FORMULA ONE(TM) BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX GOES "UNDER THE LIGHTS", HIGHLIGHTING THIS WEEK'S MOTORSPORTS COVERAGE ON NBCSN

Live Presentation of Bahrain Grand Prix Begins at 10:30 a.m. ET on Sunday on NBCSN; Encore Presentation Airs at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN

Live Coverage Starts with Practice Friday at 11 a.m. ET on NBCSN Followed by F1 Countdown; Qualifying Airs Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN

NBCSN Boasts Triple-Digit Gains vs. 2013 Through First Two Races of 2014 Formula One Season

Coverage of 2014 Indy Lights Season Begins Friday with St. Petersburg 100 at 4 p.m. ET on NBCSN

STAMFORD, Conn. - April 2, 2014 - NBC Sports Group's coverage of the 2014 Formula One(TM) season continues "under the lights" this weekend with live coverage of the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN, with an encore presentation at 2:30 p.m. ET. The action begins Friday at 11 a.m. ET with practice on NBCSN, followed by a live edition of F1 Countdown at 12:30 p.m. ET, and continues Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN with qualifying. F1 Extra, NBC Sports Group's post-race Formula One studio show, will air Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.

Sunday's race marks the first time the Bahrain Grand Prix has been run at nighttime, also commemorating the race's 10th anniversary following its inception in 2004. The Bahrain Grand Prix joins the Singapore Grand Prix as the only two Formula One night races.

Last week, Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) led the Malaysian Grand Prix wire-to-wire to earn his first victory of the 2014 F1 season, while teammate Nico Rosberg (Mercedes), who won the Australian Grand Prix on March 16, earned a second-place finish. Reigning F1 champion Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull), who has won four consecutive F1 World Championships and won last year's Bahrain Grand Prix, landed his first podium of the season in Malaysia with a third-place finish.

Lead F1 announcer Leigh Diffey will call the Bahrain Grand Prix, and will be joined by veteran analyst and former racecar driver David Hobbs, and analyst and former race mechanic for the Benetton F1 team Steve Matchett. F1 insider Will Buxton will serve as the team's on-site reporter from the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain.

In addition to its F1 coverage, NBCSN will begin its 2014 IndyCar coverage with the St. Petersburg 100, the first race in the 2014 Indy Lights schedule, on Friday at 4 p.m. ET. Indy Lights is the premier ladder series for drivers and teams striving to compete in the Verizon IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500.

NASCAR AMERICA, NBCSN's 30-minute weekday show highlighting the latest news in stock car racing, airs at 5 p.m. ET on Wednesday and Thursday this week. Host Rick Allen will be joined in-studio by analyst and current driver Jeff Burton on Wednesday, and motorsports analyst Wally Dallenbach Jr. on Thursday.

Following is this week's motorsports coverage schedule on NBCSN:

Date Program Network Time (ET)

Wed., April 2 NASCAR AMERICA NBCSN 5 p.m.

Thu., April 3 NASCAR AMERICA NBCSN 5 p.m.

Fri., April 4 Bahrain Grand Prix - Practice NBCSN 11 a.m. F1 Countdown NBCSN 12:30 p.m. Indy Lights - St. Petersburg 100 NBCSN 4 p.m. F1 Countdown (Encore) NBCSN 5 p.m.

Sat., April 5 Bahrain Grand Prix - Qualifying NBCSN 12:30 p.m.

Sun., April 6 Bahrain Grand Prix NBCSN 10:30 a.m. F1 Extra NBCSN 1 p.m. Bahrain Grand Prix (Encore) NBCSN 2:30 p.m. F1 Extra NBCSN 5 p.m.

NBCSN BOASTS TRIPLE-DIGIT GAINS VS. 2013 FOR FIRST TWO RACES OF 2014 FORMULA ONE SEASON

Through its first two races of the 2014 Formula One season, NBCSN has seen triple-digit gains from a season ago. The Australian and Malaysian Grands Prix averaged 248,000 viewers, up 102% from the first two races of the 2013 F1 season (123,000). In addition, the races have averaged 116,000 Adults 18-49, up 134% from 2013 (49,000). Both races took place in early-morning hours.

Last week's Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday, March 23 (3:30-5:54 a.m. ET) on NBCSN averaged 248,000 viewers, up 105% from last year's telecast (121,000). The race also averaged 121,000 Adults 18-49, up 175% from the viewership in that demographic in 2013 (44,000).

NBCSN's presentation of the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, March 16 (1:30-3:50 a.m. ET), the inaugural race of the 2014 F1 season, averaged 248,000 viewers, up 100% from last year's telecast on NBCSN (124,000). The race also averaged 111,000 Adults 18-49, up 102% from 2013 (55,000).

FORMULA ONE(TM) ON NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA: NBC Sports Live Extra - NBC Sports Group's live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets - will provide live comprehensive streaming coverage of the Bahrian Grand Prix and Indy Lights St. Petersburg 100 via "TV Everywhere," the media industry's effort to make quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of home and on multiple platforms.

For desktops, NBC Sports Live Extra can be accessed at NBCSports.com/liveextra. The NBC Sports Live Extra app for mobile devices and tablets is available at the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, and on select Android handset and tablet devices within Google Play.

Coverage will live stream to PCs, mobile devices and tablets through NBC Sports Live Extra, and to the digital platforms of participating cable, satellite, and telco services, via "TV Everywhere," which is available on an authenticated basis to subscribers of participating MVPDs.

MOTORSPORTSTALK: MotorSportsTalk (@MotorSportsTalk) on NBCSports.com brings racing fans up-to-the-minute news, video and information on the Formula One, Verizon IndyCar Series, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and all other motorsports racing from around the world. The site also serves as the destination for all news, analysis and video from NBC and NBCSN productions of IndyCar and F1, including contributions from on-air commentators.

MotorSportsTalk's content is provided by top racing journalists and expert analysts, including:

· Keith Collantine (@KeithCollantine), editor and creator of the F1Fanatic blog;

· Luke Smith (@LukeSmithF1) creator of the F1 site RichlandF1.com;

· Tony DiZinno (@TonyDiZinno), who has written for RACER Magazine and has covered IndyCar and NASCAR since 2006;

· Writer Christopher Estrada (@estradawriting) who has written for the Boston Globe, FoxSports.com, created the Indy Racing Revolution blog and is a contributor to IndyCar's IndyCar Nation blog.

To explore the site, please visit MotorSportsTalk.com.nbcsports.com or www.NBCSports.com.

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