The NASCAR Cup Series’ final race of Prime’s five‑week broadcasting takeover, the Anduril 250, is being staged from an unlikely venue: the flight deck of the USS Carl Vinson, an aircraft carrier moored at Naval Base Coronado in San Diego.
A Unique Venue for a Unique Race
Play‑by‑play voice Adam Alexander, Hall of Fame driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., and former Daytona 500 crew chief Steve Letarte have been assembled to call the action, describing the setting as “unreal” and “distracting, to say the least.”
Earnhardt noted that the carrier offers sights and experiences that no traditional racetrack can provide, while Letarte found the whole arrangement “distracting, to say the least,” underscoring the novelty of broadcasting from a warship.
The USS Carl Vinson, commissioned in 1980 and powered by two Westinghouse A4W nuclear reactors, displaces over 100,000 long tons of water and can cruise at 30 knots. Its storied past includes participation in numerous U.S. operations, most notably the burial‑at‑sea of Osama bin Laden.
For viewers, the broadcast blends the roar of engines with the hum of jet turbines, creating a sensory backdrop that promises to make the Anduril 250 one of the most memorable NASCAR events in recent memory.