Rick Allen may be off the NASCAR airwaves for now, but the former NBC play-by-play voice has a new mic in hand. As the NFL preseason kicks off, Allen revealed he’s joining the Carolina Panthers as their in-stadium entertainment PA announcer.
Let’s go!! Starting my new role as entertainment PA announcer for @Panthers football games! #KeepPounding pic.twitter.com/t5xvlTV6HS
— Rick Allen (@RickAllenracing) August 8, 2025
Allen’s 20-plus-year NASCAR broadcasting career hit pause when NBC opted not to renew his contract at the end of 2024. On an April episode of The Dale Jr. Download, he revealed that he learned in January 2024 he’d be replaced, just months after an NBC executive had allegedly told him a long-term deal was on the table. Leigh Diffey took over Cup Series duties, while Allen finished his NBC run calling Xfinity Series races before that series moved to The CW.
“At the time, I didn’t understand that. I guess I didn’t know why that would be the way you would transition somebody in and me out,” he told Earnhardt Jr., his former NBC colleague. “I didn’t know why. I went into that lunch meeting not having a clue my contract wouldn’t be renewed… I was crushed.”
Away from the booth, Allen has been spending more time in the Carolinas, building custom cabinets and wood furniture. He even jumped back into racing coverage in June 2025, stepping in to call a CARS Tour race, a series co-owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Since his departure — and after hearing his side of the story on Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s podcast — many NASCAR fans have voiced how much they miss Allen’s presence in the booth. Whether he’ll return to calling races remains uncertain, but he’s made it clear he’d jump at the chance.