NASCAR is practically growing by leaps and bounds, and they recently took another massive step. Earlier at Concord, Massachusetts, a brand new facility was opened. This facility is dedicated to research and development and is expected to house more than 140 employees. It is also worth mentioning that there are different departments in the facility, and one of them is a department for content production and radio facilities.
Why is this facility so important for NASCAR?
As per reports, the facility is around 58,000 square feet and is situated west of Concord Airport. NASCAR Media and Productions Senior Vice President Brian Herbst said, “It’s a monumental moment to us. It better positions us to deliver content and live event production capabilities both to our media partners as well as our fans at home. It also represents a significant investment in the growth of the sport.”
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According to officials, the brand-new facility is a massive investment. This is because NASCAR is hoping that the move will fortify its future and help grow the sport. In essence, this will be the home of the media houses that will broadcast the races. This comes on the back of NASCAR’s recent $7.7 billion media deal. That landmark deal was a game changer because NASCAR would entrust broadcasting to streaming sites for the first time.
Aside from the content production house, there are three other studios. One of the rooms in the facility is reportedly exclusive for race control personnel. Meanwhile, there is also another room for broadcasters to commentate during a race without having to travel to the track. Reports say that the new facility will be first put to use in late January 2023 for the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona. That should be a good acid test before the 2024 NASCAR Cup season.
Herbst continued, “Everything you see inside goes to support the broadcast partners, but it’s also designed to support Monday through Thursday content, NASCAR.com, NASCAR digital, anything else that’s going to come up in the future. Part of the reason that this facility is based in Concord, North Carolina, is to be closer to the teams and all the teams’ shops. We wanted to be positioned for our media rights discussions because we expected to have new entrants into the space that we would need to do more production work for.”
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How is a typical race weekend coverage?
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For the past few years, Fox Sports and NBC Sports shared broadcasting duties during the races. However, the new $7.7 billion deal sees Amazon, TNT Max, and Warner Brothers Discovery join the party. Herbst also confirmed that there is also a possibility of the business being open for non-motorsport entities. In other words, while the facility will be very busy during the weekend, it doesn’t mean that it will remain idle for the rest of the week.
It is noteworthy that aside from NASCAR Productions, NASCAR Studios, and Motor Racing Network are also present. Additionally, the studios are fairly spacious, with the largest one being around 1,500 square feet. Meanwhile, the other two studios are reportedly 1,200 and 400 square feet. The amenities include eight control rooms, four audio control rooms, four announce booths, eight edit suites, and two audio sweetening rooms.
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One thing is for sure, the stock car racing series is improving. They have been making a lot of big moves in recent years, like new tracks, a Next Gen car, the first-ever NASCAR street race, and much more. Many of the moves have been hits, and there would have been a couple of misses, as well. However, the sport is continuing to grow and hopefully, with this new deal, reach a brand new audience.