“Jeff, your little boy has done it,” said Australian commentator Leigh Diffey as he watched Harrison Burton clinch the fall Daytona race. Diffey has been on NBC’s broadcasting list since 2013, but he’s moved up to the lead role this year. He calls the NASCAR Cup Series race alongside Steve Letarte and Jeff Burton, which is indeed a unique trio of voices inside the NBC booth.

Diffey’s voice has been accepted more and more as the years have gone on, but this wasn’t always the case during his early days working in NASCAR. Despite the reservations of a few fans, he continued his work and when people questioned his involvement with the sport, Kyle Petty was the one who had his back. The 53-year-old commentator went on to share a story about how he worked in his early days before landing the big role this year.

Leigh Diffey brings a different flavor to NASCAR

Diffey was used to his role in calling the race in the IndyCar. However, with FOX Sports taking over the role as the new broadcaster, he found a new home at NASCAR. Although he had previously worked with the Speed Channel and was among the NBC broadcaster group since 2013, this year was his first time in the lead role. And he certainly is enjoying it.

One thing that differentiates Diffey is his Australian accent, and there were times when people weren’t fond of him. Going by his words, he didn’t give a lot of thought and attention to the opinions of the fans: “They’re either going to love you or hate you.” However, back in the day, Kyle Petty certainly had his back when fans critiqued his involvement with NASCAR.

Sharing a story about the same via Sports Business Journal, Diffey said, “I was in the booth with Larry McReynolds and Kyle Petty, and Kyle is still very active on social media by KP was extra active in those days, and even though I was working on everything else on the speed channel, that was my first time on NASCAR, and some fans wrote in and said, Who is that guy in the booth with the funny accent? And Kyle Petty wrote back and said Larry McReynolds.”

After calling six Indy 500 races, he got the chance to witness the Brickyard 400 NASCAR race. And his transition in the NBC booth has certainly led to a mix of different voices, which Diffey likes to call the melting pot. “It’s in the melting pot; three guys are in there that sound very different. Steve Letarte from the Northeast, I’m from South East Queensland in Australia, and Jeff’s from Virginia, and it kind of reminds me of the earliest times that I ever did NASCAR, which was at Watkins Glen practice and qualifying show back in the old Speed Channel days.”

This weekend’s championship race at Martinsville Speedway will be his very first experience. But thanks to his different perspective on how he connects with the sport as a fan and as a broadcaster, he has helped his booth buddies to cherish these moments better.

Diffey is eyeing a strong finish on his debut run with NASCAR

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It is remarkable to see how versatile Leigh Diffey has been throughout his professional career. He started off his commentating career at a casual gig during a local dirt bike event. Little did he know back then that his casual move would land him at the NASCAR booth. In his early days, he got the opportunity to work with the SuperCar Series, and assignments for events soon followed up. He then took a big stride in his career, flying all the way to the United States 20 years ago to cover IndyCar and other forms of racing. He’s been the voice of the U.S. broadcast for Formula 1 races for many seasons.

So while he’s still learning the tricks of the trade in his new role at NASCAR, he certainly has enjoyed this journey. And being in the booth for the Martinsville race, he wants to have a strong finish to his debut run in the NBC booth. “So, I’ve been forcing myself each weekend to try and get around to meet as many different and new people within the NASCAR garage as I can, which is part of the preparation. I’m doing more homework now than I did when I was at college,’ but it’s part of the job, and it’s been fun … and it’s going to finish off strong next weekend,” he explained further.

What is your take on Leigh Diffey’s debut NASCAR season, and should FOX follow suit and bring about similar changes to their line-up?