NASCAR on television in the 1980s explained

See main article: NASCAR on television and radio. Before the existence of ESPN,^[1] live coverage of NASCAR Winston Cup races on television was limited. CBS^[2] covered the Daytona 500, the June race at Michigan and the July race at Talladega. ABC^[3] usually did the Atlanta race in the spring.

List of races televised

1980

Date	Event	Network	Lap-by-lap	Color commentator(s)	Reporters
2/10	Busch Clash (Daytona)		Ken Squier	David Hobbs	Ned Jarrett Brock Yates
2/14	Twin 125's	CBS	Ken Squier		Ned Jarrett Brock Yates
2/17		CBS[4] [5]	Ken Squier	David Hobbs	Ned Jarrett Brock Yates
3/16	Atlanta 500	ABC	Al Michaels[6]	Jackie Stewart	Chris Economaki
5/25	World 600 (Charlotte)		Ken Squier	David Hobbs	Ned Jarrett Brock Yates
7/4	Firecracker 400 (Daytona)	ABC[7]	Jim McKay	Sam Posey	Chris Economaki
7/27	Coca-Cola 500 (Pocono)	ABC[8]	Chris Economaki	Jackie Stewart
8/3		CBS[9]	Ken Squier	David Hobbs	Ned Jarrett Brock Yates
9/1	Southern 500 (Darlington)	ABC[10]	Jim Lampley	Sam Posey	Chris Economaki
10/5	National 500 (Charlotte)	NBC[11]	Paul Page	Gary Gerould
11/15	Los Angeles Times 500 (Ontario)	CBS	Ken Squier	David Hobbs	Ned Jarrett Brock Yates

• The Los Angeles Times 500 was switched from Sunday to Saturday to accommodate live CBS Sports coverage.
• On May 29, 1980, CBS paid a fee of roughly US$50,000 or $100,000 to Charlotte Motor Speedway to broadcast the World 600 NASCAR stock car race. Benny Parsons edged out Darrell Waltrip to win a grand prize of $44,850 in a race that was watched by perhaps 3.7 million viewers on the network.^[12]
• Prior to the original 1999 contract between NASCAR and NBC, the network aired races such as the National 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway from 1979 to 1981, the 1981 Mountain Dew 500 at Pocono International Raceway, the Winston 500 at Alabama International Motor Speedway from 1983 to 1985, and the Miami 300 and Pennzoil 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in both 1999 and 2000.

1981

• ESPN broadcast its first race in 1981, from North Carolina Motor Speedway^[26] (its first live race was later in the year at Atlanta International Raceway), and TNN followed in 1991. All Cup races were nationally televised by 1985; networks struck individual deals with track owners, and multiple channels carried racing action. Many races were shown taped and edited on Wide World of Sports and syndication services like Mizlou and SETN, but almost all races were live by 1989.

1982

• From 1982 to 1984, USA Network broadcast the UNO Twin 125s^{[27] [28]} (now the Gander RV Duel). USA used CBS'^{[29] [30]} crew, graphics and announcers. USA also aired the Atlanta ARCA race in 1985 and televised several NASCAR Busch Series races in the late 1980s.

1983

• During its coverage of the 1983 Daytona 500, CBS introduced an innovation which director Bob Fishman helped develop – a miniature, remote-controlled in-car camera called RaceCam.^[31] Fishman^[32] directed every Daytona 500 telecast on CBS, with the exception of 1992, 1994 and 1998 because Fishman was away directing CBS' figure-skating coverage for the Winter Olympics.
• TBS broadcast the Richmond spring race, held the week after Daytona Speedweeks, from 1983 to 1995, as well as the fall races at Rockingham (1985-1987), Atlanta (1983-1985) and Riverside (1982-1987).
• TNN started showing races live in 1991,^[33] but it had aired taped coverage of a few Winston Cup races in the 1980s on its American Sports Cavalcade program.

