Race Weekend Central

Kevin Harvick Expands TV Responsibilities with FOX for 2017

On Wednesday morning, FOX Sports announced that Kevin Harvick will once again return to the broadcast booth for the third straight year.  For 2017, Harvick’s TV role will expand quite a bit.  He will be in the booth for five XFINITY Series races, starting with the season-opening PowerShares QQQ 300 at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 25.  From there, Harvick will also serve as an analyst at Phoenix, Bristol, Talladega and Pocono alongside play-by-play commentator Adam Alexander and fellow analyst Michael Waltrip.

In addition, Harvick will also be in the broadcast booth as an analyst for three Camping World Truck Series races.  Those events will be at Kansas and Eldora on FOX Sports 1, and Talladega on FOX.

For some of the drivers that have worked in the broadcast booth over the past couple of years, booth analysis is a fun diversion.  For Harvick, the work is far more than that.

“I really enjoy calling races,” Harvick said in a press release.  “I enjoy the perspective of sitting up there and trying to figure out what’s going on. I also want to be a part of watching these young guys come up through the NASCAR Camping World Truck and XFINITY Series and have the experience of having been in the booth when they raced because, ultimately, it’s something I want to do down the road when I’m done driving.”

For FOX Sports President, COO and Executive Producer Eric Shanks, it took about five minutes to him to know that Harvick was the real deal in the booth.

“In his first few minutes in the FOX NASCAR booth at Daytona in 2015, Kevin Harvick quickly proved himself a natural as an analyst,” Shanks stated.  “He offers thought-provoking analysis each time he speaks, and does so in a concise and entertaining manner. We are thrilled to have him back this season for an expanded schedule of races.”

In addition to his work in the broadcast booth, Harvick will join the roster of in-studio analysts on FOX Sports 1’s NASCAR RaceHub.  While his schedule on the show is currently unclear.

Harvick is just the first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver that has been confirmed as a booth analyst in 2017.  FOX Sports plans additional announcements to fill out the booth analyst roster for the season.

About the author

Phil Allaway has three primary roles at Frontstretch. He's the manager of the site's FREE e-mail newsletter that publishes Monday-Friday and occasionally on weekends. He keeps TV broadcasters honest with weekly editions of Couch Potato Tuesday and serves as the site's Sports Car racing editor.

Outside of Frontstretch, Phil is the press officer for Lebanon Valley Speedway in West Lebanon, N.Y. He covers all the action on the high-banked dirt track from regular DIRTcar Modified racing to occasional visits from touring series such as the Super DIRTcar Series.

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rg72

Phil, unrelated to this, but any insight on the Mike Massaro situation? Something seems strange.

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