Here’s your Abu Dhabi GP season finale times on NBCSN, CNBC

By Nov 23, 2016, 9:33 AM EST
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This week, the marathon 21-race 2016 Formula 1 World Championship season finally comes to an end with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The race is live on NBCSN while note, live qualifying is on CNBC on Saturday.

The full details of the weekend’s coverage – including GP2 as well – is linked below:

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Mercedes teammates and rivals Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg will duel for the Formula One Drivers’ Championship at the 2016 season finale, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, this Sunday at 7:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN.

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming platforms for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will provide live streaming coverage of practice, qualifying, and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Hamilton, a three-time F1 Drivers’ champion and two-time defending champion, has won three consecutive races to pull within 12 points of Rosberg. Despite Hamilton’s run, he will need to win this weekend and will require some help to overtake Rosberg. If Rosberg secures a podium finish at Abu Dhabi this weekend, he will win his first career title, regardless of Hamilton’s finish.

Following are permutations for a third-consecutive Drivers’ Championship for Hamilton.

HOW HAMILTON CAN WIN THE TITLE
If Hamilton finishes in… And Rosberg finishes…
First place Fourth place or worse
Second place Seventh place or worse
Third place Ninth place or worse

Hamilton has won twice at Yas Marina Circuit (2011 & 2014), but Rosberg has bragging rights as the most recent victor in Abu Dhabi with his win last season over Hamilton by eight seconds.

This will be the second consecutive weekend in which NBC Sports has presented a major racing circuit championship. Last week at Homestead in Miami, Daniel Suarez and Jimmie Johnson captured the NASCAR XFINITY and Sprint Cup Series Championships on NBCSN and NBC. Earlier this year, NBCSN telecast coverage of the Grand Prix of Sonoma, as Simon Pagenaud captured his first career season title in the Verizon IndyCar Series. NBC Sports Group is the home of motorsports and is the only sports-media company to annually broadcast all three major circuit championships.

Live coverage begins exclusively on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app on Friday at 4 a.m. ET with Practice 1, followed by NBCSN’s live coverage of Practice 2 at 8 a.m. ET. Streaming coverage on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app continues with Practice 3 on Saturday at 5 a.m. ET, followed by live qualifying on CNBC at 8 a.m. ET. NBCSN will air an encore presentation of qualifying on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. ET.

Live Abu Dhabi Grand Prix race coverage begins Sunday at 7 a.m. ET with F1 Countdown, and F1 Extra will recap the race at 10 a.m. ET.

Lead play-by-play announcer Leigh Diffey will call this weekend’s action, and will be joined by veteran analyst and former racecar driver David Hobbs, and analyst and former race mechanic for the Benetton F1 team Steve Matchett. F1 insider Will Buxton will report on-site from Yas Marina Circuit in the United Arab Emirates. NBCSN will also present the GP2 race from Abu Dhabi on Sunday at 6 a.m. ET.

In addition to this week’s F1 coverage, NBCSN will air a 10-hour Mecum Auctions marathon on Thanksgiving, beginning at 7 a.m. ET. The Mecum marathon will feature highlights from this year’s auctions in Denver, Kansas City, and Kissimmee.

Following is this week’s NBC Sports Group motorsports coverage schedule:

DATE COVERAGE NETWORK TIME (ET)
Thurs., November 24 Best of Mecum Auctions – Denver NBCSN 7 a.m.
Best of Mecum Auctions – Kansas City NBCSN 9 a.m.
Best of Mecum Auctions – Kissimmee NBCSN 11 a.m.
Best of Mecum Auctions – Denver NBCSN 2:30 p.m.
Fri., November 25 F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Practice 1 Streaming 4 a.m.
/DRIVE on NBCSN – Autonomous NBCSN 7 a.m.
/DRIVE on NBCSN – Colorado NBCSN 7:30 a.m.
F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Practice 2 NBCSN 8 a.m.
Off The Grid – Japan NBCSN 9:30 a.m.
/DRIVE on NBCSN – Turbocharged NBCSN 10 a.m.
APEX: The Story of the Hypercar NBCSN 10:30 a.m.
Sat., November 26 F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Practice 3 Streaming 5 a.m.
F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Qualifying CNBC 8 a.m.
F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Qualifying (Encore) NBCSN 2:30 p.m.
Sun., November 27 GP2 – Abu Dhabi NBCSN 6 a.m.
F1 Countdown NBCSN 7 a.m.
F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix NBCSN 7:30 a.m.
F1 Extra NBCSN 10 p.m.
GP2 – Abu Dhabi NBCSN 7 p.m.
NASCAR XFINITY Series Awards Show NBCSN 8 p.m.

IndyCar disappointed by delay of video game but aiming to launch at start of 2024

By Mar 27, 2023, 3:00 PM EDT
IndyCar video game 2024
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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”