Almost 30 NASCAR races had new ratings lows in 2018
By Nick Tylwalk
NASCAR did a lot of things right this year, but none of it brought people back to watch on TV.
Because NASCAR fans tend to either fall into the “everything is awesome,” or, more commonly, the “racing ain’t like it used to be and sport is dying” camps, it’s important to remember that the truth is somewhere in-between. Considering the number of exciting finishes and the unpredictability of several important races, a strong argument could be made that the 2018 season leaned more toward the awesome side, but it sure didn’t show in the TV ratings.
It’s hardly news that NASCAR TV viewership has been in a decade-long slide. What you might not realize is just how bad the ratings got.
Sports Media Watch has the full post mortem on the 2018 NASCAR season that was on TV, and the numbers are sobering, to say the least.
"Of the 32 races that were run as scheduled this season, 28 posted a decline in ratings and/or viewership, and 27 hit all-time or decade-plus lows.Only two races this season had a 3.0 rating, the Daytona 500 (5.3) and Atlanta the following week (3.3). In the final year of the previous TV deal, 2014, 22 races topped the 3.0 mark."
That … is not good. Fully 75 percent of the 2018 NASCAR season consisted of races with either their worst ratings ever or the worst in more than 10 years.
If there was a positive theme to identify among the wreckage, it was that fans appear to be just fine with more road course races. Sonoma was down, but Watkins Glen was up, and the Charlotte Roval was an improvement over a normal fall Charlotte oval race. One wonders how much the curiosity factor played into that, though the crazy ending can’t hurt for the 2019 edition.
Speaking of curious fans, NASCAR is at least taking steps to see if it can get some of them back into the fold. The new 2019 Cup Series rules package might lead to closer racing, which hypothetically could get people talking. The 2020 season could bring even bigger changes, but we’ll just have to wait and see on that front.
Next. Ridiculously early 2019 NASCAR power rankings. dark
If there was a simple fix to falling TV ratings, NASCAR would have already acted on it. The only question now is whether there is a floor, a core audience of fans who will watch races, or if this is a trend that will continue into the next decade.