The WNBA’s 20th season opened with a multi-year high on ESPN. In other news, IndyCar’s Grand Prix of Indianapolis had a slight increase, while NASCAR’s Xfinity Series posted a slight decline on FOX.
ESPN Hits High For WNBA Opener
- The Mercury/Lynx WNBA Opening Night game earned a 0.4 overnight rating on ESPN Saturday night, the highest for a regular season game on ESPN or ESPN2 since 2011. Minneapolis-St. Paul was the top market with a 1.6 rating, followed by Memphis (1.4), New Orleans (1.1), Albuquerque (0.9) and Dayton, OH (0.8). (ESPN Media Zone)
IndyCar GP of Indy Posts Uptick
- The IndyCar Series Grand Prix of Indianapolis earned a 0.8 overnight rating on ABC Saturday afternoon, according to Sports Business Daily, and a 1.0 according to ShowBuzz Daily. Either way, overnights improved over last year’s 0.7. ABC’s first race of the season, St. Petersburg in March, had a 1.1. (via Sports Business Daily, ShowBuzz Daily)
Slight Dip For NASCAR Xfinity on FOX
- NASCAR Xfinity Series racing from Dover had a 1.1 overnight rating on FOX Saturday afternoon, down a tick from last year (1.2) but up a tick from 2014 on ESPN (1.0). The 1.1 is the lowest for an Xfinity Series race on FOX since the network resumed airing races last year (seven telecasts). (via ShowBuzz Daily)
