DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Race fans won’t miss a minute of the action when SPEED, SPEED.com and the Motor Racing Network combine to provide 25 hours of flag-to-flag coverage of the 51st Rolex 24 At Daytona, kicking off the networks’ coverage of the complete 12-race 2013 GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series season.
There will be a new but familiar face anchoring SPEED’s 2013 coverage, with Formula One broadcast veteran Bob Varsha set to join Brian Till for play-by-play. Eli Gold and Preston Root will return to the booth to lead the Motor Racing Network’s radio broadcast of the Rolex 24.
SPEED’s Rolex 24 coverage begins at 3 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 26, with a 30-minute pre-race show preceding the 3:30 p.m. waving of the green flag. Analysts Calvin Fish, Dorsey Schroeder, Tommy Kendall and Justin Bell will join Varsha and Till in the booth, with Chris Neville, Jamie Howe, Matt Yocum and Andrew Marriott reporting from pit road.
When SPEED signs off on its opening day coverage at 11 p.m., SPEED.com will stream feeds throughout the night, including a rooftop camera, in-car cameras and radio calls by the Motor Racing Network.
SPEED returns at 9 a.m. on Sunday, with coverage including a 30-minute post-race show following the checkered flag at 3:30 p.m.
Producing SPEED’s coverage of the iconic endurance race for the 12th time will be Greg Oldham, who returns to Daytona for the 25th time since 1986.
SPEED will also air a preview program presented by Continental Tire at 9 p.m. ET on Sunday, Jan. 20.
Daytona coverage also includes the Ferrari Challenge, which airs 3-4 p.m. ET on Saturday, Feb. 2 followed by the GRAND-AM 200 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race from 4-6 p.m. ET.
Continuing through the season, SPEED will broadcast all 12 Rolex Series races, including coverage of the remaining events in the North American Endurance Championship presented by VISITFLORIDA.com – the June 30 Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen from Watkins Glen, N.Y., and the July 26 Brickyard Grand Prix from Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Motor Racing Network will dedicate 25 hours of coverage to the Rolex 24 At Daytona to help launch its 44th year on the airwaves. Six hours of coverage will air on MRN’s network of affiliate stations, starting at 3 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 26, and concluding with the closing laps and post-race coverage from 1-4 p.m. on Jan. 27. All 25 hours will be streamed live at www.grand-am.com and www.MotorRacingNetwork.com.
2013 marks the fourth straight year in which the Motor Racing Network will broadcast the entire GRAND-AM Rolex Series schedule. The Rolex 24 is the first of 82 race broadcasts on MRN’s 2013 schedule, originating from 32 different venues including Daytona International Speedway.
2013 GRAND-AM Rolex Series SPEED Schedule
Race Date Venue Air Time (ET)
Jan. 26 Daytona International Speedway 3 p.m.
Jan. 27 Daytona International Speedway 9 a.m.
March 2 Circuit of The Americas 5:30 p.m.
April 6 Barber Motorsports Park April 7, 5:30 p.m.
April 20 Road Atlanta 4:30 p.m.
June 1 Detroit Belle Isle 5 p.m.
June 15 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 4:30 p.m.
June 30 Watkins Glen International 11 a.m.
July 26 Indianapolis Motor Speedway 7 p.m.
Aug. 10 Road America 5 p.m.
Aug. 17 Kansas Speedway 8 p.m.
Sept. 8 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca 4:30 p.m.
Sept. 28 Lime Rock Park TBA
Photo: Grand-Am Road Racing
