TULSA, Okla. (November 14, 2012) – Major League Fishing announced today that its second televised event – The General Tire Summit Cup – will premiere on Outdoor Channel at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on Thursday, January 3, 2013. Summit Cup episodes will air six times per week, an increase of one episode per week from the first season.
Outdoor Channel produced seven episodes of the Summit Cup, which was held in late August on Western New York’s Chautauqua Lake. Each day of the six-day competition comprises one episode with the seventh episode showcasing insider fishing tips.
The Summit Cup broadcasts will be shown throughout the first quarter of 2013 on Outdoor Channel. The Championship Round also will air on February 9 at 1 p.m. ET/Noon CT on the NBC network. Subsequent to its airing on NBC, the championship round will re-air on Outdoor Channel the following week.
In addition to new episodes airing on Thursdays, Outdoor Channel will rebroadcast the Jack Link’s Major League Fishing one-hour episodes throughout the week, allowing fans to catch a competition day they may have missed:
• Friday: 7:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. CT
• Saturday: 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT
• Sunday: 4:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. CT
• Tuesday: 1 p.m. ET/Noon CT
• Thursday: 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT
“We are delighted to have an outstanding television schedule for the Summit Cup. It is quite evident, with the addition of another hour per week of coverage, that Outdoor Channel believes it has a great product in Major League Fishing,” said Major League Fishing Commissioner Don Rucks.
“I believe anyone who watched our first event saw that Major League Fishing broke new ground with the way we covered professional competitive fishing. The second set of broadcasts will be even better. We had a great event at Chautauqua Lake, and I can’t wait for sports fans to watch how these top-level anglers performed with no practice on one of the finest venues in the country,” added Rucks.
Tom Hornish, Outdoor Channel President and CEO, said "Major League Fishing is among the cornerstone original programs appearing on our network in the first quarter of 2013. We know there is significant interest in the world of pro bass fishing among our viewers and are pleased to have worked closely with the league to offer the series on both Outdoor Channel and NBC.”
Major League Fishing is a partnership between Outdoor Channel and 24 of the world’s best anglers. The league features made-for-television bass fishing events designed to bring high-level challenges to participants and entertainment, as well as insight, to audiences.
Major League Fishing’s made-for-television events utilize a format that allows anglers to weigh all the score-able bass that they catch. The bass are immediately weighed after they are caught, then released back into the water. Anglers know where they rank in the standings at all times via real-time leader boards in their boats. The competitors are not allowed to practice before events and knew the Chautauqua Lake destination only two days prior to the start of the Summit Cup.