The bar was low, but the ratings were lower, for NASCAR at Richmond.
NASCAR Cup Series racing from Richmond (Va.) earned a 1.7 rating and 2.79 million viewers on FOX, down a tick in ratings and 8% in viewership from last year (1.8, 3.03M) and down 41% and 39% respectively from 2017 (2.9, 4.58M).
The 1.7 rating is tied as the lowest for a Cup Series race on broadcast television since at least 2000, matching last year’s fall Kansas race on NBC. This is the second straight year the race has tied a broadcast ratings low.
It avoided a viewership low, clocking in ahead of last year’s Kansas race (2.75M).
Martin Truex Jr.‘s win ranks as the lowest rated Richmond race since at least 1999 and the least-watched since at least 2004. Just six years ago, the race had a 3.7 and 6.07 million.
NASCAR has had more increases than usual this season, and average viewership is up 2% for the seven races on the FOX broadcast network (from 5.14M to 5.23M). Even so, five of nine Cup Series races have declined — with each of those five hitting historic lows.
As one would expect, Richmond led all markets Saturday with a 7.3 rating. Charlotte ranked second at a 5.3, followed by Greenville, NC, and Birmingham (5.1 in each). Greensboro, NC, rounded out the top five at a 4.8.
[Numbers from Nielsen via ShowBuzz Daily 4.16]
