Scheduled directly opposite The Oscars, ratings slipped for coverage of the Auto Club 500 on FOX.
The Auto Club 500, won by Matt Kenseth, drew a 6.0/10 final rating and 10.2 million viewers on FOX Sunday night, down 3% and 6% respectively from a 6.2/10 with 10.9 million for last year’s rain-soaked coverage.
Ratings peaked at a 6.7/10 during the last full quarter-hour of the race (9:45-10 PM). Despite the lower rating, the race was still the third-highest rated program of the night, behind only Oscar-related programming on ABC.
Additionally, the 6.0 surpasses other marquee sporting events, including the Pro Bowl on NBC (5.4), the NBA All-Star Game on TNT (4.5), last year’s Preakness Stakes on NBC (5.5), and the averages of the 2008 NBA Playoffs on ABC (5.8), the 2008 NCAA Tournament on CBS (5.6) and the 2008 NLCS on FOX (4.8).
The 6.0 marks the lowest rating for the Auto Club 500 since it moved to its February date in 2005, and the lowest for the race overall since ’03. Since hitting a 7.9 in 2005, ratings for the Auto Club 500 have declined 24%.
Final ratings for the Auto Club 500 since 1999.
* race concluded on the following Monday
6.0/10: Kenseth (Sun., 2/22/09, 6 PM FOX)
6.2/10*: Edwards (Sun., 2/24/08, 6:30 PM FOX)
6.7/13: Kenseth (Sun., 2/25/07, 3:47 PM FOX)
7.4/14: Kenseth (Sun., 2/26/06, 4:15 PM FOX)
7.9/16: Biffle (Sun., 2/27/05, 3:15 PM FOX)
6.1/15: Gordon (Sun., 5/2/04, 3:30 PM FOX)
5.3/13: Busch (Sun., 4/27/03, 3 PM FOX)
5.9/13: Johnson (Sun., 4/28/02, 3:15 PM FOX)
5.4/14: Wallace (Sun., 4/29/01, 2 PM FOX)
4.2/12: Mayfield (Sun., 4/30/00, 2 PM ABC)
4.8/13: Gordon (Sun., 5/2/99, 2 PM ABC)
