A tw0-hour delay for a pothole interrupted the Daytona 500 on Sunday but Fox Sports did about the best it could -- from start-of-the-season talk to an interview with NASCAR chairman Brian France -- as a way to fill time.What was most lacking during coverage of the delay was a closer camera angle of what was happening at the fix spot or even more specific information about the attempt to fix the situation. Still, racing fans are a loyal bunch, so many probably stayed with the coverage -- and those who did not could flip to NBC's coverage of the Winter Olympics.
During the race delay, NBC had live coverage of the nordic combined as Johnny Spillane of the United States earned the silver medal (the first for a U.S. competitor in the event) while three U.S. competitors finished among the top six in the event. On TV it was simply cross country skiing, the second half of two events in the nordic combined. That might not serve as appointment viewing for some sports fans, but the event finished in just over 25 minutes and it was contested in four laps. Again, that's something casual viewers could grasp, and certainly any who had switched over from NASCAR.
In addition to that event Sunday, NBC had Apolo Ohno finishing second in the 1,500-meter short track speedskating event Saturday night -- another easy-to-understand event that can engage viewers because of its physicality and speed. So far, it seems like a good start in terms of coverage and storylines for the Olympic network.
For NASCAR, the weekend also included Saturday's Nationwide Series race, which included the debut of Danica Patrick in the series. Some certainly think she got too much attention leading up to and during the race, but she was clearly the storyline. And, after some early race struggles, she seemed to be getting more comfortable in the car. Nobody realistically expected a top-10 or even top-20 finish in her debut, and her eventual 35th-place result was the result of getting caught in an accident she could not avoid and that was not her fault.
She'll be back, with the accompanying attention, this weekend when the series visits California.
One thing ESPN avoided or missed with coverage of the race, though, was Tony Stewart's patient pass of Patrick. He started deep in the field, came up on Patrick fairly early and kept his distance -- clearly wary of any rookie driver -- before eventually getting around her. While the broadcast crew talked about him moving through the field, it seemed like they missed Stewart's obvious attempt to give Patrick as much room as possible. From his perspective, had he pushed hard and gotten her loose, he would've been the bad guy. At the same time, if he'd have gotten to close and she would've wobbled it could've hurt his chances -- and he eventually won the race.
His pass was not a big moment in the race, but it was a subtle thing that could've been addressed for viewers.
On Sunday, Fox Sports missed another obvious-on-TV moment. They talked about legendary Richard Petty driving the pace car for the Daytona 500, but a view of the car on the track clearly showed the 82-year-old "king" of stock-car racing in the passenger seat. Not that it matters, because nobody really expects Petty to drive the car, but it was just an example of missing the obvious.