2005 NASCAR TV Ratings - Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site

TV RATINGS 2005

Chase Races Record High Ratings, Homestead down from 2004: NASCAR on NBC & TNT averaged a 4.7 rating and 10 share for its coverage of Nextel Cup racing, its best season-to-date rating for NASCAR since beginning their partnership to broadcast the second half of the NASCAR schedule in 2001, and a 74% increase from the 2.7/8 for the 2000 season, the last season before the current network television deal. NBC & TNT’s ratings for the ten races of the “Chase for the Nextel Cup” averaged a 4.7, up 2% from the inaugural “Chase” last year (4.6).
NBC’s coverage of the NASCAR Nextel Cup championship finale, the Ford 400 from Homestead-Miami Speedway, rated a 5.9/11, the second-highest rating in the history of the event, below only last year’s 6.2/13, and drew an estimated 19 million viewers. The rating peaked at a 7.2 between 7-7:30pm/et as Greg Biffle outdueled Mark Martin to take the checkered flag and Tony Stewart clinched the NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship.
The top ten rated markets for the second half of the 2005 season are: 1) Greensboro, NC: 12.4; 2) Greenville, SC: 12.0; 3) Knoxville, TN: 11.4; 4) Charlotte, NC: 11.1; 5) Indianapolis, IN: 9.4; 6) Louisville, KY: 8.4; 7) Atlanta, GA: 8.3; t8) Birmingham, AL: 8.2; t8) Jacksonville, FL: 8.2; 10) Dayton, OH: 8.0.(NBC PR)(11-23-2005)
Overnight TV numbers for Homestead down: NBC’s broadcast of Sunday’s Ford 400 Nextel Cup season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway earned a 4.8 overnight rating from Nielsen Media Research and a 9 market share, Street & Smith’s
SportsBusiness Daily reports. The Daily says the rating is 14.3% lower than the 5.6 overnight rating in 2004 but reports that the Miami-Fort Lauderdale market was not reportable because of Hurricane Wilma.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(11-21-2005)
Final Phoenix TV ratings slip: NBC’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway earned a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 5.0 and a 10 share, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is 2% lower than the 5.1 NBC drew for last year’s ninth race in the Chase For The Nextel Cup, the Mountain Dew Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(11-18-2005)
Overnight Phoenix TV Ratings down: NBC’s broadcast of Sunday’s Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway earned an overnight rating of 4.0 from Nielsen Media Research and a 7 share in the nation’s largest television markets, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The overnight rating is 13% lower than the 4.6 NBC drew overnight for last year’s 35th Nextel Cup race, which was the Mountain Dew Southern 500 from Darlington Raceway. The Nov. 7, 2004, race at Phoenix, which was last year’s 34th race, drew a 4.3 overnight rating.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(11-14-2005)
Texas Final TV Ratings: NBC’s coverage of the inaugural fall NASCAR Nextel Cup race from Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday earned a 5.1 national rating/10 share, a 4% increase from the comparable race last year (4.9/10 in Phoenix). With only two races left in the “Chase for the Nextel Cup,” the eight “Chase” races are averaging a 4.5 rating on NBC & TNT, up 5% from 2004 (4.3) and up 10% for the comparable eight races in 2003 (4.1). Season to date, NASCAR on NBC & TNT is rating a 4.7, up 8% from 2004 (4.4).(NBC PR)(11-9-2005)
Texas Overnight TV Ratings: NBC’s broadcast of Sunday’s Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway earned an overnight Nielsen Media Research rating of 4.4 and an 8 share in the nation’s largest markets, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The Texas race is new to the schedule, but the rating is 2.3% higher than the 4.3 overnight rating NBC drew for last year’s 34th Nextel Cup race, the Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(11-8-2005)
Final Atlanta TV Ratings up: NBC’s broadcast of the Oct. 30 Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 Nextel Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway earned a final rating of 4.7 from Nielsen Media Research and a 10 share, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is 2.2% higher than the 4.6 rating NBC drew for the race in 2004.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(11-8-2005)
Atlanta Early TV Ratings down: NBC’s broadcast of Sunday’s Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 from Atlanta Motor Speedway earned a 3.9 overnight rating and an 8 share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The overnight rating from the nation’s largest television markets is down 7.1% from 4.2 last year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(10-31-2005)
Final Martinsville TV Ratings Up: Final Nielsen Media Research numbers show that NBC’s broadcast of the Oct. 23 Subway 500 Nextel Cup race at Martinsville Speedway earned a 4.7 rating and a 10 share, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is 6.8% higher than the 4.4 the race drew for the network last year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter), early ratings were down 5%.(10-31-2005)
Early Martinsville TV Ratings down 5%: NBC’s broadcast of Sunday’s Subway 500 from Martinsville Speedway drew a 3.8 overnight rating and an 8 share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is 5% lower than the 4.0 the race drew last year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(10-24-2005)
Final TV ratings up 4.1%: NBC’s broadcast of last Saturday night’s UAW-GM Quality 500 from Lowe’s Motor Speedway earned a final rating of 5.1 and a 10 share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is 4.1% higher than the 4.9 the race earned in 2004.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(10-21-2005)
Early Charlotte TV Ratings Up over 2004: NBC’s broadcast of the NASCAR Nextel Cup race on Saturday night (Oct. 15) was the highest overnight rating ever for the televised event. The race –from Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte, N.C.– delivered a 4.8 overnight rating and 8 share, up from a 4.6/8 last year, according to Nielsen Media Research data. The top-rated local markets were Greensboro, Greenville and Charlotte, N.C.; Knoxville, Tenn.; and Indianapolis.(MediaWeek)(10-17-2005)
Final Kansas TV ratings up 7.1%: NBC’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Banquet 400 Nextel Cup race earned a 4.5 rating and a 9 share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The final rating is up 7.1 percent from last year’s 4.2 rating and 25 percent from the 3.6 overnight figure from this year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(10-14-2005)
