Video: Adam Alexander as lead announcer, alongside color commentators Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Steve Letarte. The NBC booth is set to consist of Leigh Diffey, who replaced Rick Allen as lead announcer late last year, and color commentators Letarte and Jeff Burton.
Of note, Fox's races were still split up between Fox and Fox Sports 1, and NBC's races are still set to be split up between NBC and USA Network. In fact, a majority of Fox's races were shown on Fox Sports 1, nine to be exact, just like a majority of NBC's races are set to be shown live on USA Network. NBC itself is only set to show four races this year.
But of course, NBC is still slated to be responsible for plenty of big races from 2025 to 2031.
While NBC's portion of this year's schedule is set to kick off on Sunday, August 3 with the race at Iowa Speedway, that race, as well as the next two races at Watkins Glen International and Richmond Raceway, are actually set to be shown live on USA Network.
The first race of the year actually set to be shown live on NBC is the regular season finale at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, August 23.
USA Network is then set to be responsible for the first seven races of the four-round, 10-race playoffs, while NBC is set to take over for the final three races of the season at Talladega Superspeedway, Martinsville Speedway, and Phoenix Raceway.
Tune in to TNT Sports, not NBC, at 2:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, July 6 for the live broadcast of the Grant Park 165 from the Chicago Street Course. Hendrick Motorsports' Alex Bowman is the reigning race winner.