UPDATE: Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Daytona road race averaged a 2.8 rating and 4.75 million viewers on FOX, up 40% in ratings and 47% in viewership from the inaugural edition of the race on last year, which aired in August on NBC (2.0, 3.24M). Both this year and last, the Daytona “Roval” was added to the schedule as a replacement for a canceled race (Watkins Glen last year, Fontana this year).
The road race averaged the same rating as the previous week’s Daytona 500 and only slightly fewer viewers (4.75M, compared to 4.83M). The 500, which was delayed more than five hours due to rain, was the lowest rated and least-watched ever.
In other NASCAR action, the corresponding Xfinity Series race averaged a 0.8 and 1.27 million on FS1 Saturday — up from last year’s 0.6 and 1.03 million on NBCSN.
ORIGINAL POST: Fox earned a 2.8 rating with 4.75 million viewers for Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 253 at the Daytona International Speedway road course.
That makes the race the most-watched road course race since 2014.
.@FoxTV earned a 2.8 rating and 4.750 million viewers for Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race @Daytona, the most-watched road course race since 2014 and most-watched sports event of the weekend.
➖ No direct comp to 2020 second race, Vegas, but that event got 5.515 million viewers. pic.twitter.com/JxRleX3WfC
— Adam Stern (@A_S12) February 23, 2021
4.75 million viewers for Sunday’s NASCAR race from the Daytona road course. Most-watched event of the weekend and the top NASCAR road course event since 2014.
— Michael Mulvihill (@mulvihill79) February 23, 2021