Early Kansas TV Ratings off 11%: NBC’s broadcast of Sunday’s Banquet 400 Nextel Cup race from Kansas Speedway earned a 3.6 overnight rating and a 7 share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The preliminary rating from the nation’s largest television markets is down 11.1% from the 4.0/8 overnight in 2004.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(10-11-2005)
Talladega TV Ratings Even with 2004 UPDATE final numbers: NBC’s broadcast of Sunday’s UAW-Ford 500 earned a 4.6 overnight rating from Nielsen Media Research and a 9 market share to match the overnight figures of 2004, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)
2004 numbers: the race at Talladega in Oct 2004 drew a 4.6 overnight rating and a 9 share from Nielsen Media Research. Final Nielsen Media Research numbers for NBC’s broadcast at Talladega Superspeedway drew a 5.4 rating.(10-4-2005);
UPDATE: NBC drew a 5.3 national rating and 11 share for last week’s NASCAR Nextel Cup Racing from Talladega, off slightly from 2004 (5.4/12) and representing a 77 percent increase over 2000, the last year before NBC began broadcasting the event (3.0 converted national rating on ESPN). NBC & TNT’s average 2005 rating is a 4.6 through 12 races, up 2 percent over 2004 and up 59 percent over 2000 (2.9 through 13 races). The top ten metered markets for NBC’s Talladega broadcast are as follows: 1) Greensboro, NC 13.1; 2) Greenville, SC 12.7; 3) Knoxville, TN 12.6; 4) Birmingham, AL 12.0; 5) Charlotte, NC 10.9; 6) Louisville, KY 9.8; 7) Atlanta, GA 9.3; 8) Jacksonville, FL 8.5; 9) Raleigh-Durham, NC 8.3; t10) Indianapolis, IN 7.8; t10) Richmond, VA 7.8.(NBC PR)(10-6-2005)
Dover TV Ratings down: TNT says its coverage of Sunday’s MBNA Racepoints 400 from Dover International Speedway earned a 3.1 U.S. rating, down from 3.2 in 2004, but says its average for its seven Cup races this season was up 11% from 2004.
TNT says its races this year included three of cable television’s top NASCAR races of all time in household delivery, including the July 24 race at Pocono, (5.14 million households, 4.7 U.S. rating), the July 17 race at New Hampshire (4.95 million households, 4.5 U.S. rating), and the Aug. 21 race at Michigan International Speedway (4.89 million households, 4.5 U.S. rating).(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)
AND Zap2it.com reports a 3.1 Rating with 4,842,000 viewers, last year it was 3.2 national rating and 5,001,000 viewers.(9-28-2005)
New Hampshire TV Ratings up 21%: The Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway garnered a 3.4 Houeshold Rating on TNT with 3,786,000 households viewing and with 5,505,000 viewers and was 3rd behind the Chief-Radiers NFL game on ESPN [6.9 ratings] and interestingly enough the Post-Race show on TNT, just after the race [4:49 to 5:00pm/et] which had a 3.7 ratings, 4,113,000 households and 6,124,000 viewers.(Zap2it.com)
in 2004 the New Hampshire race on TNT had a rating of 2.8 and total households watching at 3,024,000.(9-23-2005)
Baseball says it is #2 in TV Ratings: Major League Baseball officials are beginning to dispute NASCAR’s assertion that when it comes to television ratings, stock car racing takes a back seat only to the NFL. In the 2005 Nextel Cup series media guide, NASCAR proclaims itself “the #2 rated sport on television in the United States.”
Tim Brosnan, MLB’s executive vice president/business, says when ratings for baseball’s biggest events are included in the comparison, baseball’s network television ratings were 23% higher than NASCAR’s last year. “People can say whatever they want to say, but the facts speak for themselves,” Brosnan says. “When it comes to network television, baseball is the No. 2 sport.” Brosnan cites research from Nielsen Media, saying in 2004 NASCAR’s 26 races televised on NBC and Fox averaged a 5.6 rating; that includes ratings for races in the Chase for the Nextel Cup, the playoff-style championship format introduced last season. Baseball’s 43 Fox telecasts in 2004, including playoffs and the All-Star Game, averaged a 6.9. One ratings point is equivalent to 1% of U.S. TV households.
NASCAR officials maintain their network ratings are higher than baseball’s for most of the year, making them the No. 2 TV sport. “We know pundits are going to come up with various ways to dispute facts in every situation,” NASCAR vice president of communications Jim Hunter said via e-mail. “However, we are proud to hold the No. 2 position on television.”(USA Today)(9-23-2005)
Richmond TV Ratings: The Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway gathered a 3.3 Houeshold Rating on TNT with 3,676,000 households viewing and with 5,673,000 viewers.(Zap2it.com)
in 2004 the race on TNT had a rating of 3.5 and total households watching at 3,829,000.(9-15-2005)
California TV Ratings up: NBC says its broadcast of Sunday’s Sony HD 500 Nextel Cup race at California earned a final 5.2 rating and a 10 share from Nielsen Media Research, a 2% increase over the 5.1/10 in 2004. NBC also says the eight races carried by NBC and TNT so far this season have averaged a 5.0/11, up 11% over last year’s 4.5/10 average.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(9-7-2005)
Bristol TV Tatings up 15%: Turner Network Television says Nielsen Media Research ratings for TNT’s coverage of Saturday night’s Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway were up 15% from last year. TNT says the race earned a 3.9 U.S. rating (a 4.7 national cable rating), up from 3.4 (4.2 cable) in 2004. This year’s race was seen in 4.25 million homes, up from 3.72 million homes last year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(8-30-2005)
Michigan TV ratings up 15%: Turner Network Television says Nielsen Media Research ratings for TNT’s coverage of Sunday’s GFS Marketplace 400 Nextel Cup race were up 15% over 2004. This year’s race was viewed in 4.889 million households and earned a 5.5 cable rating and a 4.5 U.S. rating. The 2004 race was seen in 4.223 million households and earned 4.8 cable rating and a 3.9 U.S. rating.(NASCAR Scene)(8-24-2005)
Watkins Glen TV numbers: Sunday’s race at Watkins Glen drew a 4.3 overnight rating for NBC. That’s down from a 5.0 rating in 2003, the last time the Watkins Glen race was broadcast on NBC.(NASCAR.com)(8-19-2005)
Brickyard 400 TV Ratings – Brickyard Rating Grows 68% in 5 Years on NBC: NBC Sports’ coverage of the Allstate 400 at
the Brickyard earned a 6.2 rating and 15 share on Sunday, matching the second highest rating in the history of the event, with more than
19 million people tuning in to all or part of the broadcast. The 6.2/15 is a 2% increase over the rating for last year’s race (6.1/15) and a three% increase over 2003 (6.0/15). NBC’s coverage of the race in 2002 set the record high for the event (6.3/16); NBC’s 2001 broadcast also earned a 6.2.
