The Kentucky Derby may not be the most hyped event on the sporting calendar, but the ratings for the first leg of the Triple Crown eclipsed that of The Masters, the Final Four, three BCS games and the NBA Finals.
The Derby drew a 9.5 overnight on NBC, down 3% from a 9.8 last year. This marks the fourth time in five years the Kentucky Derby has drawn an overnight rating of at least 9.0.
The 9.5 overnight surpasses the 8.9 overnight for the final round of The Masters, the 7.6 average overnight for the 2007 NBA Finals, and the 7.2 and 8.8 for Memphis/UCLA and Kansas/UNC in the Final Four. The 9.5 also surpassed the ratings for three BCS games — the Fiesta Bowl, Orange Bowl and Sugar Bowl.
NBC’s full 90 minute coverage of the Kentucky Derby averaged a 7.9 overnight, down 5% from an 8.3 last year.
Kentucky Derby overnights (race portion).
since 2003
2008: 9.5 (Sat., 5/3, 5:45 PM NBC)
2007: 9.8 (Sat., 5/5, 5:45 PM NBC)
2006: 8.9 (Sat., 5/6, 5:45 PM NBC)
2005: 10.0 (Sat., 5/7, 5:45 PM NBC)
2004: 10.1 (Sat., 5/1, 5:45 PM NBC)
2003: 8.9 (Sat., 5/3, 5:30 PM NBC)