1984

Date	Event	Network	Lap-by-lap	Color commentator(s)
2/12	Busch Clash (Daytona)		Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett
2/16	UNO Twin 125's (Daytona)		Ken Squier
2/19			Ken Squier
2/26	Richmond 400 (Richmond)	TBS	Ken Squier	Buddy Baker
3/4	Carolina 500 (Rockingham)		Mike Joy	Benny Parsons
3/18	Coca-Cola 500 (Atlanta)		Jim McKay	Sam Posey
4/15	TransSouth 500 (Darlington)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
5/12	Coors 420 (Nashville)		Ken Squier
5/20	Budweiser 500 (Dover)		Mike Joy
6/10	Van Scoy 500 (Pocono)		Mike Joy (Mizlou) Bob Jenkins (ESPN)	Donnie Allison (Mizlou) Larry Nuber (ESPN)
7/4	Firecracker 400 (Daytona)		Jim Lampley	Sam Posey
7/22	Like Cola 500 (Pocono)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
7/29	Talladega 500 (Talladega)		Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
9/2	Southern 500 (Darlington)		Bob Jenkins	Jack Arute
10/21	American 500 (Rockingham)		Mike Joy	Benny Parsons
11/11	Atlanta Journal 500 (Atlanta)		Ken Squier	Glenn Jarrett
11/18	Winston Western 500 (Riverside)		Ken Squier	Phil Parsons

• Special Events Television Network (SETN) is the name of a defunct syndicated television package that broadcast tape delayed NASCAR races from 1984 to 1988. SETN aired races (typically from Martinsville and Pocono as well as from Rockingham, Charlotte, Richmond and Daytona for good measure) that didn't have live television deals at the time. The broadcasts were aired on tape delay because certain promoters still feared that live telecasts would hurt their gate.

1985

Date	Event	Network	Lap-by-lap	Color commentator(s)
2/10	Busch Clash (Daytona)	CBS	Ken Squier	David Hobbs and Ned Jarrett
2/17			Ken Squier
2/24			Ken Squier	Benny Parsons
3/3	Carolina 500 (Rockingham)		Mike Joy
4/6	Valleydale Meats 500 (Bristol)		Bob Jenkins	Benny Parsons
4/14	Transouth 500 (Darlington)	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
4/21	Northwestern Bank 400 (North Wilkesboro)		Bob Jenkins
4/28	Sovran Bank 500 (Martinsville)		Mike Joy
5/5	Winston 500 (Talladega)		Paul Page	Bobby Unser
5/25	The Winston (Charlotte)	Jefferson-Pilot	Mike Joy	Kyle Petty
5/26	Coca-Cola World 600 (Charlotte)		Mike Joy	Johnny Hayes
6/2	Budweiser 400 (Riverside)		Steve Evans	Brock Yates
6/9	Van Scoy 500 (Pocono)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
6/16	Miller 400 (Michigan)	CBS	Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett
7/4	Pepsi Firecracker 400 (Daytona)		Al Trautwig	Sam Posey
7/28			Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett
8/24	Busch 500 (Bristol)		Larry Nuber	Benny Parsons
9/1	Southern 500 (Darlington)		Larry Nuber	Jack Arute
9/8	Wrangler Sanfor-Set 400 (Richmond)		Mike Joy
9/15	Delaware 500 (Dover)		Mike Hogewood	Dick Brooks
9/22	Goody's 500 (Martinsville)		Mike Joy
10/6	Miller Genuine Draft 500 (Charlotte)	Jefferson-Pilot	Mike Hogewood	Johnny Hayes
10/20	Nationwise 500 (Rockingham)	TBS	Ken Squier	Benny Parsons
11/3			Ken Squier
11/17	Winston Western 500 (Riverside)		Ken Squier

• All Cup races were nationally televised by 1985; networks struck individual deals with track owners, and multiple channels carried racing content. Many races were shown taped and edited on Wide World of Sports and syndication services like Mizlou and SETN, but almost all races were live by 1989.