In the five years that NBC has broadcast the Brickyard, the rating has grown 68% (6.2/15 vs. 3.7/12 on ABC in 2000). The NBC/TNT
four-race, season-to-date average national rating, excluding the Pepsi 400, which alternates yearly between NBC and FOX, stands at a 5.3, up 56% over 2000 (3.4), the last year before NBC/TNT began exclusively broadcasting the second half of the NASCAR Nextel Cup season. The 5.3 season-to-date average is up 8% over last year’s 4.9 for the same four races, and up 15% over 2003 (4.6)
(the comparison to 2000 excludes NBC’s coverage of Nextel Cup Racing from Chicagoland Speedway, which began hosting NASCAR events in 2001).
Sunday’s rating peaked at a 7.9 between 6-6:15pm/et as hometown hero Tony Stewart took the checkered flag for the first time at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The top-rated markets for NBC’s coverage of the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard are as follows: 1) Indianapolis, 19.4; 2) Greensboro, 14.0; 3) Knoxville, 13.6; 4) Greenville, 12.8; 5) Charlotte, 12.0; 6) Jacksonville, 11.9; 7) Nashville, 11.4; 8) Louisville, 10.9; 9) Atlanta, 10.5; 10) Dayton, 9.7.(NBC PR)(8-9-2005)
Highest TV Ratings for Turner of NASCAR race, NHIS and Pocono: Turner Network Television says its airing of Sunday’s Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway was the highest rated and most watched NASCAR event in its 21-year history of televising the sport [TBS and TNT]. The race was seen in 5.137 million households and drew a 5.7 rating, a 21% increase over 2004, TNT says. The network says its coverage of the July 17 New England 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway was seen in 4.954 million households and earned a 4.5 rating, a 5% increase over 2004.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter – Scene Daily)(7-26-2005)
Final Chicago TV Ratings up 4% over 2004: NBC’s coverage of Sunday’s NASCAR Nextel Cup race from Chicagoland Speedway delivered a 5.7 national rating and 13 share, up 4% from the same race last year (5.5/13 in 2004). The rating peaked between 6:30-7 p.m. ET with a 6.7/14 as Dale Earnhardt, Jr. took the checkered flag for the first time this season. The top rated markets for NBC’s coverage of Sunday’s race were: Greensboro (12.6), Charlotte (12.1), Knoxville (11.9), Greenville/Spartanburg, SC (11.8), Columbus (10.4), Indianapolis (10.1), Nashville (9.8), Jacksonville (9.6), Raleigh-Durham (9.2), Orlando (9.2), Atlanta (9.2).(NBC PR)(7-12-2005)
Overnight Chicago TV Ratings Down: NBC’s broadcast of Sunday’s USG Sheetrock 400 Nextel Cup race at Chicagoland Speedway earned a 4.9 overnight rating and an 11 market share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is 5.8% lower than the 5.2 overnight figure NBC drew for the Chicago race last year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(7-11-2005)
TV Ratings not bad for the Pepsi 400 UPDATE: NBC and TNT’s coverage of the second half of the 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup season kicked off on Saturday night as Tony Stewart took the checkered flag in the Pepsi 400 just before 2:00am/et [1:41am/et], in a race delayed more than two and a half hours by rain at Daytona International Speedway. The race drew a 4.9 overnight rating with a 12 share between 10:30pm/et and 2:00am/et, down only two% from last year’s 5.0/10 on FOX (9:34pm/et-12:26am/et). The rating peaked between 11:00-11:30pm/et with a 5.5/11, the time that the race, if it hadn’t been delayed, would likely have been completed. The rain-delayed race broadcast (7:45pm/et -2am/et) rated a 4.2/9..(NBC PR)(7-5-2005)
UPDATE up 6% over 2004: Despite not ending until 2:00am/et Sunday morning, NBC’s inaugural race broadcast of the 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup season, the Pepsi 400 from Daytona International Speedway, drew a 5.5 national rating and 13 share (9:55 p.m.-2 a.m. ET), up six% from 2004 (5.2/12 on FOX, 9:36 p.m.-12:26 a.m. ET), even with being delayed more than two and a half hours by rain. NBC’s live rain-delay coverage, featuring NBC/TNT pit reporters interviewing NASCAR drivers, (7:45-9:55 p.m. ET) drew a 3.6/8, and was the highest rated program in the 8-9 p.m. ET time period on Saturday. From 8-11 p.m. ET, NBC Sports’ coverage of the Pepsi 400 ranked No. 1 in Saturday primetime against all networks in adults 18-49 and total viewers. The actual race telecast averaged a 3.2/13 in 18-49 from 9:55 p.m.-2 a.m. ET. Though most of the race occurred outside of primetime in the Eastern and Central time zones, the race telecast of the Pepsi 400 ranked as the week’s No. 7 program in 18-49.
