Even signing with Prime Video to be one of their analysts, Carl Edwards admitted he was wondering if NASCAR fans would know about the sports shift to streaming for five races on Prime Video or if they would know how to access the races.
That was, until he talked to one of his neighbors.
Were talking about other things and he said, Hey, youre doing some sort of TV thing. And I was thinking, you know, this guys 85 years old, and Im gonna have to explain this to him, Edwards said. And I started and hes like, Oh, yeah. Ive got Prime. Ill be watching.
Prime Videos first race on Sunday is the Coca-Cola 600. Not only is it NASCARs longest race, it comes on motorsports biggest day with Formula Ones Monaco Grand Prix and the Indianapolis 500 taking place before the green flag drops at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Prime Video has a seven-year deal with NASCAR.
We couldnt be more excited to be starting with a crown jewel (race). Its a huge responsibility and were excited to bring it to fans, said Alex Strand, Prime Videos senior coordinating producer for live sports. What we saw when we brought Thursday Night Football to Prime is we spent a lot of time making sure that were delivering on expectations. Theres trust the viewers are putting in you to bring them the sport that they love.
Prime Video is hoping to do that by getting some production help from NBC Sports, which has had NASCAR since 2015. Primes relationship with NBC goes back to 2022 when it launched Sunday Night Football.
In the booth, Adam Alexander is the play-by-play announcer for the Xfinity Series on The CW along with doing Cup Series races on TNT.
Analysts Steve Letarte and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are reunited. Earnhardt Jr. was with NBC for six seasons (2018 through 23) while Letarte has been with NBC since 2015.
Alexander said his approach to calling the races has been the same, no matter the network.
Just be a setup guy for two analysts that obviously know it inside and out, and be able to relay the message to the fans of whats happening on track, he said. I think it would be easy for someone when you look at new partners coming into the sport, that everything is going to be changed. It jumped off the board with me right away that Prime has the balance of new, but also the respect to traditions that were used to in the TV world and how that matches up with NASCAR.
The only new faces are Edwards and Corey LaJoie, who will be on pre- and post-race coverage.
Many thought Edwards would become an analyst after retiring in 2017, but he resisted overtures from various networks until Prime Video approached him earlier this year.
The timing just feels right. Im shocked at the way the sport has welcomed me back personally, said Edwards, a 28-time winner in the Cup series. I wasnt sure about this, but Prime came to visit me in Missouri and we sat around at my kitchen table talking with my family. Im glad they came out. Its going to be an adventure.
Prime Video will be bringing its own touches to the races. Green flag racing will include a double-box commercial format, ensuring viewers wont miss any action. There will also be highlights of key moments allowing viewers to catch up to action.
As far as in-race strategy innovations, Prime is still testing some things as they try to continue what they have done during NFL coverage, which is explain complex matters in a simple way.
I believe people are going to find it. Theyre going to enjoy it. And, you know, hopefully it just becomes, something that that all the fans feel good about and dont have any hiccups, Edwards said.
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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
即便卡尔·爱德华兹（Carl Edwards）签约成为Prime Video的其中一位分析师，他也承认自己在想，纳斯卡（NASCAR）的粉丝们是否会知道这个赛事将在Prime Video上以流媒体形式播放五场比赛，或者他们是否知道如何观看这些比赛。
情况一直如此，直到他跟他的一个邻居交谈后有所改变。
我们正在谈论其他事情时，他突然说：“嘿，你正在搞些什么电视节目。”我意识到，这个85岁的老人需要我来向他解释，”爱德华兹说，“然后我解释了一下，他回答道：“哦，对，我有Prime。我会看的。”
周日的首场比赛是Prime Video的Coca-Cola 600赛。它不仅是NASCAR最长的比赛，而且还是赛车运动最重要的日子之一，因为在Charlotte Motor Speedway的绿旗落下之前，还有一级方程式摩纳哥大奖赛和印地500赛的举行。
Prime Video与NASCAR签订了为期七年的合作协议。
Prime Video的资深体育直播协调制片人Alex Strand表示：“我们非常兴奋能以一场‘王冠上的宝石’（赛事）作为起点。这确实是一项重大的责任，但我们很期待为球迷们带来这样的赛事。当我们将‘周四夜橄榄球’带到Prime时，我们花费了大量时间来确保我们能够达到大家的期望。观众们对我们的信任在于，我们能够为他们带来他们热爱的体育赛事。”
Prime Video希望通过从NBC体育获得一些制作上的帮助来实现这一目标，自2015年以来，NBC体育一直拥有NASCAR的版权。Prime Video与NBC的关系可以追溯到2022年，当时他们推出了“周日夜间橄榄球”节目。
在演播室里，Adam Alexander是CW电视网Xfinity系列比赛的现场解说员，同时也在TNT电视台进行Cup系列比赛的解说。
分析师Steve Letarte和Dale Earnhardt Jr.再次聚首。Dale Earnhardt Jr.在NBC工作了六个赛季（从2018年至2023年），而Letarte自2015年以来一直在NBC工作。
亚历山大表示，不论是哪个网络，他对比赛的报道方式始终如一。
只需为两位对赛事了如指掌的分析师做好准备，并能够将赛场上发生的事情传达给粉丝们。当新的合作伙伴加入这项运动时，我认为一切都会变得容易。Prime的平衡点既包含新的元素，也尊重我们在电视世界中习惯的传统元素，这让我立刻意识到它与NASCAR的匹配程度非常高。
唯一的新面孔是爱德华兹和科里·拉乔伊（Edwards and Corey LaJoie），他们将出现在赛前和赛后报道中。
许多人认为爱德华兹在2017年退役后会成为一名分析师，但他一直拒绝来自各大网络电视台的邀请，直到今年早些时候亚马逊的Prime Video向他伸出橄榄枝。
28次杯赛系列冠军的埃德蒙兹（Edwards）说：“时机感觉刚刚好。我对这项运动以个人方式欢迎我回来感到震惊。我对此并不确定，但Prime来密苏里州拜访我，我们围坐在厨房的桌子旁与我的家人交谈。我很高兴他们能出来。这将是一次冒险。”
Prime Video将为比赛注入自己的特色。绿色旗帜比赛将采用双框广告格式，确保观众不会错过任何行动。同时，还将有关键时刻的亮点，让观众能够跟上比赛的进程。
在比赛策略创新方面，Prime 正在尝试一些新的东西，以继续他们在 NFL 报道中已经采用的策略，即将复杂的事情以简单的方式解释清楚。
我坚信人们会找到它。他们会喜欢它。我希望它只是一件让所有粉丝都感到愉悦且没有任何小故障的事情，爱德华兹说。
美国新闻（AP）汽车赛事报道：[链接](https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing)
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