Recent sports TV ratings news, including a record-audience for the F1 season opener from Bahrain, a multi-year high for NASCAR’s postponed dirt race at Bristol, plus pro and college hoops.
F1 opens with record audience at Bahrain
Last Sunday’s season-opening Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix averaged a 0.53 rating and 879,000 viewers on ESPN2, marking the largest audience on record for the event (dates back to 2004). Viewership jumped 72% from last year’s Bahrain race, which was run in November (511K).
Lewis Hamilton’s win, which peaked at one million viewers from 12:30-12:45 PM ET, also ranks as the most-watched F1 race ever on ESPN2.
NASCAR Bristol dirt race hits high despite Monday start
Monday’s rescheduled NASCAR Cup Series dirt race from Bristol averaged a 1.8 rating and 3.11 million viewers on FOX, up 6% in ratings and viewership from last year, when the race was run in May and aired on FS1 (1.7, 2.93M). Despite being postponed a day due to rain, it was the most-watched spring Bristol race since 2016 (3.4, 5.46M). Keep in mind that in the intervening years, the race either aired on FS1 or on a Monday.
Last Wednesday’s NASCAR iRacing race at the virtual Bristol dirt track drew a 0.18 and 292,000 on FS1.
LeBron-less Lakers top recent NBA
Last Thursday’s Sixers-Lakers NBA regular season game averaged a 0.7 rating and 1.08 million viewers on TNT, the league’s most-watched game of last week, despite the absence of LeBron James. Blazers-Heat drew a 0.54 and 826,000 earlier in the night.
In other action, ESPN drew a 0.6 and 1.01 million for the shorthanded Nets against Utah last Wednesday — down 9% in ratings but up 4% in viewership from the comparable night in 2019 (Lakers-Jazz: 0.7, 970K). Celtics-Bucks drew a 0.6 (-27%) and 990,000 (-23%) earlier in the night.
On Friday, ESPN drew a 0.6 and 940,000 for another Celtics-Bucks game, followed by a 0.6 and 918,000 for Hawks-Warriors. There were no comparable games in 2019.
Plus: Women’s Elite Eight, NIT Championship, D-11
Tuesday’s Stanford-Louisville Women’s NCAA Tournament regional final averaged 1.08 million viewers on ESPN, while South Carolina’s rout of Texas scored 938,000 earlier in the night, both off slightly from last year’s primetime Elite Eight games, which aired on a Monday night on ESPN2 (Baylor-Iowa: 942K; Notre Dame-Stanford: 1.09M). … Last Sunday’s Memphis-Mississippi State NIT Championship game averaged a 0.49 rating and 827,000 viewers on ESPN, down 9% in ratings but up 3% in viewership compared to the previous edition in 2019 (Texas-Lipscomb: 0.54, 805K). … The NCAA Division II men’s basketball final averaged a 0.8 and 1.16 million on CBS last Saturday, up a tick in ratings and 15% in viewership from ’19 (0.7, 1.01M).
[Nielsen estimates from ESPN PR, Adam Stern/Twitter 3.30, ShowBuzz Daily 3.30]
