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IndyCar – Music City GP
Sunday, August 8st – 5:30 p.m. EDT – NBC Sports Network
The new Nashville street circuit might be the most exciting track debut for IndyCar in the past ten years. The street race seems to be an instant hit, with Sunday possibly being the biggest non-Indianapolis crowd not just of the year but of the past few years. The track itself, however, has raised some questions.
The tight, bumpy Nashville layout has been a hit among the drivers who love its unpredictable nature and unique challenges. At the same time, one driver wrecked by hitting an inside wall at speed and one wrecked by locking up their brakes over the biggest bumps in the first practice session alone. Tomorrow’s race is expected to be downright challenging. With a larger-than-usual grid, that could either mean an instant classic or a race so packed with cautions that it is forced to finish early before the sun sets.
NASCAR – Watkins Glen
Sunday, August 8st – 3:00 p.m. EDT – NBC Sports Network
NASCAR’s brief two-week hiatus is over, which means it is once again time for a road course round in a Summer highlighted by them. Four races remain before NASCAR’s playoffs begin, so this final road course race of the year is a vital final opportunity for a driver most competitive at these tracks to steal a win and the spot in the playoffs that comes with it.
However, it is not a particularly important race for the drivers and teams already locked into the postseason. In a particularly odd twist on the format, this year’s schedule that boasts a significant increase in natural terrain road course races still features just one road course, and a temporary infield one at that, in the playoffs. Teams will gather very little significant data from that round from Watkins Glen, making this the last scheduled race for this generation of cars on this type of track.
IMSA – Road America
Sunday, August 8st – 11:40 a.m. EDT – NBC Sports app
Airing on NBC Sports Network at 8:00 p.m. EDT
Yes, NASCAR owns IMSA. Yes, NASCAR has scheduled what has traditionally been one of IMSA’s best rounds of the year directly against a Cup Series round on a road course. Yes, both programs and IndyCar are all broadcast on NBC family networks that apparently had no interest in solving this scheduling conflict.
Whether you watch the race live or in tape delay, Road America has produced exceptional sports car racing for generations. Tomorrow’s round will be no exception. Four rounds remain in the season (five for the GT classes), but just three of those are sprint races. Teams chasing championships have precious few chances to win predictable races without worrying about the significant attrition expected at Petit Le Mans later in the season, so this is a vital chance to get back to winning and back on track before the end of the year.
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