1986

Date	Event	Network	Lap-by-lap	Color commentator(s)
2/9			Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and David Hobbs
2/16			Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and David Hobbs
2/23			Ken Squier
3/16			Jim Lampley	Sam Posey
4/6	Valleydale Meats 500 (Bristol)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
4/13	Transouth 500 (Darlington)		Bob Jenkins
4/20	First Union 400 (North Wilkesboro)		Bob Jenkins
4/27	Sovran Bank 500 (Martinsville)		Mike Joy	Benny Parsons
5/4	Winston 500 (Talladega)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
5/11	The Winston (Atlanta)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber and Benny Parsons
5/18	Budweiser 500 (Dover)	Mizlou	Steve Grad	Dick Brooks
6/1	Budweiser 400 (Riverside)		Steve Evans	Brock Yates
6/8	Miller High Life 500 (Pocono)		Mike Joy	Jerry Punch
7/20	Summer 500 (Pocono)		Mike Joy	Jerry Punch
7/27			Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and Neil Bonnett
8/10	Bud at the Glen (Watkins Glen)		Bob Jenkins	Rick Mears
8/17	Champion Spark Plug 400 (Michigan)		Jack Arute	Jerry Punch
8/23	Busch 500 (Bristol)	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber and Benny Parsons
9/14	Delaware 500 (Dover)		Steve Grad	Dick Brooks
9/21	Goody's 500 (Martinsville)	SETN	Eli Gold	Jerry Punch
9/28	Holly Farms 400 (North Wilkesboro)		Larry Nuber	Benny Parsons
10/19	Nationwise 500 (Rockingham)		Ken Squier
11/2			Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
11/16	Winston Western 500 (Riverside)	TBS	Ken Squier	Phil Parsons

1987

Date	Event	Network	Lap-by-lap	Color commentator(s)
2/8	Busch Clash (Daytona)		Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and David Hobbs
2/12	7-Eleven Twin 125's (Daytona)	CBS (tape delayed to 2/14)	Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and David Hobbs
2/15			Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and David Hobbs
3/8	Miller High Life 400 (Richmond)		Ken Squier
3/15	Motorcraft 500		Jim Lampley
3/29	TranSouth 500 (Darlington)	ESPN	Larry Nuber	Jerry Punch
4/5	First Union 400 (North Wilkesboro)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
4/12	Valleydale Meats 500 (Bristol)		Bob Jenkins
4/26	Sovran Bank 500 (Martinsville)		Eli Gold	Jerry Punch
5/3	Winston 500 (Talladega)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
5/17	The Winston (Charlotte)		Keith Jackson	Donnie Allison
5/31	Budweiser 500 (Dover)		Larry Nuber	Jerry Punch
6/14	Miller High Life 500 (Pocono)	SETN	Eli Gold	Jerry Punch
7/4	Pepsi Firecracker 400 (Daytona)	ABC		Donnie Allison
8/22	Busch 500 (Bristol)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
9/13	Wrangler Indigo 400 (Richmond)	SETN	Eli Gold	Jerry Punch
9/20	Delaware 500 (Dover)		Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber
9/27	Goody's 500 (Martinsville)	SETN	Eli Gold	Jerry Punch
11/8	Winston Western 500 (Riverside)		Ken Squier
11/22			Bob Jenkins	Larry Nuber

1988

• After SETN folded, one Pocono race a year was produced by Jim Wiglesworth on pay-per-view for Viewer's Choice (now In Demand) from 1988 to 1990. They were not a huge success, as fans were reluctant to pay for what they could see last week for free. The Viewer's Choice shows were noteworthy in that they premiered viewer phone-in questions during the races.

