When the Brickyard 400 finally returned to the schedule in July 2024, following a curious decision by NASCAR to move the Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway from the oval to the road course after the 2020 edition of the crown jewel event, it was a part of NBC's portion of the broadcast schedule.
But the 2024 season was the 10th and final season of the broadcast rights deal that had gone into effect ahead of the 2015 season and included only Fox and NBC.
By the time 2024 rolled around, NASCAR had already agreed on a new media rights deal with not only Fox and NBC but also TNT Sports, which had been a part of the previous agreement through 2014, and newcomer Amazon Prime Video. That seven-year, $7.7 billion deal went into effect ahead of the 2025 campaign.
While the Brickyard 400 retained its spot on the schedule in late July, it was no longer shown live on NBC in 2025, and it will not be shown live on NBC in 2026 either.
Brickyard 400 not being shown live on NBC
Fox's season-opening portion of the schedule, which also includes races on Fox Sports 1, was dropped from 18 races (16 points races) to 14 (12), and NBC's season-ending portion, which also includes races on USA Network was dropped from 20 to 14. Prime Video and TNT were give five races each in between.
Prime's 2025 schedule began with a crown jewel race in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, and TNT's schedule ended with another crown jewel race in the Brickyard 400. Both remain true in 2026.
In conjunction with TNT's return, NASCAR also aligned that five-race portion of the schedule with the debut of the In-Season Challenge tournament. Like it did a year ago, Indianapolis is set to host the championship round of that tournament this weekend, with Team Penske's Ryan Blaney set to square off against Front Row Motorsports' Todd Gilliland.
The broadcast booth is the same for TNT as it was for Prime, as was the case in 2025. Adam Alexander is the lead announcer, and he is joined by Dale Earnhadt Jr. and Steve Letarte.
Letarte remains active with NBC as well, alongside Jeff Burton and lead announcer Leigh Diffey, who replaced Rick Allen in 2024. Earnhardt left NBC after the 2023 season.
Tune in to TNT for its final NASCAR Cup Series race of the 2026 season at 2:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, July 26, and don't miss the Brickyard 400 from Indianapolis Motor Speedway! Spire Motorsports teammates Carson Hocevar and Daniel Suarez are set to share the front row.
The Cup Series has off next weekend, before NBC's portion of the schedule is set to get underway with the Iowa Corn 350 at Iowa Speedway on Sunday, August 9 at 3:30 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss any of the action on USA Network!
