By: Zach Catanzareti, Staff Writer
Sunday is a hallmark day for NBC, as the network with broadcast the Indianapolis 500 for the first time.
And from the commentating booth, they will be in good hands, as Townsend Bell and Paul Tracy partner play-by-play announcer Leigh Diffey to call the 103rd running from Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
For Diffey, broadcasting has been in his blood ever since he was caught calling school pet shows at six years of age in his home country of Australia. The early interest eventually morphed into a 22-year career of calling some of the world’s highest sports events and motor races, including the Olympic Games and the Formula 1 World Championship.
Now, Diffey gets to add the Indy 500 to his career credentials. And it tops the rest.
“It will be the pinnacle of my career,” Diffey said. “I’ve done three Olympic Games already and I’ve done about the majority of the world’s motorsport events. There is no question this is the pinnacle.
“I say that because so many people have had the opportunity to do the Olympic Games and many motorsport events, but not many have been the play-by-play announcer for the Indianapolis 500. That is something not lost on me.”
If there’s one thing NBC has become engrained in this Month of May, it’s preparation. Expanding its coverage for both pre- and postrace — along with new on-air talent and the enormity of the day — Diffey hasn’t let it penetrate what the duty at hand.
“It asks you to do more than maybe what you normally would,” he said of the race. “That said, I defer to our friend Mario Andretti who has a terrific saying: ‘If you change what you do for the big events, you’re doing all the regular events wrong.’ Therefore, I’m trying to keep this as normal as I can.”
Now, though Diffey may hopes for normalcy Sunday afternoon from Indy, his partners in the booth may complicate that goal.
Paul Tracy and Townsend Bell join Diffey as color commentators, continuing what has been a lengthy partnership among the trio in the NTT IndyCar Series TV booth. Tracy and Bell are both former IndyCar drivers, combining for 17 Indy 500 starts from 1991 to 2016 and bring unique perspectives to the great race.
“They’re the odd couple,” Diffey said. “They’re two very different people, two different personalities. But they share the same passion for the sport.”
For Bell, the off-air relationship with Diffey and Tracy leads to a greater on-air gelling during the race.
“It’s a Motley Crue,” Bell said of the trio. “With Leigh, you have, in my opinion, the very finest motorsports play-by-play commentator in the world because of his diverse background. Leigh Diffey has done everything there is to do with an engine in terms of commentating. He works so hard to prepare, he knows the sport inside and out. He knows more about my career than I do.
“Paul is just his own… enigma [laughs]. It’s just a good personal and professional kinship that had been a lot of fun.”
Tracy has been happy to not only see the relationship grow between himself Diffey Bell, but also how NBC has handled their first Indy 500 broadcast.
“We’re all buddies on- and off-air,” Tracy said. “We’re up there in the booth and it’s conversational. It’s just like sitting on the couch with your buddies watching a race. Obviously, we’re not swearing or anything like that [laughs] but we have a good time, we enjoy what we do and I think that shows well on TV.
“It’s great for the fans. Nothing against ABC, but the race would end right away and you’d get one interview in — we’re going to have a four-hour prerace show and a 2.5-hour postrace show. Everybody is going to get all the information pre- and postrace. We’re going to give IndyCar the absolute best product they’ve ever had.”
Diffey takes it upon himself to partner their experiences to create a conversational back-and-forth while the race progresses… no matter the degree of debate.
“The three of us are mates, we talk in between races, we ring, we text, we know each other’s families,” Diffey said. “Most nights, it would be very odd for us not to have dinner together on a race weekend. That chemistry comes through on air because we like hanging out with each other. We appreciate and respect each other’s opinions.
“Is there a little theatre in their on-air rivalry? Yes, a little bit. But if Townsend disagrees with something Paul said, he’s not afraid to disagree. And likewise, Paul has more front than a Roman candle. He’s going to take that step at Townsend. There’s some theatre, but there’s a lot of integrity in their disagreements.”
Bell enjoys the conversations, knowing it’s based in passion.
“The key is we have fun, we play off each other well,” Bell said. “There is also some tension as well, especially between me and Paul that I think people enjoy. I’m not afraid to stick it to him on occasion and vice-versa.
“Wherever this goes in the future for me, I’ll certainly cherish what we have right now. It doesn’t feel like you’re working. It feels like just three guys watching a race. When we get excited, it’s authentic. We’re pumped up.”