This week at Chicago on “Wally’s World,” U.S. Olympic gold medalist Jennie Finch, of the U.S. women’s softball team, joins NBC/TNT analyst Wally Dallenbach for a few laps on the racetrack.(NBC PR)(7-7-2005)
Sonoma TV Ratings UPDATE 2 New record for Infineon: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Dodge/Save Mart 350 Nextel Cup race at Infineon Raceway earned a 4.6 overnight rating from Nielsen Media Research and a 10 market share, Street & Smith’s Sports Business Daily reports. The rating is 4.2% lower than the 4.8 the race drew overnight in 2004, when it went on to earn a final 4.7/11.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(6-27-2005)
UPDATE: Fox announced record-setting ratings for Cup events this year. Fox reported a 7% increase in ratings to a 6.0 from last season. Fox averaged 9.6 million viewers per race, about 600,000 more than last year. Seven races had record ratings this season: Daytona, California, Bristol, Talladega, Charlotte, Pocono and Sonoma.(News Record)(6-29-2005)
UPDATE 2: NASCAR concluded its first half of the season on Fox on June 26, with its race from Sonoma, Calif., producing a 5.7 national household rating, up 21% over the same race last year. The figure assures a new record household rating –a 6.0– for this year’s 13 races on Fox and a record average number of viewers, at 9.6 million. In announcing the Nielsen Media Research data results, Fox crowed that its broadcast of NASCAR is the first major professional sports TV package to post a regular season household ratings record since Monday Night Football on ABC in 1981.
During the Fox portion of this season (NBC/Turner begin airing Nascar second-half races this coming weekend), there were seven races that recorded record-high household ratings. Ratings in the Top 10 markets were up 9% over 2004 (3.8 vs. 3.5). Among the markets showing the biggest ratings increases were Dallas (up 27% to a 6.1), San Francisco (up 24% to a 2.6), Boston (up 23% to a 3.7), Atlanta (up 14% to an 11.2), and Chicago (up 13% to a 3.5). Fox also said that its regular-season Nascar races topped the complete NBA postseason telecasts on ABC, besting the NBA Finals in average viewership (9.6 million to 8.3 million) and in household rating (6.0 vs. 5.5). The ratings gains were not perfect, however, with some of the younger demos on the NASCAR telecasts down in the single-digits.(Mediaweek)(6-30-2005)
Final Michigan TV Ratings – Ratings Up, Share Down, close to same as 2004: Street & Smith’s Sports Business Daily says the June 19 Batman Begins 400 at Michigan International Speedway drew a 4.76 rating and an audience share of 12, according to data from Nielsen Media Research. The numbers for last year’s race were not immediately available.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)
2004: from my 2004 TV Ratings Page [info came from these two sources too] – Final Nielsen Media Research numbers show Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s DHL 400 at Michigan International Speedway drew a 4.5 rating and 13 share, down 16.7% from 2003’s 5.4/16.(6-24-2005)
Fox TV Ratings on a record pace: As Fox prepares to air its final Nextel Cup race of the season on Sunday, the network says it is on the verge of setting an all-time high for its regular season broadcasts. Fox says it is averaging a 6.1 rating and a 14 market share for its first 11 events (through the June 12 Pocono race) and 9.833 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. The rating is up 5% from the 5.8 last year, and the audience is up 6% from the 2004 audience of 9.275 million. Fox Sports research expects that this year’s Nextel Cup coverage on the network will post a final 5.9 household rating, setting a new record for any NASCAR package.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(6-23-2005)
Michigan TV Ratings Match up with 2004: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Batman Begins 400 at Michigan International
Speedway earned a 4.0 overnight rating and a 10 market share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The figures match the 4.0/10 overnight figures from Michigan’s June race last year, which were down from 4.5/11 overnight in 2003.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(6-20-2005)
Final Pocono TV Ratings up 7.7%: Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Pocono 500 at Pocono Raceway earned a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 5.6 and a 14 share, Street & Smith’s Sports Business Daily reports. The rating is 7.7% higher than the 5.2 Fox
drew for the June 2004 race at the track.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(6-17-2005)
Overnight Pocono TV Ratings up 8.5%: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Pocono 500 at Pocono Raceway earned 5.1 overnight rating and a 12 market share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is 8.5% higher than the 4.7 Fox drew for the June Pocono race last year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(6-13-2005)
TV Ratings from Dover UPDATE: hearing that the TV Ratings for the MBNA RacePoints 400 at Dover International Speedway on FX was a 3.9 rating/10 share (6.1 million viewers), up +15% over last year’s 3.4/9.(6-7-2005)
UPDATE: FX says it recorded its highest figure ever for a NASCAR Cup race with a 4.9 Nielsen Media Research rating for Sunday’s MBNA 400 at Dover International Speedway. The cable station says the race drew 6.1 million viewers. FX also says its three Nextel Cup events (two points races and the NASCAR Nextel All-Star Challenge) this year averaged a 4.5 rating, up from the 4.0 last year. FX also says its coverage of Busch Series races this year has earned a 1.8 average rating, up 38% from the 1.3 last year, and an average of 2 million viewers per race, up from 1.5 million in 2004.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(6-10-2005)
Final TV Ratings for the Coca Cola 600: Final Nielsen Media Research numbers show that Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway earned a 6.1 rating and a 13 share, Street & Smith’s Sports Business Daily reports. The rating is 22.0% higher than last year’s 5.0, and the Daily says 10.2 million people watched this year’s race, up 22.9% from the 8.3 million last year. For the first time since 2001, however, the NASCAR race earned a lower rating than ABC’s broadcast of the Indy 500, which drew a 6.5/18.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(6-3-2005)
