North Wilkesboro Speedway returned to the NASCAR Cup Series schedule in 2023, although it returned as the host of the All-Star Race, rather than a points race, and hosted that exhibition event every year until 2025.
That mid-May race was contested as a part of Fox's season-opening portion of the broadcast schedule in all three years; it remained a part of Fox's schedule in 2025, even under the new seven-year, $7.7 billion media rights agreement. It was Fox's final race of the 2025 season.
But unlike previous years, when there were only two broadcast partners, Fox's portion did not lead right into NBC's portion in 2025. Instead, newcomer Amazon Prime Video and returning partner TNT were each given five mid-season races in between.
North Wilkesboro NASCAR race not being shown on NBC
This weekend's Window World 450 at North Wilkesboro, which hasn't hosted a Cup Series points race since 1996, would have taken place during NBC's portion of the broadcast schedule under the old agreement. However, it is instead the penultimate race on TNT's five-race portion of the schedule.
The only remaining race on TNT this season beyond this weekend is next weekend's Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This race is set to mark the championship round of NASCAR's second annual five-race In-Season Challenge, which was purposely scheduled to line up with TNT's race schedule once again.
The North Wilkesboro matchups include Joe Gibbs Racing's Christopher Bell vs. Team Penske's Ryan Blaney and Hendrick Motorsports' Chase Elliott vs. Front Row Motorsports' Todd Gilliland, with the winners set to battle one another at Indy.
After the Brickyard 400, the series is set to have its final off weekend of the year, and then NBC is set to take over for its season-ending 14-race portion of the calendar. Only four of those races are actually set to air live on NBC, with USA Network set to broadcast the other 10.
TNT's broadcast booth is the same as Prime Video's, just as the case was in 2025. Adam Alexander is the lead announcer, just as he is for O'Reilly Auto Parts Series races on the CW Network, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Steve Letarte are the color commentators. While Earnhardt is no longer with NBC, Letarte still is.
Blaney is set to start the Window World 450 on pole after qualifying was canceled due to storms on Saturday and the starting lineup was determined by the qualifying metric for the fifth time in 2026. Bell is third, Elliott is 10th, and Gilliland is 18th.
Tune in to TNT at 7:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, July 19 for the live broadcast of the Window World 450 from North Wilkesboro Speedway. Don't miss the penultimate race of the In-Season Challenge and thus the penultimate race of TNT Sports' portion of this year's broadcast schedule!
