Notebook: IRS files tax lien against Mayfield
The Internal Revenue Service and the North Carolina Department of Revenue have both field tax liens on Jeremy Mayfield and his wife Shana Mayfield for unpaid taxes from 2006 and 2008, a sum of nearly $300,000.
The IRS filed a tax lien on Mayfield’s property in March will the North Carolina Department of Revenue made their filing in February. Both tax documents were filed in the North Carolina Supreme Court.
Mayfield is currently in a lawsuit with NASCAR to challenge an indefinite suspension from the sport after he failed a random drug test, which was positive for methamphetamine.
The suspended driver/owner also owes $371,973 to Bill Diehl, who once represented Mayfield in his NASCAR case. A hearing for this lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
Mayfield also owes $177,320 to Arrington Manufacturing, Impact Racing and Triad Racing Technologies.
Edwards plans to continue tradition of biking to Gateway
Carl Edwards will continue his yearly bike ride to the Gateway International Raceway Nationwide Series race, a trip that’s nearly 200 miles long.
“We’re going to try to do that again,” Edwards said last night during a radio interview with Sirius-XM NASCAR Radio. “The group has gotten bigger and bigger each year and I got a new Trek bicycle, it’s really nice, that they’re going to let me use for the ride. We’ve got a couple of people who say they’re going to go. [Driver] Max Papis says he’s going to go. Jim Schertzer from Scotts [Miracle-Gro Company] says he’s going to go. I’m trying to get some of the Aflac folks to commit to it but it’s a fun trip, man. We always try to do something fun like that during the summer, take a little trip, and that’s a good one.
The Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250 at Gateway International Raceway is set to take place on July 17.
ESPN’s Nationwide Series TV Rating down
Ratings for the Nashville 300 last Saturday were down from last year’s, according to ESPN. The final rating for the telecast was a 1.1, down from a 1.3 last year. The broadcast drew a national audience of 1,378,643 viewers.
ESPN posts double digit ratings increases for Nationwide series
It’s been a good year for NASCAR on ESPN, so far. The self-proclaimed Worldwide Leader in Sports posted 19-percent ratings increase over the first two Nationwide Series events this year.
Last weekend’s race at Auto Club Speedway was seen by an average of 2,282,563 viewers, earning a final rating of 1.7, which is actually down from the 1.9 rating the race had received last year on the ESPN2 network.
The ratings increase for the series differs from Fox, who has seen single digit rating drops for the first two Sprint Cup Series races of the season.
The increase in ratings may be attributed to the debut of Danica Patrick, who has raced in the both of the events so far this season. Patrick will race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend before taking a break to focus on the upcoming IZOD IndyCar Series season.
ABC will only air three Cup Series races this season
CORRECTION: This article originally stated that ABC would not air any Nationwide Series events in 2010. This information was incorrect. Please see the final paragraph of this article for further clarification.
The Worldwide Leader in Sports, ESPN, announced today that only one race in the Sprint Cup Series chase for the Sprint Cup 10-race series will be shown on ABC affiliates this season. This is a change from years past in which ABC was the home for the entire Chase series. ABC will show two other races, both Saturday night events at Bristol Motor Speedway and Richmond International Raceway. The fifth Chase race at Charlotte Motor Speedway will be the only chase event shown on ABC. The other 14 events will be televised on ESPN.
“This is exciting news for NASCAR and our fans,” NASCAR Media Group President Paul Brooks said. “The ESPN subscriber base is larger than ever at nearly 100 million, and the network has the proven ability to attract younger viewers. As the premier network during the most competitive time of the year for sports, having more NASCAR races on ESPN will create more exposure.”
The three Saturday night, prime-time events will be used in conjunction with College Football and the Little League World Series to provide 16 consecutive weeks prime-time sports events on Saturday nights on ABC.
ESPN will begin televising their portion of the schedule at Indianapolis in July. The station’s race preview program, NASCAR Countdown, will also be moved to ESPN2 for races that start at 1 p.m. ET during football season so ESPN can air their Sunday NFL Countdown show on ESPN. For all other races, ESPN says, NASCAR Countdown will air on the station in which the race is scheduled to broadcast.
The Nationwide Series will feature a select number of races on ESPN and ABC, while a majority will be aired on ESPN2. The final broadcast schedule for the Nationwide Series is still to be determined and will be announced at a later date.
