Yet another double-digit drop for NASCAR.

Posted by | 04/27/2009 at 4:57 pm

After nine races, it seems clear that a sizable portion of NASCAR’s audience has tuned out — at least in the major markets.

Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 drew a 4.5/11 overnight rating on FOX, down 14% from last year, and the lowest overnight rating for the race since 2000, excluding the rained-out ’06 race. Previously, the race had never drawn less than a 5.0 overnight on FOX.

Since drawing a 6.1 overnight in ’05, ratings for the Aaron’s 499 have declined 26%.

This marks the ninth straight NASCAR race on FOX to see a double-digit decline in overnight ratings.

Despite the lower number, the 4.5 was the highest overnight of the weekend for a sporting event on broadcast, edging two NBA games on ABC.

Overnight ratings for the Aaron’s 499 since ’99.













Year Date Time Winner Net Rating
2009 Sun., 4/26/09 2:30 PM Keselowski FOX
2008 Sun., 4/27/08 2:15 PM Busch FOX
2007 Sun., 4/29/07 2:30 PM Gordon FOX
2006 Sun., 4/30/06 N/A Johnson FOX
2005 Sun., 5/1/05 12:30 PM Gordon FOX
2004 Sun., 4/25/04 1:30 PM Gordon FOX
2003 Sun., 4/6/03 1:00 PM Earnhardt, Jr. FOX
2002 Sun., 4/21/02 2:15 PM Earnhardt, Jr. FOX
2001 Sun., 4/22/01 1:00 PM Hamilton FOX
2000 Sun., 4/16/00 1:00 PM Gordon ABC
1999 Sun., 4/25/99 1:00 PM Earnhardt ABC