TV News: Weekend USA TV Ratings
–by Mark Cipolloni–
TV Rating Analysis
NASCAR
FS1 earned a 1.26 rating and 2.218 million viewers for Sunday’s NASCAR race at Martinsville, up from last year’s Martinsville Cup race, which was on a Saturday night, and up 14.55% in rating and up 17.67% in viewers from last year’s race. It’s the first increase for a NASCAR Cup points race this year and was achieved by moving the race from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon. Only 18% of the viewers were in the all important 18-49 year old age bracket, and the race lost 2.24% of its all important 18-49 year old viewers.
The NASCAR Xfinity and Truck race data can be seen below. The Xfinity race lost 15.03% of its all important 18-49 year old viewers, and the truck race lost 14.41% of its all important 18-49 year old viewers…..a bad sign of Rigor Mortis setting in.
IndyCar
NBC got a 0.61 rating and 1.026 million viewers for Sunday’s IndyCar race at Long Beach, off 4.69% from a 0.64 rating and off 2.75% from 1.055 million viewers last year. Only 19% of the viewers were in the all important 18-49 year old age bracket, and the race lost a whopping 34.35% of its all important 18-49 year old viewers. Losing over 1/3 of your most important viewers in a single year is a serious problem, and alarm bells should be going off in the offices of Penske Entertainment, as it indicates Rigor Mortis is setting in.
NHRA
FS1 earned a 0.17 rating and 254 thousand viewers for Sunday’s NHRA 4-Wide Nationals Finals from Las Vegas, down 32.0% in rating and down 39.81% in viewers from last year’s finals. Only 14% of the viewers were in the all important 18-49 year old age bracket, and the race lost a whopping 60.23% of its all important 18-49 year old viewers. This is bad, even worse than the Rigor Mortis being suffered by IndyCar, and if NHRA officials are not shaking in their boots over these numbers, they’re asleep at the wheel.
TV Rating Data
| Network | Event | Location | Total Viewers |
18-49 Viewers |
Ratio: 18-49 Yr Old/ Total Viewers |
2023 Rating |
2022 Rating |
Rating % Chg. |
2022 Network |
2022 Viewers |
2022 18-49 Viewers |
Total Viewers Chg |
18-49 Viewers % Chg |
| FS1 | NASCAR Cup race | Martinsville | 2,218,000 | 392,000 | 18% | 1.26 | 1.10 | +14.55% | FS1 | 1,885,000 | 401,000 | +17.67% | -2.24% |
| NBC | IndyCar Race L | Long Beach | 1,026,000 | 193,000 | 19% | 0.61 | 0.64 | -4.69% | NBC | 1,055,000 | 294,000 | -2.75% | -34.35% |
| FS1 | NASCAR Xfinity race | Martinsville | 894,000 | 164,000 | 18% | 0.52 | 0.51 | +1.96% | FS1 | 854,000 | 193,000 | 4.68% | -15.03% |
| FS1 | NASCAR Truck race | Martinsville | 347,000 | 95,000 | 27% | 0.21 | 0.29 | -27.59% | FS1 | 455,000 | 111,000 | -23.74% | -14.41% |
| FS1 | NHRA 4-Wide Finals | Las Vegas | 254,000 | 35,000 | 14% | 0.17 | 0.25 | -32.00% | FS1 | 422,000 | 88,000 | -39.81% | -60.23% |