But there is a big difference between changing your own spark plugs and battling your way to the front at your local speedway in hopes of catching the attention of a NASCAR car owner and calling up that same NASCAR car owner on the phone and saying two words to him: How much?. While the 2023 NASCAR season kicked off Sunday with Daytona 500 winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr. racing his way into the May 21 NASCAR All-Star Race, North Wilkesboro Speedway construction crews are . Photo credit: Ford Racing on VisualHunt / CC BY More to the point: both sports need to be patient . WWE Insider Says Yes, Fans might be tired of the novelty of the playoffs., selling a sport that is losing popularity and has three months of overlap with football. People do not want to watch numerous full-screen commercials while green-flag racing is taking place. NASCAR was plenty defiant resisting this idea at their peakbut these days, theyre not in a position to ignore displeased fans. Fortunately, NASCAR is finally addressing this. Dale Earnhardt Jr. retired at the end of the 2017 season. The move of the Labor Day race to California was part of an ongoing trend. The Decline of NASCAR, Non-Reason #1: The Cars Are Too Spec I'll submit that this is a reason a few fans I know stopped watching the sport. NASCAR possessed one of the greatest dynasties in the history of sports during Jimmies reign. The last race at Auto Club took place in 2020 and had an average of 4.781 million viewers for the third event of the season. Yes, thats actually true; read it again if you need to. Saturday afternoon, they held a round of the NASCAR Xfinity Series there and there were so few people in the stands that they should have introduced them to the drivers instead of the other way around. I have been around and covered NASCAR for over two decades. But it was a never ending source of irritation to see five laps of racing followed by a several minute commercial break, which was then followed by another minute of a wide angle shot of the venue and This race is being brought to you by .. Now, they buy their way in. Lack of manufacturer identity may have been a reason some hardcore fans left the sport in the early 1990s, but that doesnt seem to me to be a valid reason for the sports popularity plunge since 2005. NASCARs initial playoff brainchild was hugely unpopular, and every griping fan in comment sections of blogs everywhere had the artificial points reset near the top of their list of complaints. Now72 years old, the racing organization has managed to evolve through the decades in order to meet the changing trends, technology, and preferences that directly affect the sport. In terms of tier one sports properties, he said. Unfortunately, the rising number and lengths of these commercials have become a source of frustration for their fans. But plate racing still sucksnot only do plates produce multi-car crashes every event, they pervert the standings because of it. In fact, Nascar could just dump it all on Netflix - which, according to one study, is responsible for half the decline of TV viewership alone. Danica turned out to be a huge bustas many people who followed the sport closely, including yours truly, predicted she would be. NBC was slightly ahead of last years pace before the Nov. 10 race at Phoenix, but it drew 2.567 million, the least-watched Cup race on broadcast television since 2001 (not counting rainouts). Yes, a team can still dominate all season and lose a championship to a flat tire, but at least its not just an artificial points reset. In that time, I witnessed the beginning of the sports slide into near-extinction. U.S. NBA Social Justice Poll. Compared to NASCARs 18-49 demographic, IndyCar has an average of 24%, while they are at 20.1%. No longer could a late-model driver from Syracuse or Spokane get a car and a team together and show up to try to qualify for any of NASCARs races. Im not buying the its too safe bit as a cause for the decline of NASCAR. NFLX Top Speed offers daily industry news and reviews on cars, trucks, and motorcycles. Not all, of course, but most. As Juniors fortunes continued to trend downward even while driving for the strongest team in the sport, his fan base became turned off. NASCAR vehicles evolved over the decades to become safer for the drivers and spectators, the result of which is that cars today are uniform, standardized vehicles with their bodies basically just shells on top of a chassis. It was a radical change to a sport that didnt need radical changes. but the mainstream media claiming the political/social justice shift in sports has nothing to do with the decline in viewership are whistling past the graveyard. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images), Samantha and son Brexton pose with the trophy after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Homestead Speedway on November 17, 2019 in Homestead, Florida. NASCAR sits on an upward trajectory for the first time in a while. However, NASCAR has been taking major strides as the on-track product is improving, the schedule is being changed, bold decisions are being made, and communication between each party is better. So NASCAR racing has become just like European formula-car racing and IndyCar racing in North America. Stats. TV ratings for the Richmond race were said to be down 12% from the same race in 2015 and 44% from 2014. . Standings. (It wasnt a tough call to make, if you actually looked at her results instead of her figure.). It's no secret that NASCAR is experiencing a variety of issues related to its popularity, despite a slight recent uptick in TV ratings. The first study focused exclusively on Bristol Motor Speedway, while the second study took other NASCAR race tracks into