The NASCAR ratings slide has gone from bad to worse this season, with all five races down double-digits from last year’s historic lows.
The NASCAR Cup Series at Fontana (Ca.) earned a 2.4 rating and 4.0 million viewers on FOX last Sunday, down 25% in ratings and 22% in viewership from last year (3.2, 5.2M) and down 40% and 41% respectively from 2016 (4.0, 6.8M).
The 2.4 rating is the lowest ever for the race (dates back to 1997), marking the fourth of five races this season to hit an all-time record low. In addition, viewership was the lowest since at least 2001.
Martin Truex Jr.‘s win was also the lowest rated Cup Series race ever on FOX (dates back to 2001), falling below the previous mark of 2.7 for the past two Texas races. In just five weeks this season, the network has already aired three of its eight lowest rated races ever.
All five NASCAR races this season have declined double-digits from last year, no small feat given last year’s races put up historically low numbers.
Sunday’s race faced tough competition from the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament and the PGA Tour Arnold Palmer Invitational, which featured Tiger Woods in contention. With that said, last year’s race faced similarly tough competition from the NCAA Elite Eight.
NASCAR Viewership, First Five Races
[Numbers via ShowBuzz Daily 3.21]
