It is no secret that Dale Earnhardt Jr. will not be calling races in the NBC booth anymore. The network is planning to elevate Leigh Diffey this year. Diffey, known for his calls in motorsports from the Rolex 24 at Daytona to NASCAR and many events in between, is getting a big opportunity.
A new report from Sports Business Journal details that NBC has plans to switch up their booth in the middle of their stint this season. Fox gets the first half of the season with NBC coming in during the summer to cover races in the Xfinity and Cup Series.
After the break in the schedule for the Olympics, Leigh Diffey will be elevated to the Cup Series play-by-play role. Rick Allen, serving in that role since 2015, will move down to Xfinity Series races.
Diffey is known for his exciting and energizing style of play-by-play announcing. He has a lot of fans in the motorsports world, and also a few critics. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is no longer with NBC, so the move makes sense.
NBC is trying to keep its NASCAR coverage to a high standard. With all of the experience Diffey has calling races, he will be a good asset. The Australian-American does not do boring play-by-play, that’s for sure.
Leigh Diffey joining Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte
The exit of Dale Jr. is going to be hard to overcome. For whatever reasons, NBC and Earnhardt couldn’t come to an agreement on an extension with Earnhardt moving to Amazon and Warner Bros. Discovery for the 2025 season.
This means that Leigh Diffey will be joining up with Jeff Buron and Steve Letarte in the NBC booth unless more changes are made after that Olympic break. So, what about Rick Allen?
Well, Allen does a lot for NBC. He has covered the Olympic Trials, Track & Field, and basketball at times for the network. The good news is that NASCAR fans will have Allen on the Xfinity Series races. That series deserves a great broadcast crew with the kind of racing it is putting on this year.
A lot of people will be disappointed that they only get Dale Jr. for a few races next season. However, it is better than not having him calling races at all, like this season. By the time the 2025 season gets here, it will be interesting to see what networks and streamers do to fill out their broadcast teams.
With Leigh Diffey coming to the Cup Series booth this year, what are your thoughts? Diffey keeps the energy at a high throughout the entire race. Fans want excitement and entertainment, the Aussie-American is going to bring it.
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