Yesterday's Sprint Cup Series Camping World RV Sales 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway marked the final NASCAR race on Turner Sports under the sport's current media-rights deal. The new rights deal with Fox and NBC goes into effect next year, leaving Turner on the sidelines for the first time in 33 years. TNT's Ken Squier prior to the start of the race said, "As the engines have fired here at New Hampshire, I remind you this is the final NASCAR broadcast for Turner Sports. I was the play-by-play announcer for TBS for 18 years beginning in the very first year of NASCAR coverage, 1983. It's been a real honor to be a part of today's broadcast and I wish my colleagues the very best today on TNT as this amazing 32-year run comes to a close” (“Camping World RV Sales 301,” TNT, 7/13). NASCAR President Mike Helton appeared live on TNT’s “Countdown to Green” pre-race show and said, "Watching some of the clips and some of the earlier programming on the pre-race has been fun to reminisce of sorts. It goes to show as an example how much of a role that Turner, TNT, TBS -- all that family -- has played in building our sport, building the character and personality of it. I join the rest of the industries and speak for the fans of saying, 'Thank you very much for covering our sport and bringing our sport to us'” ("Countdown To Green," TNT, 7/13).