Coca-Cola TV Ratings…and Indy 500: The holiday weekend continued to make for less-than-scintillating TV ratings Sunday, as FOX walked away with a win thanks to its NASCAR coverageof the Coca Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. FOX averaged a 6.0 rating/12 share for the night (although, since its race telecast aired live, those numbers will change some in the final nationals) to beat second-place CBS’ 5.6/11. ABC was third at 4.2/8, edging out NBC, 4.0/8. The WB barely registered with a 0.9/2. Coverage of the NASCAR Coca-Cola 600 put FOX on the pole at 7 p.m. with a 6.0/13. FOX held its lead at 8 p.m., even though its rating dipped slightly to 5.7/11. The NASCAR race closed with a 6.3/12 at 9 p.m.(Zap2It.com)
AND The NASCAR race drew a 4.8 rating and 10 share.(Indianapolis Star)
Indy 500: ABC’s Indianapolis 500 broadcast on Sunday drew a 6.6 overnight rating and a 17 share, up 40% from last year and the highest since 1997. Danica Patrick, who became the first woman to hold the lead at the Indy 500, led several of the final laps before settling for fourth. The ratings during the last 15 minutes of the race spiked to 8.8/21. Last year’s race, won by Patrick’s Rahal-Letterman teammate Buddy Rice, drew a 4.7/11. Arie Luyendyk’s victory in the 1997 race, which finished on a Tuesday because of rain, drew a 7.6/19. Each overnight rating point represents about 735,000 TV homes.(Philadelphia Daily News)
Coca-Cola 600: hearing the race pulled in a 5.1/10 overnight for Fox’s coverage of the Coca Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, that’s up +13% over last year’s 4.5/9.(5-31-2005)
AND more: Overnight ratings for Fox’s broadcast of Sunday night’s Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway were up more than reported yesterday. The actual Nielsen Media Research overnight rating was a 5.1, with a 10 market share, a 13.3% increase from the 4.5 overnight figure in 2004.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(6-1-2005)
TV Ratings for All-Star Race: The 2005 NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge earned a 4.3 rating on FX, up 19% over the 3.6 rating for the 2004 NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge. The number of households (HH) increased 24% to 3,691,000 as number of viewers increased 14% to 5,484,000. The event was the highest-rated NASCAR all-star event ever.(NASCAR)(5-26-2005)
Richmond TV Ratings: The Chevy American Revolution 400 was the highest rated cable sports event of the weekend (4.4 versus the next closest event, Sunday’s NBA playoff match up between Phoenix and Dallas on TNT, which pulled a 3.7 rating) and also attracted the most viewers among cable sports events (3.77 million). Those numbers represent a ratings increase of 16% from the 2004 race (4.4 vs. 3.8) and a whopping 20% jump in households (3.77 million vs. 3.16 million). Total viewers also increased by 11%, from 5.05 million in 2004 to 5.58 million on Saturday.
The Chevy American Revolution 400 FX broadcast also attracted the most households for a spring NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway (3.77 million vs. 3.75 million for the 1997 race). That household rating ranks second in track history to last September’s Chevy Rock & Roll 400, which was seen by 3.82 million households. The Chevy Rock & Roll 400 was the 26th event on last year’s schedule and set the field for the inaugural Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup. The track again occupies the same position on the schedule this season.
On the NASCAR Busch Series side, the FUNAI 250 also had excellent numbers against last year’s event in rating (1.9 vs. 1.4, a 36%
increase), households (1.602 million vs. 1.189 million, a 35% increase), and viewers (2.09 million vs. 1.6 million, a 24% increase).
Only the September 2002 NASCAR Busch Series race has had a higher rating and household number than Friday’s FUNAI 250.(Richmond International Raceway)(5-17-2005)
Darlington TV Ratings: According to figures released by the FOX network, the Dodge Charger 500 at Darlington Raceway was the highest-rated prime time NASCAR event ever broadcast by the network. The race had an average viewership of 9.3 million, up 10% over FOX’s one previous primetime race broadcast so far this season. The 5.6 rating and 11 share easily won the Saturday evening ratings war for the network over CBS (4.7), ABC (4.7) and NBC (4.5). The race also posted a 3.6 rating (13 share) among the critical prime time demographic of Adults 18-49, placing FOX first for the night by a wide margin. ABC was second in that demographic with a 2.4 rating, and CBS was third with a 1.9. The Diamond Hill Plywood 200 earned a 1.6 rating on FX, up from last year’s number of 1.3 on the same network. The 1.6 rating for the DHP 200 is seven% higher than the 1.5 average for all nine NASCAR Busch Series prime time cable events in 2004.(Darlington Raceway)(5-11-2005)
Darlington overnight TV Ratings: Fox’s broadcast of Saturday night’s Dodge Charger 500 from Darlington Raceway earned a 4.7 overnight rating and a 9 market share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. NASCAR has not raced on Mother’s Day weekend in recent years, so the figures can’t be compared to the same weekend last year. The 4.7 rating for a race run during the usually weak Saturday night period is down 9.6% from the 5.2 Fox drew with last year’s March 21 Darlington race, which was run on a Sunday afternoon. But the figure is up 4.4% from the 4.5 overnight figures for this year’s Phoenix race, which was also run on a Saturday night.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(5-6-2005)
Talladega TV Ratings Soar: Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway earned a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 7.6 and an 18 market share, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is 20.6% higher than the 6.3 the 2004 Talladega spring race, which was run a week earlier. It is also 24.6% higher than the rating for the 2004 California spring race, which was run on the comparable weekend. The race was also easily the weekend’s most watched sporting event, with Fox’s coverage of last Saturday’s Busch Series race at Talladega finishing second with a 3.3/7. To date, Fox is averaging a 6.2/14 for its Nextel Cup coverage, up 5% from last year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(5-6-2005)
TV Ratings for Qualifying and Trackside at Talladega: Talladega NASCAR coverage was a hit with SPEED Channel viewers last weekend as more than one million households tuned in for coverage of NEXTEL Cup qualifying Friday. Live qualifying coverage on SPEED drew a Nielsen Household Rating of 1.10 (696,000 households), while the replay scored a .56 (354,000 households) later in the day. SPEED Channel’s “Trackside” program went out to more than half a million households, scoring .68 (433,000 households) for its live broadcast Friday night. A same-day replay added an additional .25 (156,000 HH).(SPEED Channel)(5-2-2005)
