Horse racing’s Triple Crown got off to a strong start on NBC.
The race portion of the Kentucky Derby drew a 10.2/22 overnight rating on NBC Saturday evening, a 7% rise from last year’s 9.5/21, and the highest overnight rating for the Kentucky Derby since 1992.
This marks the fourth time since taking over rights to the Kentucky Derby in ’01 that NBC has drawn the highest rating for the event since ’92.
The 10.2 overnight rating ties the lowest overnight rating of last year’s NBA Finals, surpasses the overnights for two of last year’s World Series games, and easily surpasses the overnights for the Daytona 500 (8.0) and the final round of The Masters (8.8).
Overnight ratings for race portion of Kentucky Derby since ’02.
| Year | Date | Time | Winner | Net | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Sat., 5/2/09 | 6:00 PM | Mine That Bird | NBC | 10.2/22 |
| 2008 | Sat., 5/3/08 | 5:45 PM | Big Brown | NBC | 9.5/21 |
| 2007 | Sat., 5/5/07 | 5:45 PM | Street Sense | NBC | 9.8/21 |
| 2006 | Sat., 5/6/06 | 5:45 PM | Barbaro | NBC | 8.9/20 |
| 2005 | Sat., 5/7/05 | 5:45 PM | Giacomo | NBC | 10.0/23 |
| 2004 | Sat., 5/1/04 | 5:45 PM | Smarty Jones | NBC | 10.1/22 |
| 2003 | Sat., 5/3/03 | 5:30 PM | Funny Cide | NBC | 8.9/20 |
| 2002 | Sat., 5/4/02 | N/A | War Emblem | NBC | 9.3/21 |
