This being the first season of NBC’s NASCAR nine-year contract, executives know that this is a marathon and not a sprint. But as the NBC Sports Group has aired 14 of its scheduled 20 Sprint Cup races thus far, the ratings and audience have fallen below the levels of TNT and ESPN/ABC’s last season in 2014.

NBC got off to a decent start when it broadcast the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona on July 5 when it received a 2.7 rating and 4.0 million viewers, on-par with TNT’s numbers in 2014, but as the season progressed and the Sprint Cup Series went to NBCSN, the network’s numbers fell behind ESPN’s pace.

Some of the examples of NBCSN’s ratings and viewership to date:

  • Crown Royal 400 at the Brickyard: NBCSN received a 3.0 rating and 4.7 million viewers. ESPN garnered a 3.2 rating in 2014 with just under 5.2 million viewers.
  • Pocono: NBCSN drew a 2.6 rating and attracted 4.3 million viewers. It was down slightly last year from ESPN’s 2.8 and 4.374 million.
  • Bristol: NBCSN received a 2.1 rating and 3.608 million while ABC drew a 3.2 rating last year with 5.079 million viewership.
  • New Hampshire: NBCSN saw a 1.8 rating and a viewership of 2.9 million. Last year, ESPN had a 2.4 household rating and 3.85 million viewers.

One instance of where NBC beat the 2014 numbers was in Darlington on Labor Day weekend where the Peacock garnered an audience of 6.3 million over 2014’s viewership of 5.921 million. One caveat though, last year Darlington was scheduled in the spring and aired on Fox, but NBC has to be encouraged with the 6.3 million viewers on a holiday weekend.

or NBC/NBCSN’s 2015 schedule, it took three of TNT’s six races from last year as well as the ESPN/ABC schedule of 17 races. A major difference is that NBC is airing 7 races with five them backloaded in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. In the last years of the ESPN contract, ABC broadcast just three races so there’s some hope for the Peacock that the numbers will rise when NBC airs five of the Chase races.

NBC Sports Group will tell you that on the surface, they’re not worried about their numbers just yet. They’ll point to the fact when Versus got the NHL contract, there was initial criticism about the low numbers, but the viewership grew to the levels where NBC Sports Network and now NBCSN is a destination for NHL fans. And IndyCar is finding an audience on NBCSN as well.

But is NBC sacrificing the numbers in the short-term in its attempt to build NBCSN as a motorsports destination? That’s the million dollar question, however, the Group is hoping that there’s nowhere to go but up for the next eight years of the NASCAR contract.

[Jayski.com]

About Ken Fang

Ken has been covering the sports media in earnest at his own site, Fang's Bites since May 2007 and at Awful Announcing since March 2013.

He provides a unique perspective having been an award-winning radio news reporter in Providence and having worked in local television.

Fang celebrates the four Boston Red Sox World Championships in the 21st Century, but continues to be a long-suffering Cleveland Browns fan.

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