Overnight TV Ratings for Talladega Up: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 earned a 6.1 overnight Nielsen Media Research rating from the nation’s largest markets and a 14 market share, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The
rating is up 3.4% from the 5.9 overnight figure for the 2004 Talladega race, which was run a week earlier. This year’s figure,
which is the third-highest overnight rating for a race this season, is also up 8.9% from the 5.6 that the 2004 California race drew on
the comparable weekend.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(5-2-2005)
TV Ratings Up from Overnight: Fox’s broadcast of last Saturday night’s Subway Fresh 500 at Phoenix International Raceway earned a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 5.1 and a 10 market share, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is up 13.3% from the 4.5 overnight rating from the nation’s largest television markets. There was no spring race at Phoenix last year, but Fox’s broadcast of the Sunday afternoon race at Talladega Superspeedway on the comparable 2004 weekend earned a 6.3 rating. The 5.1, however, was recorded on a Saturday night, traditionally an off period for television viewing, and was the highest figure of any weekend sports broadcast. It also matched the 5.1 for the Sunday afternoon broadcast of the April 10 Martinsville race, which was the lowest figure for any of the season’s eight races to date.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-29-2005)
Overnight Phoenix TV Ratings, Lowest of the Year: Fox’s broadcast of Saturday night’s Subway Fresh 500 earned a 4.5 overnight rating from Nielsen Media Research and an 8 market share, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. Saturday night is traditionally an off night for television viewership, and the 4.5 is the lowest overnight rating of any Nextel Cup race this year. There was no spring race at Phoenix last year, but the overnight rating is 23.7% below the 5.9 Fox drew overnight on the comparable weekend of 2004, when it aired the spring Talladega race.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-25-2005)
Final Texas TV Ratings mixed: Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Samsung/RadioShack 500 from Texas Motor Speedway drew a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 5.7 and a 15 share, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating figure is down 5% from the 6.0 the Texas race drew last year, when it was contested on the first Sunday of April, but up 5.6% from the 5.4 rating that the Martinsville race drew for the comparable weekend in 2004.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-22-2005)
Texas Overnight TV Ratings Lag: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Samsung/RadioShack 500 from Texas Motor
Speedway earned a 5.0 overnight rating from Nielsen Media Research and an 11 market share, today’s Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. While the race was the weekend’s highest-rated sports event, the rating was down from the overnight 5.6/13 (with the Albuquerque, N.M., market missing) earned by the Texas race last year, when the event was run on the first weekend in April, and the 5.8/13 in 2003.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-18-2005)
Final Martinsville TV Ratings Mixed: Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Advance Auto Parts 500 at Martinsville Speedway earned a 5.1 final rating from Nielsen Media Research and a 13 share, today’s Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. While the rating is 10.9% higher than the 4.6 overnight figure, it is down from 5.4 in 2004, when the race was a week later and was not on against the Masters golf tournament. CBS’s coverage of this year’s Masters, which was won by Tiger Woods in a playoff, was the weekend’s highest rated sports show with a 9.8..(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-16-2005)
Martinsville TV Ratings: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Advance Auto Parts 500 from Martinsville Speedway earned an overnight rating of 4.6 and an 11 share from Nielsen Media Research, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The 2004 spring race at Martinsville, which was run a week later and was not aired against CBS’s coverage of the 2004 Masters golf tournament, drew overnight figures of 4.4/11 for the first portion from 1:30 to 3:45 p.m. before the race was red-flagged after the track surface broke up. It earned a 5.4/11 for the portion from 5 to 6:45 after repairs were made. There was no race on a comparable weekend in 2004, when Easter fell on April 11.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-11-2005)
NASCAR beats the NBA: Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Food City 500 Nextel Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway not only posted the track’s highest rating ever (6.3), but it also earned higher ratings than ABC’s NBA games in the
four home markets that had their teams playing during race coverage. The Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel reports that more people watched NASCAR than the NBA in Boston, Dallas, Minneapolis and Philadelphia.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-9-2005)
Bristol Reports Best TV Ratings Ever: Bristol Motor Speedway says Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Food City 500 earned a 6.3 final Nielsen Media Research rating as it drew a track record viewership of more than 9.75 million people. The rating is 5.0% higher than the 6.0 the race drew for Fox last year and is also 5.0% higher than the 6.0 earned by the 2004 Samsung/RadioShack 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, which aired the same weekend last year. The track says 6.9 million households viewed the race, a 7% increase from the 2004 spring race.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-7-2005)
Overnight Bristol TV Ratings: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Food City 500 from Bristol Motor Speedway drew a 5.6 overnight rating from Nielsen Media Research and a 13 share from the nation’s largest markets, today’s Street & Smith’s
SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating represents a 7.9% increase from the overnight rating for the 2004 spring Bristol race,
