

2008 TV Commercials News
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Crown Royal Presents the Dan Lowry 400
Total number of commercials: 104
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 73
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 7:35 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 11:25 PM
Total minutes: 230
Minutes of race broadcast: 186
Minutes of commercials: 44
Number of missed restarts: 2
Number of times selected drivers were focused on:
Joe Nemechek -- 5
Sterling Marlin -- 7
A.J. Allmendinger -- 9
Johnny Sauter -- 20
Mark Martin -- 30
Carl Edwards -- 33
Juan Montoya -- 34
Kevin Harvick -- 37
Jeff Gordon -- 41
Clint Bowyer (race winner) -- 43
Kasey Kahne -- 45
Kyle Busch -- 76
Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 78
Denny Hamlin -- 107
See full rundown at CawsnJaws.(5-5-2008)
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Aaron's 499
Total number of commercials: 135
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 75
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 2:00 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 5:31 PM
Total minutes: 211
Minutes of race broadcast: 154
Minutes of commercials: 57
Number of missed restarts: 0
'Mystery Debris' cautions: 0
Total race brdcst time 154 Total comm. brdcst time 57
Number of times selected drivers were focused on:
Ken Schrader -- 8
Jon Wood -- 8
Bobby Labonte -- 16
Kurt Busch -- 22
David Stremme -- 25
Jimmie Johnson -- 27
Michael Waltrip -- 31
Elliott Sadler -- 36
Brian Vickers -- 42B
Ryan Newman -- 49
David Ragan -- 53
Juan Montoya -- 60
Jeff Gordon -- 66
Kyle Busch (race winner) -- 79
Tony Stewart -- 125
Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 127
Denny Hamlin -- 138
See full post and commercial stats at CawsnJaws.com and Click here for last year's commercial breakdown of this race.(4-28-2008)
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Subway Fresh Fit 500
Total number of commercials: 106
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 69
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 41
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 8:55 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 12:06 AM
Total minutes: 191
Minutes of race broadcast: 139
Minutes of commercials: 52
Number of missed restarts: 0
Number of 'mystery debris cautions': 1
Total race brdcst time 139 Total comm. brdcst time 52
Number of times selected drivers were focused on:
Mike Skinner -- 6
Casey Mears -- 10
Johnny Sauter -- 11
Kevin Harvick -- 13
Jeff Gordon -- 14
Bobby Labonte -- 14
Jamie McMurray -- 18
Patrick Carpentier -- 22
Kyle Busch -- 31
Ryan Newman -- 41
Denny Hamlin -- 44
Carl Edwards -- 55
Mark Martin -- 72
Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 82
Jimmie Johnson (race winner) -- 101
See full report and more at CawsnJaws.com.(4-14-2008) Comment here
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Samsung 500:
Total number of commercials: *125*
Total number of companies or entities advertised: *69*
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: *42*
Total number of companies or entities advertised in brief promos or crawlers: *39
Start time to record race/commercial periods: *2:03 PM*
End time to record race/commercial periods: *5:51 PM*
Total minutes: *228*
Minutes of race broadcast: *168*
Minutes of commercials: *60*
Number of missed restarts: *0*
Number of 'mystery debris cautions': *1*
Number of times selected drivers were focused on:
John Andretti -- 4
Bill Elliott -- 6
Joe Nemechek -- 10
Kurt Busch -- 13
Robby Gordon -- 15
Kevin Harvick -- 16
Clint Bowyer -- 21
Martin Truex Jr. -
- 21
Jeff Gordon -- 25
Denny Hamlin -- 30
Tony Stewart -- 33
Matt Kenseth -- 55
Kyle Busch -- 91
Jimmie Johnson -- 104
Carl Edwards (race winner) -- 114
See full report at CawsnJaws.com.(4-7-2008)
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Goody's Cool Orange 500<:/B>
Total number of commercials: 118
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 65
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 41
Total number of companies or entities advertised in brief promos or crawlers: 33
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 2:00 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 5:52 PM
Total minutes: 232
Minutes of race broadcast: 178
Minutes of commercials: 54
Number of missed restarts: 0
Total race brdcst time 178 Total comm. brdcst time 54
Number of times selected drivers were focused on:
Jeremy Mayfield -- 14
Clint Bowyer -- 20
Michael McDowell -- 25
Ken Schrader -- 29
Michael Waltrip -- 30
Kurt Busch -- 31
David Reutimann -- 35
Juan Montoya -- 38
Tony Stewart -- 40
Casey Mears -- 53
Kyle Busch -- 56
Matt Kenseth -- 59
Jeff Burton -- 111
Denny Hamlin (race winner) -- 111
Jimmie Johnson -- 145
Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 165
Jeff Gordon -- 166
See full report and stats at CawsnJaws.com.(3-31-2008) Comment here
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Food City 500 at Bristol
Total number of commercials: 127
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 63
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 42
Total amount of time these brief promos take during broadcast: app. 4 min. 30 sec.
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 2:01pm/et
End time to record race/commercial periods: 5:17pm/et
Total minutes: 196
Minutes of race broadcast: 138
Minutes of commercials: 58
Number of missed restarts: 1 (and one near miss)
Total race brdcst time 138 Total comm. brdcst time 58
Number of times selected drivers were focused on:
Kurt Busch -- 8
Jeremy Mayfield -- 13
Kyle Petty -- 20
Aric Almirola -- 22
Dale Jarrett -- 25
Dario Franchitti -- 25
Greg Biffle -- 27
Paul Menard -- 28
Jeff Gordon -- 29
Matt Kenseth -- 41
Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 45
Kyle Busch -- 58
Jimmie Johnson -- 78
Clint Bowyer -- 87
Jeff Burton (race winner) -- 96
Kevin Harvick -- 110
Denny Hamlin -- 111
Tony Stewart -- 163
See full report at CawsnJaws.com.(3-17-2008)
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Kobalt Tools 500:
Total number of commercials: 133
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 74
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 35
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 2:00 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 5:51 PM
Total minutes: 231
Minutes of race broadcast: 171
Minutes of commercials: 60
Number of missed restarts: 0
Number of debris cautions where debris not shown: 1
Click here for last year's commercial breakdown of this race.
Number of times selected drivers were focused on:
Joe Nemechek -- 7
Mark Martin -- 8
Dario Franchitti -- 8B
Casey Mears -- 11
Bobby Labonte -- 14
Dale Jarrett -- 20
Brian Vickers -- 20
Kurt Busch -- 20
Greg Biffle -- 38
Tony Stewart -- 44
Clint Bowyer -- 49
Jimmie Johnson -- 54
Jeff Gordon -- 68
Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 82
Kyle Busch (race winner) -- 134
See full report at CawsnJaws.com.(3-10-2008)
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the UAW-Dodge 400
For those of you NASCAR fans that like stats and love to hate commercials, or wonder how often your driver was focused on, here is the breakdown for Sunday's race. Fox was the broadcaster for this event.
Total number of commercials: 110
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 61
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 39
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 4:30pm
End time to record race/commercial periods: 8:14pm
Total minutes: 224
Minutes of race broadcast: 171
Minutes of commercials: 53
Number of missed restarts: 1 (and one near miss)
Number of 'debris cautions' when debris not shown: 1
Number of times selected drivers were focused on:
Patrick Carpentier -- 8
Ken Schrader -- 8
Mike Skinner -- 9
Juan Montoya -- 11
Bobby Labonte -- 14
Mark Martin -- 17
Jimmie Johnson -- 19
Scott Riggs -- 28
Tony Stewart -- 30
Kurt Busch -- 36
Greg Biffle -- 42
Jeff Gordon -- 65
Kyle Busch -- 79
Matt Kenseth -- 84
Carl Edwards (race winner) -- 88
See full report and stats at CawsnJaws.com.(3-3-2008)
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Auto Club 500
Total number of commercials: 143
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 61
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 50
Total number of companies or entities advertised in brief promos or crawlers: 26
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 6:00 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 9:30 PM
Monday, February 25, 2008
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 1:00 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 3:15 PM
Total minutes: 343
Minutes of race broadcast: 273
Minutes of commercials: 70
Number of missed restarts: 1 (and two near misses)
Number of times selected drivers were focused on:
Dario Franchitti -- 7
Jeremy Mayfield -- 9
Bobby Labonte -- 12
Michael Waltrip -- 29
Sam Hornish Jr. -- 32
Martin Truex Jr. -- 33
Kurt Busch -- 42
Ryan Newman -- 43
Greg Biffle -- 45
Matt Kenseth -- 54
Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 66
Kyle Busch -- 92
Carl Edwards (race winner) -- 145
Jimmie Johnson -- 166
Jeff Gordon -- 166
See full report and breakdown at CawsnJaws.(2-26-2008)
- Toyota Commercial Judged best: NASCAR fans have chosen Toyota's new television commercial, in which kids wielding giant remote control devices wreak havoc on the Toyota drivers, as the best new ad of the season, according to votes cast on NASCAR.COM. UPS's heartwarming spot featuring Dale Jarrett racing the big brown truck and then hanging up the keys was voted the second best spot. Gillette's new Young Guns commercial, in which drivers Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne and Ryan Newman body slam and generally abuse wrestling star John Cena, was ranked third best. Toyota's new spot showcases the manufacturer's newest drivers
from Joe Gibbs Racing - Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin - as well as Tony's crew chief Greg Zipadelli and veteran Toyota driver Michael Waltrip. After kids in the stands wielding large remote controls propel the Camry's all over the track, Tony Stewart jumps from his car, is chased onto pit road, and guns his helmet at the kid-controlled car.
The winning commercial, part of the "Toyota Department of Fan Operations" campaign that puts fans closer to the racing action, was created by Saatchi & Saatchi, Los Angeles.(NASCAR PR)(2-22-2008) Comment here.
