NBC’s MIKE TIRICO is set to make his Kentucky Derby hosting debut this weekend at Churchill Downs, the latest opportunity extended to the veteran broadcaster since he joined the net last year. The weekend kicks off an aggressive three-week stretch for Tirico, who last week was in West Hollywood for a pre-Olympics production shoot. He’ll quickly follow the race up with the PGA Tour Players Championship next week and the Preakness Stakes the weekend after that. This year's Derby marks Tirico’s first visit to the iconic horse race, and it means a great deal to the man who in the last year has covered the Rio Games, the Ryder Cup and was recently named NBC’s new primetime Olympic host. Tirico: “This has been on my bucket list. I never actually thought I’d get to cross it off in terms of hosting the event. I thought it’d be as a fan.” Tirico inherits hosting duties from longtime NBC broadcaster TOM HAMMOND and will be joined on the main set by analysts RANDY MOSS and JERRY BAILEY.
CALM BEFORE THE STORM: I left my Michigan home Tuesday night to drive down to Louisville. One of the great parts of covering a race like this is spending time with the trainers, the owners, learning the connections to the horses. Those all give you great background for your stories and I hang around and get as much information as I can. That was my plan for Wednesday and Thursday, and luckily I was with Randy and Jerry, who know everyone. Because of the length of the show on Saturday, the days leading up I'm constantly dipping in and out of meetings and rehearsals. Friday I’ll be a part of the (sister race) Kentucky Oaks, which has become this massive event in its own right. So Friday for me will feature a bit of prep but mostly stressed on being ready for the Oaks that afternoon. Once we get off the air Friday, it’s probably an hour or so reviewing the plan for Saturday. So while the rest of Louisville parties that night, we’ll be grinding away. Most will have elaborate dinner plans, but my experience tells me we could be looking at room service. Saturday will be an early morning with us being on the air for a solid five hours.
LONG TIME COMING: For the last 14 years, I’d been involved with the NBA Playoffs with ESPN and ABC. So I would watch the Derby from a whole bunch of places while getting ready to do a Sunday NBA game. I always held out hope that maybe the Pacers would be in the thick of things and we could sneak down Saturday. That was my only hope to get there. Over the years, I kept up hope but never really thought I’d be the event’s TV host. At NBC, we have so many big properties, and the Derby was part of the appeal to join the team. I had such a great schedule and worked with so many great people at ESPN, but because the NBC opportunity was so special with such a wide variety of events, it was easy to say yes. The Triple Crown races were something that made it incredibly attractive to work here.
FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING: The amount of preparation that I’ve done for this weekend is different in that I’m not calling the actual event. It’s such a different setup with different hosts and then all the experts we have around us. It’s a little bit of everything in this role. The history of the event, the lifestyle and fashion, that all becomes such a crucial part of the show. The prep is on a lot of different things, whereas for something like football you’re in a rhythm that you’re focused on. Plus it’s my first time in this role so I’m preparing for things I may end up not needing. But no one at home cares about that. At the end of the day if all your notes fly away you talk and share the experience of the event with what you have. If I do have a mint julep it’ll be reserved for Saturday night, and then I'll hopefully make it back home to Michigan to make my son’s soccer game on Sunday.