1989

Date	Event	Network	Lap-by-lap	Color commentator(s)
2/12	Busch Clash (Daytona)		Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and Chris Economaki
2/16	Twin 125's (Daytona)	CBS (tape delayed to 2/18)	Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and Chris Economaki
2/19			Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and Chris Economaki
3/19	Motorcraft Quality Parts 500 (Atlanta)	ABC	Paul Page	Bobby Unser and Sam Posey
4/16	First Union 400 (North Wilkesboro)		Bob Jenkins
5/7	Winston 500 (Talladega)		Bob Jenkins	Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
5/21	The Winston (Charlotte)	ABC	Paul Page	Benny Parsons and Bobby Unser
5/28	Coca-Cola 600 (Charlotte)	TBS	Ken Squier	Johnny Hayes
6/4	Budweiser 500(Dover)		Bob Jenkins	Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
6/11	Banquet Frozen Foods 300 (Sears Point)		Bob Jenkins	Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
6/18	Miller High Life 500 (Pocono)		Dave Despain
7/1	Pepsi 400 (Daytona)	ESPN	Bob Jenkins
7/23	AC Spark Plug 500 (Pocono)		Bob Jenkins	Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
7/30	DieHard 500 (Talladega)		Ken Squier	Ned Jarrett and Chris Economaki
8/13	Bud at the Glen (Watkins Glen)		Bob Jenkins
9/10	Miller High Life 400 (Richmond)		Ken Squier	Johnny Hayes and Phil Parsons
9/17	Peak Performance 500 (Dover)			Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
9/24	Goody's 500 (Martinsville)	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
10/8	All Pro Auto Parts 500 (Charlotte)	TBS	Ken Squier	Johnny Hayes and Joe Ruttman
10/15	Tyson Holly Farms 400 (North Wilkesboro)		Bob Jenkins	Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
11/5	Autoworks 500 (Phoenix)	ESPN	Bob Jenkins	Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons
11/19	Atlanta Journal 500 (Atlanta)		Bob Jenkins

• At the 1989 Motorcraft Quality Parts 500 NASCAR event, ESPN/ABC broadcaster Dr. Jerry Punch was reporting from the pit stall of Richard Petty when a fire broke out, injuring two crew members who Punch proceeded to treat on the spot. Following the incident, in which several items of Punch's clothing were singed or melted, ESPN mandated that its pit reporters wear fire-retardant suits. Other networks have since adopted the practice.^[34]

See also

• List of Daytona 500 broadcasters
• List of Wide World of Sports (American TV series) announcers
• List of events broadcast on Wide World of Sports (American TV series)
• NASCAR on television in the 1960s
  • NASCAR on television in the 1970s
  • NASCAR on television in the 1990s
  • NASCAR on television in the 2000s
  • NASCAR on television in the 2010s

