Airing for the final time on ABC, Indy 500 ratings hit a record-low in the metered markets.
Sunday’s Indianapolis 500 delivered a 3.4 overnight rating on ABC, down 6% from last year (3.6), down 17% from 2016 (4.1) and the event’s lowest overnight on record. The previous low was set last year.
Will Power‘s win peaked at a 4.2 from 3:15-3:30 PM ET, matching last year.
Ratings declined disproportionately in host market Indianapolis, where the traditional primetime tape delay aired directly opposite Game 7 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals. Race coverage had an 8.7 rating in the market, down 41% from last year (14.7) and down 74% from 2016, when the race aired live for the first time since 1950 (33.6).
Dayton, Ohio, ranked second among all markets with a 6.8 rating (-24%) followed by Louisville at a 6.0 (-10%). Columbus, Ohio (5.8) and Knoxville, Tenn. (5.7) rounded out the top five.
Despite the record-low, Sunday’s race topped the night’s NASCAR Coca-Cola 600 on FOX (2.4) by a whopping 42% — its biggest metered market lead since at least 2000. Last year, it beat the NASCAR race by 29%. Since 2013, the Indy 500 has increased its lead over the Coke 600 each year.
Keep in mind that the NASCAR race faced competition from the aforementioned NBA Game 7. In addition, NASCAR’s crown jewel race — the Daytona 500 in February — was still much stronger than the Indy 500, its record-low of 5.1 beating Sunday’s race by 50%.
[Sun. numbers from ESPN; NASCAR overnight from Adam Stern/Twitter 5.28]
