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Leigh Diffey will make his long-awaited return to the NASCAR booth in a highly anticipated move. Diffey, who has not been in the booth for a NASCAR race in seven years, will replace Rick Allen, the longtime voice of NASCAR on NBC, beginning at the Aug. 24 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona.
Nathan Brown of the Indianapolis Star first reported that NBC staff had been informed of the impending move, confirming the long-rumored personnel change. Diffey will join a familiar pair of Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte in the booth.
Diffey has been the play-by-play voice of the NTT Indy Car Series on NBC since 2013 and has been with NBC since. In his career, Diffey has been a play-by-play voice for Indy Car, NASCAR, IMSA, Olympic Track and Field, and Formula 1.
Known for his energy and excitement, Diffey is a fan favorite in the booth. In taking over, Diffey will return to the NASCAR booth for the first time since 2017, when he last filled in for Rick Allen.
The move comes after multiple motorsports TV rights negotiations involving Amazon, The CW Network, Fox Sports, Indy Car, NASCAR, NBC Sports, and TNT Sports. NASCAR has given Cup Series coverage to Amazon Prime and TNT, complementing Fox and NBC’s coverage.
Rumors of Diffey’s move to the Cup booth surfaced as early as March of this year. However, when rumors of Fox picking up Indy Car’s TV rights for 2025 gained traction, the move looked more apparent than ever.
In turn, one name that will not be with Diffey in the booth for the rest of this season is Dale Earnhardt Jr. Earnhardt was with NBC before this season and took a year off before joining TNT Sports and Amazon Prime for 2025.
Amazon/TNT coverage still lacks an official play-by-play broadcaster. However, some think Rick Allen could be an option for the position.
Allen will cover the rest of the Xfinity season for NBC until the CW takes over coverage late this year and into next year. Allen has worked in NASCAR for over 20 years and has been with NBC since it gained NASCAR coverage in 2015. Like many announcers, he has earned criticism for his approach to the craft; however, many fans respect his delivery in critical moments.
Diffey’s move is by no means the end of what has been dubbed “broadcaster silly season,” with names still flying around to fill multiple jobs, including those outside NASCAR.
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