Pacing pit row before the race, Yocum quietly rehearsed his opening and planned tactics with his crew.
Circumstances dictate everything.
With his mother, Mary Yocum, working for Motorsports Management and running her own sponsor services company, Matt has racing motor oil in his blood. During high school and studying political science and communications at Florida State University, he worked for the International Race of Champions as a tire specialist and preparing race cars. Wrangling a sports production job for WESH-TV in Orlando after graduating from FSU in 1991, Yocum moved on to pit reporting for TNN and then ESPN, before hooking up with Fox and NBC this year. After a few minutes practice at the pits, Yocum marched his crew off to the drivers' motor home area to grab comments from drivers for a live pre-race show. That way you keep the pace moving and get more drivers in the show.