Mon, 1 Feb 2010, 05:54 PM NHRA Announces Full Throttle Series Television Schedule for 2010 Season on ESPN2

Courtesy of NHRA Communications NHRA Race Day presented by Lucas Oil Returns for Fourth Season

GLENDORA, Calif. -- NHRA will launch its 10th anniversary season with ESPN, the worldwide leader in sports television, with a primetime telecast of the most highly anticipated Full Throttle Series race in many years at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona: the 50th Kragen O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Valvoline, Feb. 14 from 8-11 p.m. ET.

Highlighting the complete 2010 schedule, released today, is a commitment to consistent broadcast times for Sunday's race day action with 17 of the 23 events scheduled in the coveted Sunday night prime-time slot on ESPN2. Once again, the most prestigious drag racing event in the world, the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis, will feature more than 10 hours of wall-to-wall coverage beginning with qualifying on Sunday, Sept. 5 and concluding with a five-hour broadcast on Monday afternoon, Sept. 6 from 1 - 6 p.m.

In all, the network will dedicate more than 100 hours of original programming to the world's quickest, fastest and most intense motorsport with live or same-day coverage of qualifying on Saturday and eliminations on Sunday. All broadcasts will be aired in high definition on ESPN2HD.

Not only does the season open in Southern California, the Series will also return to Pomona for the season-ending Auto Club NHRA Finals., Nov. 11-14, the sixth and final race in the NHRA Full Throttle Series' Countdown to 1.

Additionally, the popular pre-race show that debuted in 2007, NHRA Race Day presented by Lucas Oil, will be back in 2010, once again being produced on-site to allow fans attending the Sunday race a chance to watch - and participate - in the show. It will air on each of the 23 Sundays that the NHRA Full Throttle Series is racing.

The shows are developed by the production team at ESPN, which has been producing NHRA programming since 2001. Paul Page returns to the broadcast booth as host alongside former drag racer Mike Dunn, who will provide expert analysis and insight on the racing action. Dave Rieff and Gary Gerould will return as pit reporters. Veteran announcer John Kernan, who joined the NHRA broadcast team in 2007, will serve as a third pit reporter at select races.

NHRA Race Day presented by Lucas Oil, will be hosted once again by Rieff and Dunn, and originate from NHRA's Nitro Alley. NHRA Race Day presented by Lucas Oil sets up the day for fans at home with must-see match-ups, interviews with the stars of the sport, driver features, news and analysis, a review of qualifying and what to watch for during the all-important Sunday action.

In addition to coverage on ESPN2 and ESPN2HD, NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing will be aired and distributed internationally through ESPN International. ESPN2 is now available in 98.7 million households.

2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Television Schedule

Event                                           Air Date/Time

Kragen O'Reilly NHRA Winternationals      Qualifying, 11 p.m.-1 a.m., Feb. 13
Pomona, Calif.                            Eliminations, 8-11 p.m., Feb. 14
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., Feb. 14

NHRA Arizona Nationals                    Qualifying, 2-4 a.m., Feb. 21
Phoenix                                   Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., Feb. 21
                                          Race Day, 11 a.m., Feb. 21

NHRA Gatornationals                       Qualifying, 12-2 a.m., March 13
Gainesville, Fla.                         Eliminations, 6 -9 p.m., March 13
                                          Race Day, 11 a.m., March 15

NHRA 4-Wide Nationals                     Qualifying, 9-11 p.m., March 27
Charlotte, N.C.                           Eliminations, 5 - 7:30 p.m., March 28
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., March 28

O'Reilly NHRA Springnationals             Qualifying, 11 p.m. - 1 a.m., April 10
Houston                                   Eliminations, 8 -11 p.m., April 11
                                          Race Day, 11 a.m., April 11

SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals           Qualifying, 6 - 8 p.m., April 17
Las Vegas                                 Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., April 18
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., April 18

NHRA Midwest Nationals                    Qualifying, 9-11 p.m., May 1
St. Louis                                 Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., May 2
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., May 2

Summit Racing NHRA Southern Nationals     Qualifying, 8-10 p.m., May 15
Commerce, Ga.                             Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., May 16
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., May 16

O'Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals            Qualifying, 8-10 p.m., May 22
Topeka, Kan.                              Eliminations, 9 p.m. - Midnight, May 23
                                          Race Day, 11 a.m., May 23

United Association NHRA Route 66 Nationals    Qual., 11 p.m.-1 a.m., June 5
Chicago                                   Eliminations, 4-7 p.m., June 6
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., June 6

NHRA SuperNationals                       Qual., 11 p.m.-12:30 a.m., June 12
Englishtown, N.J.                         Eliminations, 4 p.m.-7 p.m., June 13
                                          Race Day, 3:30 p.m., June 13

NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals             Qualifying, 7-9 p.m., June 19
Bristol, Tenn.                            Eliminations, 4-7 p.m., June 20
                                          Race Day, 3:30 p.m., June 20

Summit Racing NHRA Nationals              Qualifying, 7 - 9 p.m., June 26
Norwalk, Ohio                             Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., June 27
                                          Race Day, Noon, June 27

NHRA Northwest Nationals                  Qualifying, 11 p.m.-1 a.m., July 10
Seattle                                   Eliminations, 7 - 10 p.m., July 11
                                          Race Day, 11 a.m., July 11

FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals              Qualifying, 11 p.m.-1 a.m., July 17
Sonoma, Calif.                            Eliminations, 6-9 p.m., July 18
                                          Race Day, 1 p.m., July 18

Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals            Qualifying, 6:30-8 p.m., July 24
Denver                                    Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., July 25
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., July 25

Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals                  Qualifying, 11 p.m.-1 a.m., Aug. 14
Brainerd, Minn.                           Eliminations, 10 p.m.-1 a.m., Aug. 15
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., Aug. 15

Mac Tools U.S. Nationals                  Qualifying, 10 - 11 a.m., Sept. 5
Indianapolis                              Qualifying, 11:30 a.m.- 2 p.m., Sept. 5
                                          Qualifying, 5-7 p.m., Sept. 5
                                          Eliminations, 1 - 6 p.m., Sept. 6
                                          Race Day, 11 a.m., Sept. 5

NHRA Carolinas Nationals                  Qualifying, 10:30 p.m.-12 a.m., Sept.18
Charlotte, N.C.                           Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., Sept. 19
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., Sept. 19

O'Reilly Super Start Batteries NHRA Fall Nationals    Qualifying, 10:30 p.m.-12 a.m., Sept. 25
Dallas                                    Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., Sept. 26
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., Sept. 26

Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals                 Qualifying, 10:30 p.m. - 12 a.m., Oct. 9
Reading, Pa.                              Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., Oct. 10
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., Oct. 10

NHRA Las Vegas Nationals                  Qualifying, 10:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m., Oct. 30
Las Vegas                                 Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., Oct. 31
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., Oct. 31

Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals    Qualifying, 10:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m., Nov. 13
Pomona, Calif.                            Eliminations, 7-10 p.m., Nov. 14
                                          Race Day, 10 a.m., Nov. 14

* All times Eastern. Schedule subject to change. Please check local listings.