IndyCar in Nashville: Start time, how to watch, entry list & more

The Big Machine Music City Grand Prix will be the second IndyCar race to take place on the course on the streets in Nashville, that incorporates both sides of the Korean War Veterans Memorial Bridge which stretches across the Cumberland River. Marcus Ericsson scored a remarkable victory last year for Chip Ganassi Racing-Honda, after taking off from the back of another car soon after the green flag.

Colton Herta’s pole position was no less remarkable, since his pace was so strong that he, Nathan O’Rourke and the Andretti Autosport-Honda team decided to run Firestone primaries in the first segment of qualifying, and still got through to Q2 with second fastest time. It meant that he alone had a fresh set of alternates for the Firestone Fast Six and he took pole by over half a second.

For all five IndyCar Rookie of the Year contenders – Callum Ilott, Kyle Kirkwood, Devlin DeFrancesco, David Malukas and Christian Lundgaard – as well as Simona De Silvestro, this will be a first race in Nashville, with not even Road To Indy graduates Kirkwood and DeFrancesco having experienced it. Unlike this year, there was no Indy Lights race here in 2021.

There have been eight different winners in 13 IndyCar races in 2022: Josef Newgarden (4), Scott McLaughlin and Pato O’Ward (2), Colton Herta, Marcus Ericsson, Will Power, Scott Dixon and Alexander Rossi. Power currently leads the championship by nine points ahead of Ericsson, 32 ahead of Newgarden, 38 ahead of Dixon, 46 ahead of O’Ward and 52 ahead of defending champion Alex Palou who is still seeking his first win this season.

Meyer Shank Racing’s Helio Castroneves will make his 371^st IndyCar start, having broken the tie with AJ Foyt for third in the all-time starts list. Meanwhile, Dixon will make his 302^nd consecutive start, the second-longest streak in IndyCar history.

Firestone will use the event to demonstrate the performance of a new sustainable natural rubber derived from guayule, a desert shrub grown in the American Southwest. Firestone Firehawk race tires made with guayule-derived natural rubber were introduced at the Indy 500 Pit Stop Challenge in May and will make their competition debut as the alternate tire in Nashville. The guayule natural rubber is located within the Firestone Firehawk’s sidewall. Bridgestone race tire engineers decided to use the guayule rubber in the entire sidewall because that area is made up of the most natural rubber. Bridgestone Americas, plans to incorporate guayule natural rubber into more of its race tires starting in 2023.

Cara Krstolic, director of race tire engineering and production at Bridgestone Americas Motorsports, says the green-sidewalled alternates will offer “the same performance and durability as a traditional Firestone tire,” as the tread compound is the same as the 2022 street course alternate tire. She adds that “the primary tire compound and construction are the same as last year’s street course tires.”

Track changes for Nashville's second IndyCar street race

When is the IndyCar race on the streets of Nashville?

Date: Friday, August 5 – Sunday, August 7

Start time: Saturday, 2.30pm Central Time

How can I watch the IndyCar race in Nashville?

NBC’s coverage of the 2022 Big Machine Music City Grand Prix will begin at 2.30pm on NBC.

Leigh Diffey will be the announcer for NBC’s coverage alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. All NTT IndyCar Series practice sessions and qualifying will stream live on Peacock Premium, NBC’s livestreaming product, while NBC’s race telecast will be simulcast on the streaming service. Peacock Premium’s exclusive post-race show will be streamed following the race. The Indy Lights race will be streamed on Peacock Premium, with practice and qualifying being shown on IndyCar Live!

IndyCar broadcast schedule (Central Time)

Friday, August 5

3.15-4.30pm – NTT IndyCar Series first practice – Peacock Premium

Saturday, August 6

11.15am-12.15pm – NTT IndyCar Series second practice – Peacock Premium
3.30pm – NTT IndyCar Series qualifying – Peacock Premium

Sunday, August 7

9.15-9.45am – NTT IndyCar Series warm-up – Peacock Premium
2.00-5.00pm – NBC broadcast begins
2.23pm – "Drivers start your engines"
2.30pm – Big Machine Music City Grand Prix (80 laps / 160.8-miles) – NBC live

Will the IndyCar race in Nashville be on the radio?

Mark Jaynes is the chief announcer alongside analyst Davey Hamilton. Nick Yeoman, Jake Query and Michael Young are the turn announcers, while pit reporters are Ryan Myrehn and Joel Sebastianelli. The Big Machine Music City Grand Prix in Nashville, along with its race, practices and qualifying sessions, air live on network affiliates, SiriusXM 160, racecontrol.indycar.com and the IndyCar app powered by NTT DATA.

Race Notes

How many laps is the IndyCar race on the streets of Nashville? 80 laps (168 miles)

Track: 2.1-mile 11-turn street course in Nashville, TN.

Firestone tire allotment: Six sets of primary tires (seven for rookies), four sets of alternate tires to be used through the two days.

Push-to-pass parameters: 200sec total time, with a maximum time of 15sec per activation.

2021 Nashville GP winner: Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing-Honda.

2021 Nashville GP pole-winner: Colton Herta, Andretti Autosport-Honda

Qualifying lap record: Herta, 1min13.6835sec (102.601mph), Aug. 7, 2021.

Entry list: