NASCAR Watkins Glen TV ratings

Going from ESPN and TNT to the networks formerly known as Versus and Speed Channel has continued to dent NASCAR ratings. NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from Watkins Glen earned a 2.4 overnight rating on NBCSN Sunday afternoon, down 23% from last year (3.0) and down 8% from 2013 (2.6), both on ESPN.

Keep in mind last year's race generated unusual interest due to a breaking news story involving Tony Stewart. Ten of the 11 NASCAR Sprint Cup races on cable this season have had a decline in overnights. The only exception was Kentucky on NBCSN in July, which was even with last year.

As of last month, new NASCAR cable partners NBCSN and Fox Sports 1 were each in fewer than 85 million homes. Despite shedding subscribers, both ESPN and TNT are in well north of 90 million. For the weekend, NASCAR on NBC placed third among all sporting events behind the NFL Hall of Fame Game (6.9) and the final round of the PGA/WGC Bridgestone Invitational (2.7).