UPDATE: Adam Stern of Sports Business Journal reported that ESPN will talk to NASCAR about the next media rights deal.
NASCAR current deals with NBC and Fox expire after the 2024 season. Negotiations on renewals are expected to begin next year.
.@BurkeMagnus confirmed that @ESPN will be talking with @NASCAR about their next media rights deal when the time is right, but it's happy with @F1 as the flagship racing property for now.
🗨: "NASCAR in particular is a conversation that will likely happen in some shape or form." pic.twitter.com/ZQ1PMJ4dQk
— Adam Stern (@A_S12) May 26, 2022
ORIGINAL POST 12-23-2021: John Ourand has made his annual sports predictions for 2022 and one is that ESPN could be interested in NASCAR coverage again. While this is merely speculation, Ourand is well connected to sports media professionals.
While the NASCAR TV rights won’t renew until 2024, initial discussions will likely take place with potential partners sometime next year.
This deal won’t be completed in 2022. After all, NASCAR’s current deal runs through 2024. But when the car racing circuit starts its negotiations next year, it will find that Fox wants to renew, while NBC Sports, which will shut down NBCSN on Jan. 1, is more tepid. Talks with ESPN will heat up this year. Fox and ESPN will split the NASCAR package as part of a deal signed in 2023.