First, the results of last week’s predictions:
- Wimbledon on NBC: Women’s Final, V. Williams def. Bartoli. Prediction: 2.5. Final rating: 2.2. Despite featuring Venus Williams, the Women’s Final was up only 10% from the record low 2.0 for the Mauresmo/Henin final in 2006. Credit the presence of a relative unknown (Bartoli) whom most observers expected Williams to defeat. The match was also down 35% from the last final to feature a Williams sister, the 2005 Wimbledon Final which drew a 3.4 rating.
- Wimbledon on NBC, Men’s Final, Federer def. Nadal. Prediction: 2.2. Final rating: 2.7. The five-set classic between Federer and Nadal was up only 8% from the 2.5 rating for last year’s meeting between the two. Still, the match was the highest rated Wimbledon final since Federer defeated Roddick in 2004.
- MLB on FOX, L.A. Angels v. N.Y. Yankees. Prediction: 2.7. Final rating: 2.5. FOX gets another decent rating from a game featuring the New York Yankees; still, the number is down 4% from comparable coverage last year.
- MLB on FOX, MLB All Star Game. Prediction: 10.2. Final rating: 8.4. Not only did the baseball All Star Game lose to “The Singing Bee” on Tuesday, but it was outdrawn in the key Adults 18-34 demo by the Copa America semi-final between Mexico and Argentina the next day. Still, the 8.4 makes it the highest rated sporting event since The Masters.
Final rating for “MLB on ESPN: Home Run Derby” currently unavailable.
This week’s predictions:
- MLB on FOX, Regional action, 3:30 PM Saturday — With Barry Bonds’ home run chase delivered to only 22% of the country, FOX is banking that viewers will tune in for Astros/Cubs. Without the Yankees, Red Sox or Mets on the schedule, expect a poor turn out. Prediction: 2.0.
- WNBA on ABC, WNBA All Star Game, 3:30 PM Sunday — The last time the WNBA All Star Game aired on broadcast television was 2005, when the event drew a 1.0 rating. With ratings for regular season games hovering around the 0.5 range this season on ABC, expect a big drop-off in numbers. Prediction: 0.7.
- NASCAR on TNT, USG Sheetrock 400, 4:00 PM Sunday — Coming off of a 3.8 national rating for the Pepsi 400 last Saturday, a successful six-week run of NASCAR races on TNT ends this week. While TNT will likely not go out with a proverbial bang, expect another big rating on cable. Prediction: 3.4.
- ESPY Awards on ESPN, 9:00 PM Sunday — Despite the star power of LeBron James and, to a much lesser extent, Jimmy Kimmel, expect the ESPY Awards to put up pedestrian ratings on Sunday night. Prediction: 2.3.
