NASCAR says no decision imminent on possible CBS race move

NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 15, 2026

NASCAR TV talks

NASCAR has not made a decision on a possible move that would put TNT Sports Cup Series races on CBS’s broadcast network, and CEO Steve O’Donnell said no call is imminent. O’Donnell plans to meet with CBS Sports president and CEO David Berson about the idea, which became possible after Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery merged into Skydance and placed TNT Sports and CBS Sports under the same corporate umbrella. The discussion centers on a possible shift of TNT’s Cup Series races, either by putting them on CBS or by simulcasting them, but NASCAR enters the talks from a position of stability. O’Donnell said the sport is happy with its current television partners, and the league is not rushing toward a change. That matters because NASCAR is still working through the early years of a seven-year media deal, and any adjustment would come later in the contract cycle. The league could still make changes to its TV lineup in 2027, the third year of that deal, but for now the focus stays on what is already in place and on what the market might support if the parties choose to revisit the package.

CBS network option

CBS’s involvement would carry history with it. The network previously aired NASCAR for 21 years, starting with the first live flag-to-flag Daytona 500 in 1979. That long run gives any possible return a familiar feel, even though the current television landscape looks different from the one that existed when CBS first entered the sport. NASCAR’s broader TV picture gives the proposal more context. Overall viewership for the sport is down about 15% in the first year of the new paywalled media deals compared with 2024, while races shown on traditional broadcast networks have drawn better numbers than NASCAR’s overall audience. That gap explains why a CBS airing or simulcast could attract interest. Broadcast reach still has value in a fragmented TV market, and NASCAR’s recent numbers show that the network window continues to perform better than the full package on average. TNT’s five Cup Series races this season averaged about 2.0 million to 2.1 million viewers, a solid benchmark within the current setup. Those figures help frame the talks. They show why NASCAR would consider a broader platform, and they also show why the sport is not under pressure to move quickly. The current package has delivered measurable audiences, and the league can compare that performance against the upside of a broadcast outlet before making any decision.

NASCAR 2027 changes

Any real change would land well down the road. TNT Sports is in the second year of its seven-year NASCAR deal, and its next scheduled race is in July 2027. That timing gives NASCAR room to weigh the value of the existing arrangement against the possibilities that come with CBS’s reach. The sports calendar already lists upcoming Cup Series races at Sonoma, EchoPark Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the San Diego Street Race and Bristol Motor Speedway, which shows how much of the schedule remains to play out before any structural change would matter. For now, TNT keeps its five midseason Cup Series races, and NASCAR keeps its current lineup intact. The league’s leadership has left the door open to future changes, but the message from O’Donnell is clear, there is no immediate shift coming. The talks with CBS are part of a longer-term evaluation, not a last-minute scramble. NASCAR has time to study audience trends, compare broadcast and pay TV performance and decide whether a move or simulcast makes sense when the contract reaches its later stages. Until then, the sport stays with its existing partners and watches how the numbers continue to evolve.