Rain was a factor, but ratings for the Coca-Cola 600 were still surprisingly soft.
Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 from Charlotte averaged a 2.4 rating and 3.96 million viewers on FOX, marking the smallest audience for the race in at least 20 years. The previous low was 4.09 million two years ago, when the race aired opposite an NBA Game 7 involving LeBron James.
The 2.4 rating is also the second-lowest for the race since at least 1997, topping the aforementioned 2018 edition (2.3).
Ratings fell 8% and viewership 7% from last year (2.6, 4.26M).
Brad Keselowski’s win ranks as the lowest rated and least-watched Cup Series event on FOX this season, falling below the previous mark of 2.7 and 4.58 million at Phoenix in March.
Keep in mind the race was delayed more than an hour due to rain and did not conclude until after Midnight ET. Even so, far better numbers could have been expected given the circumstances. NASCAR is one of the few major sports organizations staging competitions anywhere in the world and Sunday’s race was just the second live event on broadcast television since the majority of leagues halted play in mid-March.
Just one week earlier at Darlington, NASCAR’s return from a two-month hiatus averaged a much stronger 3.7 and 6.32 million.
The Coca-Cola 600 was no match for “The Match” earlier in the day, as the two-on-two golf competition between Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady averaged 5.8 million across four Turner networks.
[Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 5.27]