which was contested on the last weekend of March. The numbers match the overnight figures from the spring Texas Motor Speedway race of 2004, when it was run on the first weekend of April, although those Nielsen figures were reported to be incomplete because one market was not included.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-4-2005)
Final Atlanta TV Ratings: Final Nielsen Media Research figures show that Fox’s broadcast of the March 20 Golden Corral 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway drew a 5.5 rating and a 13 share, today’s Sports Business Daily reports. The rating is 12.2% higher than the 4.9 overnight rating for the race from the nation’s largest television markets. The rating was down 3.5% from Fox’s broadcast of Atlanta’s 2004 spring race, which was run a week earlier and did not compete with CBS’s coverage of the men’s NCAA basketball tournament. The final 5.5 rating for Atlanta was down 1.8% from the 5.6 rating that Fox drew for the 2004 Darlington race, which was run on the comparable weekend.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(3-30-2005)
Overnight TV Ratings for Atlanta down: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Golden Corral 500 drew a 4.9 overnight rating and an 11 share from Nielsen Media Research, today’s Sports Business Daily reports. The rating is 8.2% lower than the 5.3 overnight figure the race drew in 2004, when it was contested a week earlier on the calendar and was not broadcast opposite CBS’s coverage of the NCAA’s men’s basketball tournament. The Daily reported that CBS averaged a 7.1 overnight rating for its three broadcast windows of games Sunday, a 10.9% increase over last year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(3-21-2005)
Final Las Vegas TV Ratings up 10%: Final Nielsen Media Research figures show that Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s UAW/DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway earned a 6.4 rating and a 14 share, today’s Sports Business Daily reports. The rating is 10.3% higher than 2004’s 5.8, although it was well short of 2003’s 6.9. The race was easily the most-watched sports
program of the weekend, well ahead of the 4.9/10 that CBS drew for the selection of the teams for the NCAA’s men’s basketball tournament.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(3-18-2005)
Overnight Las Vegas TV Ratings: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s UAW/DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway drew a 5.8 overnight rating from Nielsen Media Research and a 12 share and was the highest-rated sports show of the weekend, today’s Sports Business Daily reports. The rating is 5.5% higher than
the 5.5 overnight rating Fox drew for the race in 2004, but it was well below the 7.1 overnight rating Fox drew for the Feb. 27 Auto Club
500 at California Speedway and the 6.3 overnight rating the Las Vegas race drew for Fox in 2003. CBS’s broadcast of the selection show for the NCAA men’s basketball tournament finished second this weekend with a 5.7 overnight rating.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(3-14-2005)
TV Ratings Good for Mexico race: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Telcel Motorola Mexico 200 Busch Series race drew a 3.4 overnight rating from Nielsen Media Research and a 7 share, today’s Sports Business Daily reports. The race trailed the ratings for NBC’s coverage of Sunday’s final round of the PGA Tour’s Doral event (5.9) and CBS’s broadcast of Sunday’s basketball game between Duke and the University of North Carolina (3.9) among weekend sports events. While the 3.4 rating is less than half of the 7.9 Fox
drew for the Feb. 27 Nextel Cup race at California Speedway, it ties the final rating for the Busch Series’ season-opening race Feb. 19 at Daytona International Speedway.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(3-7-2005)
Final California TV Ratings up 19.7% Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Auto Club 500 at California Speedway drew a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 7.9 and a 16 audience share, today’s Sports Business Daily reports. The figures represent a 19.7% increase over the 6.6/16 that Fox drew for its broadcast of last year’s second Nextel Cup race, the Subway 400 at North Carolina Speedway at Rockingham [the final race at that track]. The 7.9 rating is also 11.3% higher than the 7.1 overnight rating the race drew from the nation’s largest markets, which Fox says was the highest overnight figure it had ever posted for any race other than the Daytona 500.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(3-4-2005)
Busch Series drawing more TV Viewers: NASCAR says the Busch Series has drawn substantially more viewers for
its first two races this year than last year. FX’s airing of the Feb. 26 Stater Bros. 300 was the highest rated Busch Series event in the
cable station’s history with 3.305 million viewers, an 83% increase over the 1.424 million who tuned in for FX’s airing of last
year’s second race, which was at North Carolina Speedway at Rockingham. NASCAR says the increases followed a 14% jump in viewers for Fox’s broadcast of the season-opening Hershey’s Take 5 300 at Daytona International Speedway.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(3-4-2005)
TV Ratings Up 2nd Race of Year AND: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Auto Club 500 from California Speedway drew an overnight Nielsen Media Research rating of 7.1 and a 14 share, today’s Sports Business Daily reports. The rating is 12.7% higher than the 6.3 overnight rating for last year’s second Nextel Cup race, the Subway 400 at North Carolina Speedway at Rockingham, and 26.8% higher than the 5.6 for 2004’s first race at California, the May 2 Auto Club 500.(NASCAR Scene)(2-28-2005)
AND FOX Sports’ 2005 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup regular season schedule got off to a record-setting start yesterday, firing a 7.1/14 overnight rating-the highest overnight rating ever for a regular season (excluding Daytona) race on FOX. Yesterday’s 7.1/14 topped last year’s regular season opener from Rockingham by +13% (vs. 6.3/14) and easily ranks as the top-rated sporting event of the weekend. Prior to yesterday, the last regular season race to produce such an overnight rating was the Rockingham 400 on Feb. 25, 2001 (7.0/15), the first race that followed the tragic death of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt. An impressive 39 out of 55 metered markets posted increases over last year’s regular season opener, including eight of the top ten markets. Impressive increases were seen in:
New York: +94% (3.3 vs. 1.7) Dallas: +15% (6.0 vs. 5.2)
Los Angeles: +14% (4.0 vs. 3.5 Miami: +28% (4.1 vs. 3.2)
Chicago: +43% (5.7 vs. 4.0) Orlando: +44% (12.2 vs. 8.5)