account, and both studies found that noise levels regularly exceeded 140 decibels when the race cars were accelerating at full throttle, and that the noise levels lasted, on average, about three to four hours, the average Now, NASCAR might say, Well, 3.759 million for a race in November, even if it is half as much as four years ago, is more than 0.000 viewers for no race. And ratings are slightly better overall when you include the Fox half, which is better than another plunge, as in 2018. And those ways that didnt always involve traditional broadcast TV. On the re-debut of the XFL, the league's TV ratings down in a pretty big way, according to Sports Media Watch. With the current playoff point structure, drivers are also somewhat rewarded for strong season-long performances as wellwhile the Chase completely disregarded excellence during the season. NASCAR still attempts to do the best it can when it comes to getting the word out. It was another case of costly arrogance; as much as fans loved NASCAR, they didnt love it enough to put up with an endlessly saturated marketing campaign featuring occasional snippets of racing each week. Oxford Gold . And it will be pretty hard to turn back the clock on either of those. And while 2020 has been anything but usual especially in the sports world, NASCAR was the one sport that didnt suffer a significant ratings drop. In that race, caution flags were flown almost every ten laps for tire wear, as Jimmie Johnson limped to a victory. The Monday portion of that race averaged a 4.2 and 7.03 million, compared to a 6.2 and 10.94 million for the first 20 laps on Sunday before weather rolled in. NASCAR averaged 4.570 million viewers for Sunday afternoons event at Auto Club Speedway. Below, we take a look at the NASCAR ratings over the course of the 2023 season with an up-to-date analysis of each event. It could be just Mike Joy and Jeff Gordon up in the booth, which would sound like a library compared to NBC.). Last years Xfinity race at the track aired on FS2 and had a 0.21 and 341,000. Its not so much that the points reset NASCAR introduced in 2004 was a monumentally stupid idea. Photo credit: wjarrettc on Visual hunt / CC BY And I said all that without even bringing up that profoundly irritating cartoon gopher. NASCAR power rankings during the 2023 season, NASCAR odds: Betting lines for each race and championship futures, NASCAR ratings on big rise compared to recent years in 2022, NASCAR standings: Cup, Xfinity, and Truck points during the 2023 season, Share up 9%, largest for Race #2 since 2017, Share up 2%, largest for Daytona 500 since 2016, Second most-watched non-points race since 2016. Photo credit: Zach Catanzareti Photo on Best Running / CC BY The Nielsen ratings for NASCAR's most-watched races, such as The Daytona 500, have plummeted in recent years. Fans might be tired of the novelty of the playoffs. They hate all of the commercials. Overall, it is another positive and negative week. Thats exactly what NASCAR did when they took the Labor Day race out of Darlington and sent it to Auto Club Speedway in California. Games on TNT are also down by more. The NBA ratings are down 13% from last year's disastrous season going into the final week of the 2020-2021 regular season. Not just limited to NASCAR but to many other sports as well is the gradual retirement of its well-known athletes that were the main draw for people to watch the events. Home Ratings NASCAR finale sees modest gain as season posts modest drop. If it did, I would really appreciate your support. The 2019 season was run as regularly scheduled as well. I remember watching it and literally wondering if I was going to see the finish of the race. A Former Reporters Thoughts, Copyright 2023 A Great Number of Things. The NASCAR Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway topped all forms of motorsports last weekend, with a 2.05 rating, 3.373 million viewers. Its a simple fact that everyone understands. But the sports most dedicated fans were (and are) still in the Southeast, and Southerners are loyal to the core to their heritage. I was critical of the Chase in plenty of columns, but I felt like I really got the point across with this one about it. NASCARs NextGen car shows promise and one huge issue, NASCARs Daytona 500 ratings indicate a worrisome trend. The same race last year attracted 4.154 million viewers, and the 2017 race drew 4.662 million both of which had established respective viewership lows for the 36th and final race of the too-dang-long Cup season. It has been a challenge for the sport to consistently grab the attention of its audience; however, there are reasons for optimism as the 2022 season represented a step in the right direction. Drivers. Last years season-opener at Barber only averaged 914 thousand viewers which is almost an extra 500 thousand. In addition, the current playoff format, while far from perfect, isnt nearly as unpalatable as the Chase was. But it's an uphill fight for us and a lot of other sports properties. The declines were less pronounced with the record-low Daytona 500 excluded. But experts say the reasons are multitude. And the season will conclude at Phoenix again, a more exciting venue than Miami where the finale had been for years. That exposure now comes not just from TV, but through streaming platforms, attendance, and even social media. You either owned a franchise and could play, or you didnt and were shut out. It was blatant condescension towards what was arguably the most loyal fanbase in sports. . Is PNC Park The Best Ballpark in Baseball? Photo credit: Zach Catanzareti Photo on Visualhunt / CC BY-SA The top of the mountain in NASCAR circles back then was known as the Grand National Division but in 1971, the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., then-manufacturer of Winston cigarettes, contracted with NASCAR to become title sponsor and the Winston Cup Series (to be known thereafter as simply Cup, regardless of subsequent sponsorships) was born,. There was suddenly lots and lots of prize money available and other full-time competitors like Bill Elliott, Dale Earnhardt and Darrell Waltrip joined up to give chase. Comments Off on What Caused The Decline of NASCAR? That's the lowest TV audience ever recorded for the. By then, hardly anyone will have a standard TV, anyway, because every event will be streamed, and ratings wont matter. If that contributed to NASCARs decline, however, that is on NASCAR. Jimmie won a lot. HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 17: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M's Toyota along with his wife [+] Samantha and son Brexton pose with the trophy after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Homestead Speedway on November 17, 2019 in Homestead, Florida. Nascar, he wrote . Photo credit: sarahstierch on Visualhunt.com / CC BY Next:10 NASCAR Drivers With The Most Wins (& How Much They Won). All that said, the unveiling of the Car of Tomorrow in 2007 certainly didnt help. Nielsen slowly began to develop ways to measure who was watching what, and how. This is convenient if the city where a follower lives in has a track, but for those that live a long distance from NASCAR venues, the cost to go to watch them is gradually becoming more expensive due to the continually rising prices of fuel. Compared to the fourth Xfinity race of last season, from Phoenix, ratings fell a tick (from 0.8) but viewership increased (from 1.19M). You can contact him here or on the Sports Media Watch Twitter page. Ill start with a few things that I dont believe caused the decline of NASCAR, then Ill share what I think really did. It was the insistent implementation of it over loud objections of fans. When NASCAR first started, you had a bunch of good ol boys who worked blue-collar jobs, usually in garages, and gottheir hands dirty and went racing at local speedways on the weekend and, if they were any good, developed a following. From their colorful beginnings to what is now a billion-dollar sporting event, NASCAR has continued to provide high octane entertainment for its millions of fans and supporters. A fairly new challenge that spectator sports now have to contend with is the rise of the various streaming services that offer varied content that is available across a variety of platforms. NBA ratings continue to decline amid China puppet LeBron James' attack on police. Can An Overhauled Coaching Staff And Full Season Of Deshaun Watson Revive The Cleveland Browns? And the same is true for NASCAR. Flat is better than down, but 2018 was also the year the once-mighty U.S.S. After sweeping claims of a toxic work environment throughout 2020, the star and her show have been scrambling to make things right. Gordon scored the most points overall of any driver in 2004, 2007, and 2014. There were often timesand Im not exaggerating thiswhen a viewer would see maybe five laps of racing, a two-minute break, and then just two more laps of racing before another break. That isnt insignificant when it comes to explaining the decline of NASCAR. NASCAR's TV ratings began to fall; the once all-mighty numbers began to show not an increase, but a decline. or Disney plus; there's more competition for those eyeballs then there's ever been. Those numbers of course, dont tell the entire story. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images), Nascar's TV Future May Or May Not Include Streaming Its Top Tier Races. Photo credit: Fast Eddie Maloney on Best Running / CC BY-SA Racing, like basketball and other sports, has seen year-to-year ratings decline. NHL regular season ratings were down 12% this year. AEW Dynamite Results: Winners And Grades On March 1, 2023, Celta Vigo Star Gabri Veiga Is Alerting Wealthy Teams In The Premier League, Trade Madness: Knicks, Nets, Rangers, Islanders And Devils Spent February Making Notable Moves, Los Angeles Chargers Have Shown Keenan Allen The Money But They Wont Show Him The Door, Corner Threes Are Secret Sauce For Milwaukee Bucks Offensive Success, OKC Thunder: Upcoming Six-Game Slate Will Dictate Direction Of Season, Is Vince McMahon Secretly Booking WrestleMania 39? Most notably, Sunday was an all-time low in viewership for the second race of a NASCAR season ever. He is likely to build a fan base fast. In the early 2000s, NASCAR was soaring. As a result, teams with more resourcessuch as Hendrick Motorsports and Roush Racingwon big for years. No longer tied to a box atop the TV or a diary that viewers filled out, the company started to figure out how to report who was watching on TV, on cable, and on streaming platforms. The 2023 NASCAR season is underway and it is bound to be very exciting in the second year of the NextGen car. I wasnt the only one who noticedas this blog posts comments demonstrated. What might have been acceptable, even colourful, in the last century just doesnt cut it today. If you want to attribute the decline of NASCAR to arrogant leadership, look no further than that single act. which is a 50 percent decline . We all know what Im talking about. In some ways the Recession came at a most inopportune time for sports TV. There are not many. Making matters worse, within four years, the driver with the second largest fan base finished with the most points in a season twice, only to lose the title to a points reset. [Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 3.9]. There are still 11 races on intermediate tracks, but its finally moving in the right direction. 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