For the second straight week, the NASCAR Xfinity Series hit a season-low on Fox Sports 1. In other news, FS1 had a double-digit gain for Major League Baseball last week, and ESPN drew its top Wednesday Night Baseball audience of the season.
Season-Low For NASCAR Xfinity Series
- NASCAR Xfinity Series racing from Bristol drew a 0.8 final rating and 1.1 million viewers on Fox Sports 1 last Saturday, down 27% in ratings and 30% in viewership from last year (1.1, 1.7M) and down 27% and 33%, respectively, from 2013 (1.1, 1.7M). The race aired on ESPN2 the past two years. Viewership was the lowest of the season for the Xfinity Series, falling below the previous mark set at Texas a week earlier (1.2M). (via Awful Announcing)
NASCAR Lead-in Boosts MLB on FS1
- Airing immediately after the NASCAR Xfinity Series, last Saturday’s Orioles/Red Sox Major League Baseball game drew a 0.4 final rating and 576,000 viewers on Fox Sports 1 — up a tick in ratings and 23% in viewership from Red Sox/Yankees in an earlier timeslot last year. The Yankees/Rays nightcap drew a 0.4 and 531,000. FS1 has averaged 530,000 viewers through two weeks, according to Sports Business Daily, up 12% from the comparable point last year. (via Awful Announcing, Sports Business Daily)
ESPN Earns Top Wednesday MLB Audience of Season
- The Cardinals/Nationals Wednesday Night Baseball game drew 683,000 viewers on ESPN, the largest Wednesday night audience of the young season (four telecasts). Not coincidentally, the Cardinals’ win was also the season’s first Wednesday night game to air on ESPN rather than ESPN2. (via ShowBuzz Daily)
