Back on broadcast television, NASCAR’s Chase For the Cup had a modest improvement in the metered markets.
NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Kansas, the fifth race in the Chase For the Cup, drew a 2.2 overnight rating on NBC Sunday afternoon — up 10% from last year (2.0) and down a tick from 2013 (2.3), both of which aired on ESPN. The race drew a 2.6 overnight when it last aired on broadcast in 2009, and a 3.4 when it last aired on NBC in 2006.
The 2.2 is the lowest ever for a Chase For the Cup race on broadcast television, and the lowest for any Sprint Cup race on broadcast since at least 2004. In both cases, the previous mark was a 2.5 for the 2009 New Hampshire race on ABC. Every other race on broadcast this season has earned at least a 2.6 overnight.
Having said that, the 2.2 is still better than what NASCAR has been pulling on cable. It ranks as the highest overnight of this year’s Chase For the Cup, topping the previous mark of 1.8 for Chicago and Dover, and tops every NASCAR race on cable since mid-August — when Michigan drew a 2.4 on NBCSN.
In addition, Sunday’s race was the first since Darlington — which also aired on broadcast — to have a year-over-year increase.
(Sun. numbers from twitter.com/nbcsportspr)
