Ratings dropped for ABC’s abbreviated NASCAR coverage on Sunday.
The Checker O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 drew a 3.6/7 final rating and 5.7 million viewers on ABC Sunday afternoon, down 5% and 6% respectively from a 3.8/7 and 6 million for the same race in ’07.
Ratings peaked at a 4.7/8 from 7:15 to 7:30 PM, the last fifteen minutes the race aired on ABC. From 7:30-7:45 PM, ABC drew a 3.4/5 for the first half of America’s Funniest Home Videos — a drop of 28%.
The race was moved from ABC to ESPN2 at 7:30 PM ET, to avoid delaying ABC’s prime time entertainment fare.
So far this year, ABC is averaging a 3.69 rating for nine NASCAR races, down 2% from a 3.77 for the comparable nine races last year, and down 12% from a 4.18 for the comparable nine races on NBC and TNT in 2006.
