A time not so long ago, watching the race meant a shared experience, either crammed around a static television or huddled with a handheld scanner at the track. For decades, NASCAR was a relatively straightforward affair for the home viewer, primarily distributed through major networks and cable packages like CBS, ABC, and later ESPN, with all 500-mile events live since 1979. This single model offered a consistent way to catch the action, with in-car cameras in select cars being a groundbreaking feature, a novel view that was introduced as far back as the 1979 Daytona 500 telecast.

The modern era, however, has fractured this uniformity, replacing the familiar bundle with a disorienting menu of digital platforms, notably driven by NASCAR’s new media rights deal with partners like Amazon Pri

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