NASCAR on FOX continues to struggle on Saturday nights.
NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Texas drew a 2.9 overnight rating on FOX Saturday night, down 17% from 2013 (3.5) and down 19% from 2012 (3.6). Last year’s Texas race was postponed due to rain, earning a 2.3 overnight in its scheduled Sunday afternoon window.
Excluding rainouts, the 2.9 overnight is the lowest ever for a NASCAR Sprint Cup race on FOX (dates back to 2001), falling below the previous mark of 3.0 for coverage from Richmond last year. Nine of the ten lowest rated NASCAR on FOX telecasts in the metered markets have taken place on a Saturday night.
The 2.9 is also easily the lowest ever for NASCAR from Texas, again excluding rainouts. The previous low was the 3.5 in 2013.
Saturday’s record-low overnight continues a recent stall in NASCAR’s momentum. After the season’s first three races had increases in overnights compared to last year, the past four (including one on Fox Sports 1) have either been flat or declined.
(Sat. numbers via Sports Business Daily)