- Commercial breakdown, driver focus, and links related to the 2008 Daytona 500:
Total number of commercials: 122
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 65
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 37
Total amount of time these brief promos take during broadcast: app. 4 min. 35
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 3:20 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 6:58 PM
Total minutes: 218
Minutes of race broadcast: 166
Minutes of commercials: 52
Number of missed restarts: 0
See full report at CawsnJaws.com.(2-18-2008)
- Commercial breakdown, driver focus, and links related to the Gatorade Duels:
Total number of commercials: 100
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 46
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 18
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 2:00pm
End time to record race/commercial periods: 5:28pm
Total minutes: 208
Minutes of race broadcast: 157
Minutes of commercials: 51
Number of missed restarts: 0
See full report at CawsnJaws.com.(2-15-2008)
- NASCAR viewers get a break, ad-wise: Viewers tuning in to ESPN's coverage of stock-car racing are likely to notice a change in how the commercials play out.
Starting with Saturday's Nationwide Series event at Daytona, ESPN will slot commercials at times that annoy viewers the least, says Rich Feinberg, network vice president of motor sports. "Obviously, commercials are part of our business," Feinberg said. "They're necessary." But, he said, the network did a study after last season to see where the breaks came in the racing action, and how viewing patterns may have changed during telecasts. "We went back and looked at the length of the break, track by track," he said.
Commercial breaks in live events are a sticking point for viewers of all sports, but in auto racing, there are no set timeouts or other interruptions. So producers end up guessing when they can break away from the action without missing too much, or else they wait until everything slows after an accident. The length of the breaks also changes depending on the track. At Daytona, where a lap around the 2.5-mile track takes about 49 seconds, ESPN can take a relatively long break without missing much. But at a smaller track, where a lap may take only 14 seconds, a one-minute break keeps viewers away for a significant amount of track time. Taking those factors into account, Feinberg said, ESPN may take more frequent but shorter breaks this year. "In the end, if you totaled all the commercial time, there will be slightly less," he said.(New York Daily News)(2-15-2008) Comment here
- Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Bud Shootout 02-09-08:
Total number of commercials: 65
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 37
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 12
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 8:20 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 10:07 PM
Total minutes: 107
Minutes of race broadcast: 80
Minutes of commercials: 27
Number of missed restarts: 0
See full report at CawsnJaws.com.(2-10-2008)
- Fox Sells Out Daytona 500: Fox has sold out its Sunday, Feb. 17 telecast of the NASCAR Daytona 500, with 30-second spots selling for $550,000 each, up from $475,000 last year, sources said. The network has also sold about 90% of its ad inventory for its NASCAR race telecasts through the end of March. Overall, for its 17 race windows into June, Fox has sold close to 85% of its ad inventory, which is more than 20% ahead of last year. Ad inventory for the regular NASCAR race telecasts is selling for about $200,000 per 30-second commercial, up from $175,000 last season, a 14% increase per unit. NASCAR sales have been buoyed by strong advertiser interest in several categories, including prescription and over-the-counter drug companies, fast food, wireless, financial services and retail. Sources said Fox sold out the Daytona 500 prior to the Super Bowl, which is the earliest the network has accomplished that.(Adweek.com)(2-8-2008) Comment here.
- Super Bowl Commercials featuring some NASCAR drivers: The pulse of American pop culture is racing right through Super Bowl Sunday and it's hitching a ride on the back of Pepsi's unprecedented slate of Super Bowl advertising that features a lineup of brands, images and stars as diverse as Pepsi's portfolio of drinks. Promising a one-of-a-kind lineup for a one-of-a-kind day, Pepsi's Super Sunday lineup includes: #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. getting a charge out of AMP Energy drink as he gets over the hump and harness the energy, focus and control he needs to compete in a camel race.(PepsiCo)
#99-Carl Edwards will appear on advertising's largest stage this Sunday, February 3 - Super Bowl Sunday in a 60 second Under Amour spot, the brand's first-ever Super Bowl
Commercial. The commercial, showcasing several professional athletes will mark the first time audiences will see Under Armour's new performance trainers. "I am really looking forward seeing the commercial. I'm going to the Super Bowl and I hope that they show the commercials at the game," said Carl Edwards. "The scale of the production was huge and I'm looking forward to seeing the end product."(Roush Racing PR)(1-31-2008)
- Who did the cameras focus on in 2007? cawsnjaws.com started to keep records of how many commercials there are during Cup races and how much time they take of every broadcast was in response to many fans unhappiness with those numbers. Soon after I started posting the numbers and even have them archived on their own page, Commericals 2007. Also kept track of how much camera time different drivers receive during races. Some results:
Car No. / Driver / Focus Total (top 5/bottom 5) full time drivers:
(24) Jeff Gordon 928
(48) Jimmie Johnson 906
(8) Dale Earnhardt Jr. 763
(20) Tony Stewart 604
(17) Matt Kenseth 579
-----------------------
(44) Dale Jarrett 54
(36) Jeremy Mayfield 42
(84) A.J. Allmendinger 36
(00) David Reutimann 33
(4) Ward Burton 32
Crew Chiefs:
(48) Chad Knaus 57
(24) Steve Letarte 44
(20) Greg Zipadelli 23
(8) Tony Eury Jr. 12
(5) Alan Gustafson 9
See full report at cawsnjaws.com.(1-28-2008)