Notes and References

1. Web site: ESPN. NASCAR on TV. ESPN is a cable TV network specializing in sports. It televised NASCAR races from 1981-2000, and again from 2007-2014..
2. Web site: CBS. NASCAR on TV. May 15, 2024. CBS is a major TV network. It showed NASCAR races in 1960, 1964, and from 1975-2000..
3. Web site: ABC. NASCAR on TV. May 15, 2024. ABC is a major television network. It showed NASCAR races from 1961-2000, and again from 2007-2014..
4. News: February 17, 1980. Ba Daytona. Beach Si... Lot Rnai 17. Imp.. February Home Sale.. Daytona Beach Morning Journal. May 15, 2024.
5. News: Ernesto. John. February 17, 1980. Daytona Telecast Big Hit. By Ernesto Paid Estimated For The .... Reading Eagle. May 15, 2024.
6. News: Bupp. Phillip. August 18, 2023. New 'NASCAR Classics' site provides plenty of hidden gems, including Al Michaels on commentary. Awful Announcing. May 15, 2024.
7. News: July 3, 1980. Sports On Air... Chrissy, Goolagong In Wimbledon Final Today .... Sarasota Herald-Tribune . May 15, 2024.
8. Web site: 1980 Coca-Cola 500. NASCAR on TV. May 15, 2024.
9. News: August 1, 1980. Another New Winner In 1980? - Page 15. The Dispatch. May 15, 2024.
10. Web site: 1980 Southern 500. NASCAR on TV. May 15, 2024.
11. Web site: 1980 National 500. NASCAR on TV. May 15, 2024.
12. Web site: TV Racing's Mantra: 'Show Me the Money!'. Car & Driver. May 2002.
13. Web site: Mike Joy - Fox Sports Press Pass. Fox Sports Press Pass. May 20, 2024.
14. News: February 8, 1981. Busch Clash Today. - Page 73. Reading Eagle. May 20, 2024.
15. Wolff. Alexander. March 23, 1981. Vroom With a Brand-New View . Sports Illustrated. May 15, 2024.
16. News: February 16, 1981. Petty Gets Break, Edges Allison In Daytona 500. - Page 13. Star-News. May 20, 2024.
17. Book: Hembree, Crandall, Pearce, Hembree, Creed, Mike, Kelly, Al, Michael, Jimmy. 11 April 2023. NASCAR 75 Years. Motorbooks. 115. 978-0-7603-8005-5.
18. Web site: NASCAR on ESPN History. February 6, 2011. ESPN Press Room. May 20, 2024.
19. News: March 15, 1981. Sports Briefs. Dale Earnhardt Seeks Season's First Victory. - Page 17. The Tuscaloosa News . May 20, 2024.
20. News: July 1, 1981. Ellensburg Daily Record - Page 18. Ellensburg Daily Record. May 20, 2024.
21. News: July 6, 1981. Track Owner Goes Cable Route. - Page 5. The Albany Herald. May 20, 2024.
22. News: Gaillard. Luther. May 22, 1981. Bonnett Takes Pole For World 600 Race. - Page 9. Herald-Journal . May 20, 2024.
23. News: July 24, 1981. Indy-Car Drivers Get Final Tuneup Today. - Page 21. Reading Eagle. May 20, 2024.
24. News: August 2, 1981 . [Television Schedule] ]. 12. Daily News. Bowling Green, Ky. . May 20, 2024.
25. News: Daggett. Laurel. November 8, 2012. Today in ESPN history: Celebrating NASCAR and NFL anniversaries. ESPN Front Row. May 20, 2024.
26. Web site: Behind the Microphone with Mike Joy, NASCAR on Fox . Speedcouch.com . February 16, 2007 . February 24, 2013.
27. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=LKUfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Q9YEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1305,2043448&dq=daytona+race+on+usa+network&hl=en Feb 14, 1982 - The 1979— Daytona 500 was a classic race, and it happened to be the first one televised live, start to finish, by The network could hardly ... and made a deal with the USA cable network to furnish the qualifiers for cablecasting Fri day night. doing this, in effect, satisfies the inter ...
28. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=eQofAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ttIEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1609,295940&dq=nascar+on+usa+network&hl=en Feb 16, 1984 - The trucks which pulled Into Daytona International Speedway last week were all not necessarily those containing the cars of the NASCAR drivers ... The USA Network will show the two 125 mile qualifying races Friday night at 8 but that Is under an agreement where the cable network ...
29. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SwAQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=PY8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=4136,6947719&dq=daytona+race+on+usa+network&hl=en Mar 29, 1982 - ... ... th Nabisco Dinah Shore Invitational Sports has signed a pact with video evangelist Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcast Network for the Dinah ... the right to tape them for replay later which has been in the business of cable since it split coverage of the Daytona 500 with USA Cable ...
30. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=zugLAAAAIBAJ&sjid=oVkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5616,2938438&dq=daytona+race+on+usa+network&hl=en Apr 10, 1982 - an undisclosed fee for two days of broadcast rights USA had so little to do with the telecasts that it had just one of its own people on air ... as he stated it has worked Ratings for the Daytona 500 improved Bait the viewer with cable hook him with the network broadcast not saying I ...
31. Quote: "Then in 1983, we introduced the in-car camera. We put the average race fan in the driver's seat. They got a sense for speed, a sense of how close the traffic was. Until 1983, cars didn't look that fast on a 19-inch television screen. All of a sudden you're behind the wheel and you learned these cars drive like a sailboat going 200 mph. You got a sense of what it's like to be a driver. It was reality and fantasy television all in one."
32. News: Sports on TV-Radio: CBS to let wheels do the talking. John. Fay. The Cincinnati Enquirer. E. W. Scripps Company. February 12, 1999. Bob Fishman plans to give viewers a few laps of pure, roaring speed. “We have some great low-angle shots,” Fishman said. “It brings those cars right in your face. You see the cars roaring by. I plan to show some laps with nothing but speed shots.”.
33. Web site: TNN decided to get into the game in 1991 and that pretty much guaranteed that each weekend's NASCAR race would be shown somewhere on television, whether it was CBS, ABC, WTBS, ESPN or TNN. . 23 July 2019 . 24 May 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090524004026/http://www.bjwor.com/991223.html . dead .
34. News: Hall . Andy . Punch's near miss led to safety gear for ESPN's NASCAR pit reporters . November 8, 2016 . . April 10, 2012.