A cable TV mogul and a professional wrestler have teamed up to relaunch a television channel dedicated to automobiles and motorsports.
Later this year, now-defunct cable channel Speedvision will return as a free, ad-supported streaming channel on a handful of platforms, including TCL Channel, LocalNow, Redbox Free TV, Plex, and an upcoming service that will will be launched by MyBundle.TV.
The revived Speedvision will be overseen by Robert Scanlon, a cable television executive who was one of three co-founders of the original pay-TV network launched in the mid-1990s. The cable version of Speedvision was acquired by News Corporation, then Fox’s parent company, in the early 2000s and renamed “Speed”, which eventually became Fox Sports 1.
The new Speedvision will be backed by an advisory board of superstars, including former World Championship Wrestling entertainer Bill Goldberg, motor racing businessman Rick Hendrick and advertising industry sales guru Joe Abruzzese.
“Speedvision’s management team has a proven track record of viewership, revenue and growth,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
Speedvision will debut with over 500 hours of original motorsport and automotive-focused content. Goldberg will also fill the role as on-air talent, as will a suite of other television and motor racing personalities, including Wayne Carini, Mark Worman, Stacy David, Ant Anstead and Ray Evernham.
“I’ve been a super fan of Speedvision since the ’90s, and it’s still my all-time favorite network,” Goldberg said. “It’s a timeless brand that represents all the best in the world of vehicles.”
Scanlon echoed that enthusiasm, calling the original cable channel “the best brand of media ever offered to automotive enthusiasts”.
“These fans still see it as the pinnacle of the genre,” Scanlon claimed. “I know from first-hand experience that the team of content creators and strategic partners we’ve enlisted for the new Speedvision will match and build on the legacy of the original, which has been imitated many times but never equaled.”
Shows slated to air on Speedvision include:
- AmeriCARnahosted by NASCAR Team Principal Ray Evernham, promises to take visitors on a guided tour of the most iconic cars ever built.
- Aviationa documentary series that explores the history of aviation and airplanes, proves that Speedvision is about vehicles, whether ground or not.
- Gearzhosted by customization expert Stacey David, dives into creating Hot Rods and other high-end cars from simple street vehicles.
- Radford’s Return, a docuseries exploring the story of Harold Radford, a company that built custom, high-end vehicles for moguls, celebrities and others. Ant Anstead, the former co-host of “Wheeler Dealers”, and former Formula 1 world champion Jensen Button will present the programme.
- Talking about classic carshosted by Wayne Carini, is a show about classic cars.
- What’s in the Barn? is like “Storage Wars”, but for motorcycles.
No specific date has been set for the launch of Speedvision, but the company has a website where viewers can drop their email address to be notified when the channel is available.
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