NASCAR’s ratings slump has continued into the Chase For the Cup.
NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Chicago, the first race in the Chase For the Cup, earned a 1.8 overnight rating on NBCSN Sunday afternoon — down 18% from last year on ESPN (2.2). The 2013 race featured multiple rain delays and moved from ESPN to ESPN2, earning a 1.6 overnight across both networks.
The 1.8 overnight is the third-lowest of the season for NASCAR on any network, ahead of only Richmond the previous week (1.7) and Kansas on Fox Sports 1 in May (1.5). It is also the lowest for a Sunday NASCAR race this season.
Sunday’s race continued a season-long trend of declines for NASCAR on cable. Fourteen of the 15 races on NBCSN or FS1 have had a decline in the metered markets, with the lone exception being the Kentucky race on NBCSN in July. That race, it should be noted, ended up declining in the final tally.
Despite the lower numbers, NASCAR on NBCSN topped competing coverage of the PGA Tour FedEx Cup on the NBC broadcast network (1.3) and was Sunday’s top non-NFL sporting event in the metered markets.
(Sun. numbers via ShowBuzz Daily)
