NBC SPORTS GROUP WELCOMES USA TODAY'S NATE RYAN AS NASCAR CONTRIBUTING REPORTER

Award-Winning Motorsports Journalist and On-Air Reporter Joins NBC Sports Team Prior to Monday, Feb. 24th Launch of New Daily Show: NASCAR AMERICA

STAMFORD, Conn. - February 20, 2014 - Amid final preparations for Monday's launch of NASCAR AMERICA on NBCSN, NBC Sports welcomes USA TODAY Sports auto racing writer Nate Ryan to the Group's expanding roster of on-air talent. Ryan, who will cover his ninth Daytona 500 for USA TODAY Sports on Sunday, is set to join NASCAR AMERICA host Rick Allen, fellow reporters Kelli Stavast, Marty Snider, and a rotating panel of guest analysts when the show premieres on Monday, February 24 at 5 p.m. ET. The announcement was made today by Jeff Behnke, Vice President of NASCAR Production, NBC Sports Group.

"Nate's work ethic, relationships throughout the sport and sharp journalistic instincts have earned him an elite position within NASCAR over the last decade," said Behnke. "He is a terrific addition to the NBC Sports family and will add a lot to NASCAR AMERICA."

Ryan's contributions to NASCAR AMERICA will include interaction with NBCSN's new daily NASCAR show via reports from NASCAR venues nationwide and regular visits to NBC Sports' studio locations in Charlotte, N.C. and Stamford, Conn. Ryan's work will surround breaking news as well as feature stories, which melds nicely with his continuing role at USA TODAY Sports.

"The first NASCAR race I covered was also the first that I attended, and it bred an insatiable curiosity about a sport that is fueled by so many moving parts, both literally and figuratively," Ryan said. "I've tried to remain true to exploring the myriad storylines with a fresh and unique perspective, and I'm enthused and humbled to be afforded such a terrific platform with NBC Sports."

Ryan joined USA TODAY Sports in January 2006 as an auto racing writer and recently completed his 11th full season of covering the Sprint Cup Series. He has covered more than 300 races in NASCAR's premier series, beginning with the June 22, 1997 opening of California Speedway as a writer with the San Bernardino County Sun. He moved to the Richmond (Va.) Times-Dispatch as a backup NASCAR writer in 1998 and took over the full-time beat in May 2002.

Ryan is a four-time winner of the Russ Catlin Motorsports Journalism Award of Excellence and was named a two-time writer of the year by the National Motorsports Press Association. He has held a weekly Thursday morning spot on Sirius Satellite Radio's "The Morning Drive" since 2007 and has been a regular fill-in for the hosts and other programs since 2008, co-hosting several dozen times. He was a guest panelist on ESPN's "NASCAR Now" several times from 2009-11 and was a regular weekly contributor to Fox Sports One's "Race Hub" from 2012-13. Ryan graduated from Northwestern University in June 1995 with a bachelor's degree in journalism.