2002 Trans-Am television schedule

2002 Trans-Am television schedule features five live broadcasts.

CLEARWATER, Fla. (April 9, 2002) -- Five live telecasts highlight the 2002 Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup television schedule released today.

SPEED Channel (formerly Speedvision) and CBS Sports will once again join the Trans-Am Series as broadcast partners for the 2002 season. SPEED Channel will carry four of the series' five live broadcasts, while CBS Sports will air live coverage of the inaugural National Grand Prix of Washington, D.C. on Saturday, July 20.

SPEED Channel's live Trans-Am broadcasts will include the events from Mosport (Ont.) Park on Sunday, May 19; Lime Rock (Conn.) Park on Monday, May 27; Trois-Rivieres (Quebec) on Sunday, Aug. 4 and the season finale from Virginia International Raceway on Sunday, Oct. 27.

In all, SPEED Channel will broadcast nine of 12 Trans-Am events during the 2002 season, while CBS Sports will carry three. Including re-airs, more than 40 hours of Trans-Am race coverage will be broadcast on the two networks during the coming campaign.

Date and broadcast time of the Grand Prix of the Americas, scheduled for Oct. 4-6 on the streets of Miami, Fla., have yet to be determined.

"SPEED Channel has taken an aggressive approach toward becoming the pre-eminent provider of motorsports television in the United States," said Dennis Huth, Trans-Am Series president. "We are pleased to be part of the impressive list of properties that SPEED Channel has assembled in quest of this goal.

"In addition, we are delighted that CBS Sports has elected to continue the ground-breaking relationship we established with them last year," Huth added. "With the help of our television partners, we look forward to having the potential of bringing the excitement of Trans-Am racing into millions of homes during the coming season and beyond."

Rick Benjamin, and Greg Creamer will alternate as anchors for SPEED Channel's Trans-Am broadcasts, while the analyst's role will be filled by two-time (1983, '85) Trans-Am runner-up Willy T. Ribbs and former sports car racer Bill Adam. Pit reporting duties will be shared by Calvin Fish, Brian Till and Chris Neville.

"The Trans-Am Series is the type of racing that the SPEED Channel network was built on," said Jim Liberatore, SPEED Channel president. "It remains an important aspect of what we do; in fact, we've made a larger commitment to the series this year, with an additional race and an additional live telecast.

"It is important to us that SPEED Channel viewers know that we understand that it is series like the Trans-Am that make our network what it is."

Trans-Am Series coverage for 2002 launches with SPEED Channel's tape-delayed broadcast of Round 1, the Johnson Controls 100, from Long Beach, Calif. The event will air on Saturday, April 20, beginning at 5 p.m. ET.

<pre> The 2002 Trans-Am Series for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup television schedule:

Saturday, April 20 -- Johnson Controls 100, Long Beach, Calif., SPEED Channel, 5 p.m. ET (tape delay). Sunday, May 19 -- Mosport Park, Bowmanville, Ontario, SPEED Channel, 1 p.m. ET (live). Monday, May 27 -- Lime Rock Park, Lakeville, Conn., SPEED Channel, 3 p.m. ET (live). Saturday, June 29 -- Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio, CBS, 4 p.m. ET (same-day tape delay). Saturday, July 13 -- Burke Lakefront Airport, Cleveland, Ohio, CBS, 5 p.m. ET (same-day tape delay). Saturday, July 20 -- National Grand Prix of Washington, D.C., RFK Stadium, CBS, 2:30 p.m. ET (live). Sunday, August 4 -- Grand Prix de Trois Rivieres, Trois Rivieres, Quebec, Canada, SPEED Channel, 2:30 p.m. ET (live). Sunday, August 18 -- Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis., SPEED Channel, noon ET (tape delay). Sunday, September 8 -- Denver, Colo., SPEED Channel, 2 p.m. ET (tape delay). Sunday, October 6 (tentative) -- Grand Prix of the Americas, Miami, Fla., SPEED Channel, 2 p.m. Friday, October 18 -- Road Atlanta, Braselton, Ga., SPEED Channel, 8 p.m. ET (tape delay). Sunday, October 27 -- Virginia International Raceway, Alton, Va., SPEED Channel, 1 p.m. ET, (live). </pre> The Trans-Am Series, featuring "American Muscle Versus the World," enters its 37th season in 2002 as the longest- running road racing series in North America. Three-time and defending series champion Paul Gentilozzi will seek to become only the second driver ever to win four Trans-Am championships against a strong field of rivals including former champion Brian Simo, Johnny Miller, Lou Gigliotti, Mike Lewis and Rookie of the Year Justin Bell. All Trans-Am drivers compete for the prestigious BFGoodrich Tires Cup, emblematic of the series driving championship.

-scca pro racing/trans am-