The final race for Triple Crown winner American Pharoah delivered major gains for NBC.
Coverage of the Breeders Cup Classic earned a 2.6 final rating and 3.9 million viewers on NBC Saturday afternoon, up 53% in ratings and 50% in viewership from last year (1.7, 2.6M) and up 73% and 84%, respectively, from 2013 (1.5, 2.1M). Viewership peaked at 4.6 million from 5:45-6 PM ET, the quarter-hour encompassing the race, up 33% from the comparable segment last year (3.3M).
American Pharoah’s victory, which completed horse racing’s ‘Grand Slam’ of the Triple Crown and Breeders Cup, ranks as the highest rated Breeders Cup Classic since 1995 (2.8) and the most-watched since Zenyatta‘s repeat bid in 2010 (4.1M).
While the actual Triple Crown races were a mixed bag — both the Preakness and the Belmont had modest declines — each of the post-Triple Crown races involving American Pharoah posted substantial gains. His win in the Haskell Invitational had increases of 86% in ratings and 102% in viewership, and his loss to Keen Ice in the Travers Stakes increased by 133% and 103%, respectively.
Ratings/Viewership For Races Involving American Pharoah
Rebel Stakes and Arkansas Derby were not televised on Nielsen-rated network
| Race | Rtg. | +/- | Vwrs. | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kentucky Derby | 9.6 | +2% | 16.0M | +4% |
| Preakness Stakes | 5.5 | -8% | 8.9M | -8% |
| Belmont Stakes | 11.2 | -6% | 18.6M | -9% |
| Haskell Invitational | 1.3 | +86% | 2.0M | +102% |
| Travers Stakes | 1.4 | +133% | 2.0M | +103% |
| Breeders Cup Classic | 2.6 | +53% | 3.9M | +50% |
(Sat. numbers from NBC Sports Group Press Box)
