A move back from cable to broadcast did not help NASCAR’s ratings from Texas last weekend.
NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Texas, the eighth race in the Chase For the Cup, drew a 2.7 final rating and 4.6 million viewers on NBC last Sunday — down a tick in ratings and 3% in viewership from last year (2.8, 4.7M) and up 4% and 10%, respectively, from 2013 (2.6, 4.2M), both of which aired on ESPN.
Jimmie Johnson‘s win ranks ahead of only 2013 and 2012 (2.5, 3.9M) as the lowest rated and least-watched edition of the fall Texas race (dates back to 2005). The last time it aired on a broadcast network, 2009, it had a 3.7 and 5.8 million on ABC. The last time it aired on NBC, 2006, it had a 4.3 and 7.2 million.
Of the four Sprint Cup races to move from cable to broadcast this season, Texas was the first to have a decline in ratings and viewership. Overall, 24 of the 28 races that can be compared to last year have had a decline in one or both measures.
Despite the lower numbers, Sunday’s race scored the highest rating and viewership for any NASCAR telecast in more than two months — since Darlington on Labor Day weekend (3.7, 5.9M).
(Wknd. numbers via Sports Business Daily)
