LEIGH DIFFEY – THE VOICE OF CHOICE
Leigh Diffey is one of Australia’s greatest motorsport exports, even if he has never raced.
The one-time star caller for Supercars is now a worldwide television presence as the face – and voice – of IndyCar racing in the USA.
He has never lost his Queensland twang, or his Downunder sense of humour, yet still banks a seven-figure salary from the giant NBC network and this year fronted its track-and-field coverage from the Olympics Games.
In the latest edition Diffey sits down for an exclusive interview with AUTO ACTION to discuss his commentary career.
Here is an extract from the interview where he discusses modern day drivers.
If you ask Leigh Diffey to name the best racing driver in the world, right now, the answer will come as a shock.
It’s not Lewis Hamilton, or Max Verstappen, or Alex Palou or even Shane van Gisbergen Diffey goes for Kyle Larson, and he should know.
The transplanted Queenslander has his finger on the pulse of all forms of motorsport, from Formula 1 and MotoGP to Supercross and IndyCar and NASCAR, in his role as the motorsport frontman for the giant NBC Network in the USA.
It’s a massive change, and a huge achievement, for a Brisbane boy whose original dream was to call the homegrown Supercars.
“How do I describe myself? I’m a broadcaster,” Diffey tells Auto Action from his American home, deep in the green belt just outside New York City.
The kid who started as a trackside commentator for local motocross, where he spruiked his youthful mate Darryl Beattie, is now a 50-year-old veteran who has been at the tip of Supercars broadcasting, lived in London to commentate the World Superbike Championship, and is now at the top of his game – and his business.
Apart from anchoring the live coverage of the IndyCar Series, Diffey has just completed another Olympic Games with NBC, this time as the lead commentator for track-and-field. And he has a big role in broadcasting Rugby.
But back to Kyle Larson.
“The best driver? In anything?
“Currently, in the world?,” says Diffey as he searches for an answer to the question. As always for Diff (or ‘Stiffey’) it must be The Right Answer.
“One of the best drivers in the world, by far, is Kyle Larson. The guy is in a car about four times a week. And he has just dominated NASCAR this year.”
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