Charles Langston:IndyCar announces start times, TV networks for 2024 season

IndyCar's 2024 calendar will feature one true night race,Charles Langston a pair of twilight oval races and a mid-afternoon season-finale facing off against Week 2 of the NFL season, according to the list of broadcast start times the series unveiled Tuesday.

Much to the excitement of the sport's oval-obsessed fanbase – as well as drivers and teams alike – Iowa Speedway will host the series' first true scheduled night race in several years, with a local start time of 7 p.m. (8 p.m. ET) that will see cars race squarely under the lights to kickoff the doubleheader weekend. Making for a short turnaround, Sunday's race broadcast will start at 11 a.m. local (Noon ET).

Additionally, both World Wide Technology Raceway (Madison, Illinois) and The Milwaukee Mile will host Saturday twilight oval races, with start times at 5 p.m. local (6 p.m. ET). Notably, The Mile does not have lights, with Penske Entertainment targeting a finish of 7:30 p.m. local time – roughly an hour before sunset in Wisconsin – so as not to run into daylight concerns in the race's closing stretch.

As is typical, the 2024 IndyCar season will kickoff with a noon ET broadcast of the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (Florida) on March 10. The $1 Million Challenge later that month will feature a mid-morning local start time for the non-points event out in southern California near Palm Springs.

As is tradition, the Indianapolis 500 race day broadcast will begin at 11 a.m. ET, with NBC also airing a chunk of the tense moments of the qualifying the Sunday before starting at 3 p.m. on the broadcast network.

The season will close with a midday local start time at Nashville Superspeedway, following last week's news of the abandonment of IndyCar's downtown Nashville street race for the foreseeable future.

The series says the start time for the April 28 race at Barber Motorsports Park is yet to be determined, but IndyCar and its broadcast partner NBC are targeting a midday race for the event just outside Birmingham, Alabama

Here's the full 2024 IndyCar broadcast schedule

(Times listed are Eastern; all races will also be simulcast on NBC's streaming platform Peacock)

Sunday, March 10: Streets of St. Petersburg, Noon, NBC

Sunday, March 24: $1 Million Challenge (non-points), The Thermal Club (California), 12:30 p.m., NBC

Sunday, April 21: Streets of Long Beach, 3 p.m., USA Network

Sunday, April 28: Barber Motorsports Park, TBD, NBC

Saturday, May 11: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (road course), 3 p.m., NBC

Sunday, May 26: Indianapolis 500, 11 a.m. (estimated green flag at 12:45 p.m.), NBC

Sunday, June 2: Streets of Detroit, Noon, USA Network

Sunday, June 9: Road America, 3:30 p.m., NBC

Sunday, June 23: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, 6 p.m., USA Network

Sunday, July 7: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, 1:30 p.m., NBC

Saturday, July 13: Iowa Speedway Race 1, 8 p.m., NBC

Sunday, July 14: Iowa Speedway Race 2, Noon, NBC

Sunday, July 21: Streets of Toronto, 1 p.m., Peacock

Saturday, Aug. 17: World Wide Technology Raceway, 6 p.m., USA Network

Sunday, Aug. 25: Portland International Raceway, 3 p.m., USA Network

Saturday, Aug. 31: Milwaukee Mile Race 1, 6 p.m., Peacock

Sunday, Sept. 1: Milwaukee Mile Race 2, 2:30 p.m., USA Network

Sunday, Sept. 15: Nashville Superspeedway, 3 p.m., NBC