In 1992, nine of NASCAR’s top drivers ventured to Indianapolis Motor Speedway for a tire test.
That was Lafayette resident Nick Yeoman’s first real glimpse of stock car racing.
He was 4 years old.
Fresh off Tyler Reddick’s thrilling Daytona 500 victory, Yeoman, a 2006 Jefferson High School graduate, made his co-anchoring debut for Performance Racing Network alongside Brad Gillie at Atlanta Motor Speedway last weekend, culminating with calling a second straight Cup victory for Reddick.
Yeoman, a product of Lafayette Jeff’s student-run Jeff92 and Ball State University’s telecommunications program, got his break working with the IMS Radio Network through a 2010 introduction by Yeoman’s grandfather to former IndyCar chief announcer Mike King.
“When I went to Ball State, I knew I wanted to do something in sports broadcasting,” Yeoman said. “Motorsports was definitely an interest, but I didn’t really care what I did. When I went to Ball State, I tried everything. I got to broadcast basketball games, football games, I did some field hockey matches, swimming and diving meets.
“I tried and got exposed to everything. When you graduate, you’ll take any opportunity that is out there, right? The first avenue that opened up to me was in motorsports radio, and I just kind of ran with it.”
For 15 years, Yeoman’s voice was part of IndyCar’s season soundtrack and a recognizable part of the Indianapolis 500 broadcasts, and it was where he thought his future would be.
“I was kind of fully prepared to kind of just wait my turn, and I felt like I was probably in position to maybe replace Mark Jaynes as the anchor on the IndyCar Radio Network down the road whenever he decided to hang them up,” Yeoman said. “This opportunity on the NASCAR side kind of just fell right into my lap and fell from the sky.
“As much fun as it is to be a pit reporter and a turn announcer, being in the booth and kind of conducting the broadcast is certainly kind of one of those unique spots. When something like this opens up, and there’s an opportunity, it’s kind of hard to pass up.”
The opportunity to anchor took Yeoman to NASCAR, but it isn’t completely luring him away from IndyCar.
Yeoman will broadcast 10 IndyCar races this season, including the Indianapolis 500.
“It’s going to be pretty busy the next five or six months,” he said.
Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on X and Instagram @samueltking.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Lafayette’s Nick Yeoman makes NASCAR anchor debut after years with IndyCar
Reporting by Sam King, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
