The lowest rated Brickyard 400 ever was also the highest rated program in NBCSN history.
NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Indianapolis drew a 3.0 final rating and 4.7 million viewers on NBCSN Sunday afternoon, down 12% in ratings and 10% in viewership from last year (3.4, 5.2M) and down 17% and 14%, respectively, from 2013 (3.6, 5.5M), both on ESPN. Viewership peaked at 5.6 million from 6:30-6:45 PM ET.
The 3.0 rating is the lowest in the history of the race (dates back to 1994), falling below the previous mark of 3.3 in 2012, when coverage aired opposite the Olympics. As recently as a decade ago, the race had 6.2 rating on the NBC broadcast network. Viewership was also the lowest for the race since at least 2001.
Though low by Brickyard standards, Sunday’s race ranks as the highest rated and most-watched telecast in the history of NBCSN (previously VERSUS and OLN). The previous highs were a 2.7 for the 2014 United States/Canada Olympic men’s hockey semifinal and 4.1 million for Game 7 of the 2014 Kings/Blackhawks NHL Western Conference final.
Keep in mind portions of NBCSN’s Olympic telecasts have earned larger audiences, including 5.5 million viewers for 90 minutes of ski jumping last year.
In addition, the race ranks as easily the highest rated and most-watched NASCAR telecast on cable this season. The previous highs were a 2.5 for Dover on Fox Sports 1 in May and 4.1 million for Martinsville on the same network in March.
(Sun. numbers from NBC Sports Group Press Box)
