In a world where perception is everything, ratings and attendance have become big topics of discussion among NASCAR fans and insiders. Ratings in particular have been of interest to those in control of the sport. But the picture on that front is less than clear. With fluctuating numbers and ratings looking better from the top-down who knows what’s going on in NASCAR’s national series.
As has been talked about this week and last, the ratings for the last two Cup races have been down – way down. According to Nielsen, ratings at New Hampshire were down 28 percent and at Dover 22 percent year-over-year. It’s the apocalypse, right? Well maybe not.
Something no one has really been talking about is that the races in previous years were on ABC (a network channel where one would assume there is a larger audience), not ESPN. TC talked with our friend John Daly over at the Daly Planet and he thinks this isn’t an issue – he thinks the product is the problem. To some extent I think he’s probably right. It’s hard to reconcile though why ratings have suddenly been down quite so much in the Cup Series.
Consider this: before New Hampshire there were slight declines for the races at Richmond (on ABC this year and last) and Atlanta (on ESPN this year and last). At Bristol though the race was shown on ABC this year, a change from ESPN in years prior. The race actually saw a ratings increase year-over-year. Is that because it was on network TV instead of cable? I tend to think that’s possible, if not likely.
Even though these last two weeks look to me like anomalies, it is true ratings as a whole have been down again this season in the Cup Series. Why exactly that is, is hard to say. This isn’t the case across the board though.
With fan discontent churning, you’d expect to see declines everywhere. It’s not happening though. The ratings in the Nationwide Series have been flat year-over-year – this despite it being a series dominated by Cup regulars.
Even more interesting though is the case of the Truck Series which has actually seen an overall ratings increase over the summer after taking hits early on because of rain delays. This is occurring despite the fact there are only five to 10 competitive trucks on a weekly basis.
Now obviously there are overall audience disparities between the three series, but I still have to wonder why the two lower series are growing, or at the very least maintaining their audiences when their larger counterpart is not. Is it the politics? Is it the personalities? Are races too long? Has the Cup Series just become overexposed? Is there an increasing number of ‘avid fans’ looking for more racing? Is the racing better? Is the coverage better? I unfortunately have far more questions than answers.
Even with the pre-race show, watching a Truck race on Speed really has the feel of Cup Series broadcast 15+ years ago. It’s simple, refreshing, and light hearted – plus the races are usually done in a couple of hours. Even the Nationwide Series broadcasts aren’t quite as overdone as the Cup races. I have no idea if this explains the ratings though.
I’ve been watching this top-down trend for a while and I find it fascinating, but don’t have any idea why it’s happening. Maybe you all do?
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