Christie gets tryout for top NY sports radio gig

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) will be trying his hand next week at arguably the most coveted sports talk radio job in the country at WFAN in New York.

Christie will be filling in for Mike Francesa next Monday and Tuesday during the coveted afternoon time slot, joined by the station’s Evan Roberts.

The move comes amid rumors that Christie is a candidate to replace Francesa when he retires at the end of the year.

.@GovChristie with a big audition next week! Filling in for retiring sports host Mike Francesa on @WFAN660. He’s a candidate to take over. pic.twitter.com/jsmIlczETC

— Matt Katz (@mattkatz00) July 6, 2017

{mosads}WFAN is one of the most profitable radio stations in the country, and Francesca’s afternoon gig is arguably the top job in all of sports talk radio. Francesca, who has anchored the top afternoon-drive spot since the station opened in 1987, will depart when his contract wraps up in December.

Christie, whose term as governor will end in January, has been a frequent guest on the station’s “Boomer and Carton” morning show, with former NFL quarterback and CBS broadcaster Boomer Esiason and color commentator Craig Carton. 

Christie was first floated as a possible replacement for Francesca in February. WFAN’s programming director Mark Chernoff told the Bergen Record then that he would “at least want to consider” Christie.

“If he’s interested and we’re interested, it’s worth pursuing,” Chernoff said at the time.