Boston: +36% (6.1 vs. 4.5) Baltimore: +17% (5.6 vs. 4.8)
San Francisco: +63% (3.9 vs. 2.4) Hartford: +40% (8.7 vs. 6.2)
Atlanta: +50% (16.3 vs. 10.9) Milwaukee: +30% (9.2 vs. 7.1)(3-1-2005)
Early TV Ratings MORE: hearing the Daytona 500 on Fox TV Coverage drew a 10.9/23 national rating/share. Up 3% from last year and tied for the highest rated Daytona 500 ever.(2-21-2005)
UPDATE: FOX Sports’ coverage of yesterday’s thrilling Daytona 500 — a race that featured four lead changes in the final nine laps — produced a 10.9/23 preliminary national rating/share (18.7 million viewers), according to Nielsen Media Research. FOX’s 10.9 ties the highest rating ever recorded for a NASCAR race, matching the rating set for the 2002 Daytona 500 on NBC, and is up +3% vs. last year’s race on NBC (10.6/24). Yesterday’s 18.7 million viewers makes it the second most-watched NASCAR race ever (18.8 for the 2002 Daytona 500), the most-watched ever on FOX, and +5% better than a year ago (17.8 million). Nielsen estimates that 35.3 million Americans watched all or part of yesterday’s race, another best for FOX. Eight of the top-10 metered markets posted double-digit%age increases compared to last year’s race, and all of the nation’s top five markets delivered their best rating ever for a Daytona 500 on FOX. NEW YORK posted a 5.5/12, LOS ANGELES earned a 5.3/14, and CHICAGO came in at 9.0/19. PHILADELPHIA drew the highest figure of the top 5 with a 10.4/18 and BOSTON tallied an impressive 8.6/19. Initial tune-in for the Daytona 500 was the highest in history. The first full half-hour of yesterday’s race posted a 9.9/23 (2:30-3:00), beating last year’s 9.7/23, which was helped by an appearance by President Bush as Grand Marshal. Ratings growth during the race was steady through the first half — then explosive from 5:00 through the dramatic conclusion. FOX notched an 11.6/24 at 5:00, a 13.0/25 at 5:30, and a 13.5/26 from 6:00-6:20 as Jeff Gordon captured the race in the first-ever “green-white-checkered” finish in Daytona 500 history. The 13.5/26 from 6:00-6:30 is the highest rating for any portion of a NASCAR race ever on FOX.(FoxSports)(2-22-2005)
Weekend TV Results Mixed UPDATE beats NFL Pro-Bowl: NASCAR’S first action of 2005 enjoyed a mixed reception from television audiences. Fox’s broadcast of Saturday night’s Budweiser Shootout at Daytona International Speedway was the highest-rated sports program of the weekend, drawing an overnight Nielsen Media Research rating of 4.7 and an 8 share, according to today’s Sports Business Daily. (The 2004 event was carried on cable’s TNT, so results aren’t directly comparable.) Fox’s coverage of Sunday’s qualifying session for the Daytona 500, however, fell well short of last year’s overnight ratings for NBC’s coverage of the qualifying session. This year’s 2.7/6 overnight figures were 20.6% below last year’s 3.4/8 overnight figures on NBC.(NASCAR Scene)(2-15-2005)
UPDATE: For only the second time, Fox’s NASCAR Bud Shootout on Saturday night outrated the NFL’s Pro Bowl. ESPN’s Pro Bowl posted a 5.1 cable rating (4.2 broadcast network rating), a jump of 6% compared to last year’s 4.8 cable rating (3.9 on broadcast network). But the football game was topped by Fox’s 5.3 national rating. The only other occasion when the Bud Shootout prevailed was in 2001.(USA Today)(2-16-2005)
NASCAR Viewership Increased in 2004: NASCAR said today that all three of its national series drew more television viewers in 2004 than in 2003. Nielsen Media Research figures show that 196 million households tuned in to watch Nextel Cup events in 2004, a 2% increase over 2003. The Busch Series drew 52 million households, up 8% from 2003, while the Craftsman Truck Series drew 10.5 million households, a 22% increase over 2003. NASCAR also said today that an unprecedented 38 races from all three series will be aired during television’s prime-time evening hours this year.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(1-18-2005)
‘3’ does well in the TV Ratings: ESPN’s original movie, “3”, was a huge success delivering a 5.0 HH rating, a record for an ESPN original movie.
* “3” was the highest rated ESPN movie among M18-34, M18-49, and M25-54.
* “3” was the most-viewed cable program for the entire day among M18-34, M18-49 and M25-54.
* From 9pm-11pm on Saturday, “3” was the most-viewed program on television among M18-34, M18-49, and M25-54.
* “3” was the second highest rated movie on ad-supported cable this year, only behind “Librarian” which delivered a 5.1 HH rating on TNT (12/5).
With the exception of the NFL, it is a special feat for an ESPN program to deliver a 5.0 rating. This is ESPN’s highest rated EOE
program and puts it in an elite class. Programs like the MLB Divisional Playoffs and premiere bowl games achieve this level of
performance.(ESPN PR)(12-15-2004)
AND Saturday’s presentation of ESPN’s fourth original made-for-television movie, “3”, was the network’s highest-rated movie ever, seen in an average of more than four million households, based on a rating of 5.0, according to the official data released today by Nielsen Media Research. The two-hour portrayal of the late NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt was the second-highest rated movie of 2004 on ad-supported cable. It posted ESPN’s highest movie rating ever among all key male demographics (M18-34, M18-49 and M25-54). In addition, “3” was the most-viewed program on all of TV from 9-11 p.m. that day among men 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54. “We at ESPN know well the passion of NASCAR fans, and their approval of ‘3’ is the most gratifying endorsement we could receive,” said Mark Shapiro, ESPN executive vice president, programming and production. “3,” presented by Kay Jewelers, an ESPN Original Entertainment (EOE) production, stars Barry Pepper (“We Were Soldiers”, “Saving Private Ryan”, “61*”) as NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt. Spanning from the red dirt tracks of his native Kannapolis, North Carolina to the NASCAR speedways where he won nationwide acclaim and the devotion of millions of fans, “3” tells “The Intimidator’s” incredible life story. Available today on DVD, ESPN Original Entertainment and Buena Vista Home Entertainment present “3.” Packed with five hours of exclusive bonus footage and interviews from the ESPN archives, this two-disc Collector’s Edition DVD is the ultimate account of racing’s legendary hero. Suggested retail price is $29.99.(Sports Business News)(12-15-2004)
Buy “3” the Book
Buy “3” the DVD.
RE-AIR dates/times: listed on my TV Listings page

Born on Date: February 18, 2005