NBC SPORTS GROUP ADDS REPORTERS DAVE BURNS & MIKE MASSARO TO NASCAR BROADCAST TEAM

Experienced Motorsports Reporters Join Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast to Round Out

NBC Sports' Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series Pit Crew, Starting in 2015

STAMFORD, Conn. - November 6, 2014 - NBC Sports Group has reached agreements with motorsports reporters Dave Burns and Mike Massaro, who will join NBC's multiplatform NASCAR coverage in 2015. In addition to covering pit road during Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series action on NBC and NBCSN, Massaro and Burns will contribute to NASCAR AMERICA on NBCSN, as well as handle assignments throughout various NBC Sports properties. The announcement was made today by Sam Flood, Executive Producer, NBC Sports and NBCSN.

"We've known Dave Burns for a long time, and are excited to welcome back his ability to make strong contributions," said Flood. "Dave was a member of NBC Sports' Emmy Award-wining NASCAR broadcast team during our last partnership, and brings extensive knowledge and experience into his role."

"Mike Massaro has developed into a talented reporter and host, with great relationships that have formed over the course of two decades in motorsports," said Flood. "We're happy to welcome him to NBC Sports and are looking forward to his work on pit road, as well as his contributions to NASCAR AMERICA on NBCSN."

The appointments of Massaro and Burns follow previous NBC Sports NASCAR on-air announcements for analysts Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte, race announcer Rick Allen, pre- and post-race host Krista Voda, and fellow reporters Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast.

Burns has more than 25 years of motorsports experience, having covered everything from NASCAR Sprint Cup to Sports Cars at LeMans, Daytona and Sebring, to SuperBikes, Formula cars and Legends. His on-air career began as a hobby, announcing American Speed Association stock car races. Radio and television roles with the ASA led to his first NASCAR coverage of their truck series on ESPN, where he developed the skills that led to his appointment as one of NBC Sports' NASCAR pit road reporters in 2001. His success in that role contributed to NBC Sports' Outstanding Live Sports Series Emmy Award for NASCAR coverage in 2006. In 2007, Burns re-joined ESPN, where he has handled NASCAR Sprint Cup coverage as both a reporter and announcer over the last eight years. Burns lives in Charlotte, N.C., with his wife and daughter.

"I feel truly blessed to be back with the NBC Sports team, or more accurately: NBC Sports family," said Burns. "NASCAR is such a cool sport to cover, and I enjoyed a great run of success with NBC from 2001-06. I've developed great working relationships throughout NASCAR over the years, and could not be more excited about the future."

Massaro also joins NBC Sports from ESPN, where he has been handling motorsports coverage and other assignments since 2001 as a reporter during live events and contributing to properties such as SportsCenter and Outside the Lines. Over the past eight years, Massaro has been working alongside Burns on pit road during ESPN's NASCAR Sprint Cup series coverage. Previously, Massaro served as a reporter for RPM2Night, and as host/reporter for ESPN2's NASCAR Now. In his first announcing duties, he handled the public address system at Stafford Motor Speedway in upstate Connecticut. From there, he joined MRN Radio, which led to increased exposure as a reporter for Inside NASCAR on TNN, and assignments on pit road for NBC and TBS. In 2000, he earned a National Motorsports Press Association and Russ Catlin Motorsports Journalism Award for a feature on the late Dale Earnhardt. To date, Massaro has won three Russ Catlin Motorsports Journalism awards, and four from the NMPA. Massaro lives outside of Hartford, Conn.

"I'm extremely thankful to have experienced many amazing things over the last two decades, and this opportunity to join NBC's NASCAR coverage is the validation of a dream," said Massaro. "NBC's dedication to storytelling is something that I value and look forward to advancing as part of the next generation of NASCAR coverage."

On July 23, 2013, NASCAR and NBC Sports Group reached a comprehensive agreement that grants NBCUniversal exclusive rights to the final 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, final 19 NASCAR XFINITY Series events, select NASCAR Regional & Touring Series events and other live content, beginning in 2015.

With this partnership, NBC's 20 Sprint Cup race schedule includes a designation as the exclusive home to the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, when the elite national series races through its final 10 events of the season. The Chase culminates with the season-ending championship event, which returns to network television in 2015 for the first time since 2009. Of NBC Sports Group's 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events, seven will be carried on NBC annually, with 13 airing on NBCSN. Four of NBC Sports Group's 19 NASCAR XFINITY Series races will air on NBC, with 15 airing on NBCSN.

NASCAR AMERICA premiered in February, following Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Daytona 500 victory and NBC Sports Group's multi-platform coverage of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi. The weekday 30-minute news and highlights program is hosted primarily by NASCAR on NBC lead race announcer Rick Allen and features regular appearances by NBC Sports NASCAR analyst Jeff Burton, reporters Marty Snider, Kelli Stavast, as well as guest analysts such as Kyle Petty, Bobby Labonte, Wally Dallenbach and Frank Stoddard.