Craig Carton is leaving WFAN.
The Post reported the move Thursday morning.
Carton confirmed his exit early in the afternoon, going on the WFAN air around 1 p.m., an hour earlier than normal, and gave a lengthy monologue about the career change.
“Happy day and a very sad day for me, it’s one of the most difficult days I’ll ever do in radio, because I’m leaving WFAN,” Carton said shortly after coming on the air.
Carton exits after nearly three years of radio rating success that led in part to cable sports network FS1 giving him a morning show last September that bears his name, “The Carton Show.”
Carton will now just do the FS1 program, which will pay him seven figures, according to sources. He said that June 30 will be his last day at WFAN.
For Carton, the financial difference between FAN and FS1 was too great and the previous schedule was too daunting to remain on afternoon radio in New York.
Even Audacy president Chris Oliviero, who oversees FAN, gave Carton his blessing to take the FS1 deal, according to sources.
FAN will now search for a new partner for Evan Roberts in the afternoon. Roberts will remain on the show and is likely to take Carton’s place as the driver of the program.
Internally, Tiki Barber is the leading candidate while, externally, Jerry Ferrara is someone WFAN will consider, according to sources.
Barber, the former Giants great, currently co-hosts FAN’s mid-morning show, “Tiki & Tierney.” Ferrara, who is from Bensonhurst, played Turtle on the HBO series “Entourage.” He did a show with Roberts earlier this year that FAN executives liked.
The twice retired Mike Francesa is not a candidate for another comeback.
Carton, 54, has wrestled with the decision to leave or not for months because of his love for radio and a loyalty factor.
Oliviero and WFAN were the architects of what has been a well orchestrated media comeback.
In November 2020, Oliviero gave Carton his second chance at the station after Carton had spent the previous year in federal prison following a conviction for fraud.
Carton’s legal troubles had forced him to resign from WFAN’s highly rated “Boomer & Carton” morning show in September 2017.
Since his return, Carton has looked to complement his radio show with a TV gig. He came close to joining MLB Network before landing with FS1. FS1, while lucrative, came with scheduling issues.
Carton has said he wakes up at 2:30 a.m for his 7 a.m. FS1 show. FAN afternoons begin at 2 p.m. and go until 6:30.
The schedule left Carton exhausted, and it made it difficult to find time during the week for his family. Carton’s FAN contract ran out last November, but he and Oliviero have been working on a handshake agreement, knowing that eventually Carton would have to decide between FS1 and WFAN.
Carton was incentivized by the fact his FS1 contract would grow larger if he left FAN. As part of his sentencing in 2018 for fraud, Carton was ordered to pay nearly $5 million in restitution. With FS1, Carton will be able to do that quicker.
FS1 executive vice president of content Charlie Dixon believes in Carton. Carton has not rated very well in his first year at FS1, but there is a hope among some at FS1 that, without the constriction and exposure of radio, Carton will perform better on TV.
Last summer, FS1 tried to hire Damien Woody to be Carton’s co-host, but ESPN retained Woody. Brandon Jennings, Tim Hardaway and Cody Decker have been panelists on “The Carton Show.” On camera, Carton stands, while the ex-athletes sit at a desk for segments, making almost a teacher-students dynamic.
For FAN, Carton delivered after Francesa, Joe Benigno and Roberts had not.
Francesa, boosted at first by his tag team partner, Chris Russo and then as a solo act, had owned the ratings over ESPN New York’s “The Michael Kay Show.”
Nevertheless, Kay beat Francesa at the end of Francesa’s legendary run. Kay also defeated Francesa’s initial replacements, Chris Carlin, Maggie Gray and Bart Scott, as well as Roberts and Benigno.
After Carton and Roberts initially see-sawed with Kay in the ratings, winning some books and losing others, the FAN duo has gone on to dominate Kay. Kay’s program has been outside the top 10 in ratings, while Carton and Roberts have been placing second. It has ceased to be a contest.
Though Carton is done in afternoons, he may continue to do his Saturday WFAN show on the risks of gambling. After leaving prison, Carton said his gambling addiction helped lead to his crimes.
As he did nearly six years ago, Carton is once again leaving the FAN, but this time under much better circumstances.
