NASCAR continues to struggle in the first year of its new television deal.
NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from New Hampshire drew a 1.7 overnight rating on NBCSN Sunday, down 23% from both last year and 2013, when the race aired on ESPN (2.2). The 1.7 is tied as the second-lowest for any NASCAR race this season, matching Richmond two weeks earlier and ahead of only Kansas on Fox Sports 1 in May (1.5).
So far this season, five Sprint Cup races have failed to hit a 2.0 overnight rating — compared to zero such races last year.
Sunday’s race was the 15th of 16 on cable this season to have a decline in overnight ratings, with the July race from Kentucky the lone exception. This year is the first of a new NASCAR TV deal that moved races to NBCSN and FS1 from the more widely available ESPN and TNT.
(Wknd. numbers via ShowBuzz Daily)