2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Schedule on ESPN Networks (All Times Eastern)
| DATE (Day) | LOCATION | NETWORK | TIME |
| July 25 (Sun.) | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Aug. 1 (Sun.) | Pocono Raceway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Aug. 8 (Sun.) | Watkins Glen International | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Aug. 15 (Sun.) | Michigan International Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Aug. 21 (Sat.) | Bristol Motor Speedway | ABC | 7:30 p.m. |
| Sept. 5 (Sun.) | Atlanta Motor Speedway | ESPN | 7:30 p.m. |
| Sept. 11 (Sat.) | Richmond International Raceway | ABC | 7:30 p.m. |
| Sept. 19 (Sun.) | New Hampshire Motor Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Sept. 26 (Sun.) | Dover International Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Oct. 3 (Sun.) | Kansas Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Oct. 10 (Sun.) | Auto Club Speedway | ESPN | 3 p.m. |
| Oct. 16 (Sat.) | Charlotte Motor Speedway | ABC | 7:30 p.m. |
| Oct. 24 (Sun.) | Martinsville Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Oct. 31 (Sun.) | Talladega Superspeedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Nov. 7 (Sun.) | Texas Motor Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
| Nov. 14 (Sun.) | Phoenix International Raceway | ESPN | 3 p.m. |
| Nov. 21 (Sun.) | Homestead-Miami Speedway | ESPN | 1 p.m. |
Punch returns to pit reporter, Reid takes the lead at ESPN
Marty Reid, whose 28-year career with ESPN has touched all forms of motorsports the network has covered, will expand his role and join analysts Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree in the booth as lap-by-lap announcer for ESPN’s full season of NASCAR coverage in 2010. Reid will call the action for all 17 of ESPN’s NASCAR Sprint Cup races as well as many of the network’s NASCAR Nationwide Series telecasts. He was lap-by-lap announcer for ESPN’s IndyCar Series coverage and selected NASCAR Nationwide Series races in 2009.
Returning to a role he helped define for ESPN for more than 20 years, Dr. Jerry Punch will join ESPN’s team of pit reporters for 2010, working both Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series races. Punch was lap-by-lap announcer for ESPN’s Sprint Cup coverage the past three years.
“This group gives us the most versatile and comprehensive team in motorsports, and strengthens us in the booth,” said Norby Williamson, ESPN executive vice president, studio and event production.
“We play to the strengths of our announcers, and Marty’s strength is calling the tactical aspects of the race while deferring to the analysts.
“And from the early days of our NASCAR coverage, Jerry helped evolve the significant role that reporting from the pits plays,” Williamson said. “He will bolster our already-strong stable of pit reporters.”
All other members of the NASCAR on ESPN race coverage team will return in 2010, including analysts Rusty Wallace, Brad Daugherty, Tim Brewer and Ray Evernham, NASCAR Countdown host Allen Bestwick and pit reporters Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Mike Massaro, Shannon Spake and Vince Welch. Specific assignments and schedules will be announced later.
In addition to his expanded role with NASCAR, Reid will continue as the lap-by-lap announcer for ESPN’s five-race IndyCar Series schedule, including the Indianapolis 500.
ESPN’s 2010 NASCAR season begins with live, flag-to-flag coverage of the NASCAR Nationwide Series opener at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, Feb. 13. The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race on ESPN’s schedule is at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, July 25.
20 years later, pit road a safer place for crews—and media
The question gets asked nearly everytime a pit road reporter from one of the four TV networks that cover NASCAR pops in to deliver some of the happenings from the pits. That question is: “Why are they wearing fire suits?”
The simple answer can be found at Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 19, 1989—20 years ago.
Dr. Jerry Punch, who currently works in the booth for ESPN’s NASCAR races, was working on pit road in his blue blazer and tie, a standard for pit road reporters at ESPN at the time. However, as he covered the pit stop of Richard Petty—whose car had a broken header pipe—a fire broke out when the car backfired and ignited fuel that had been spilled during the routine pit stop. Before Punch could react, he found himself just ten feet away from a blazing fire.
Nelson Crozier, who was working as Punch’s spotter, joined ER technician Punch as they attempted to help the situation by tending the team’s gas man, who was on fire, by wrapping him with a rubber mat.
Punch continued to help the crew member until other emergency personnel arrived. Later, he attempted to give a live report on TV. Little did he know, however, his mustache was singed and the windscreen and his polyester blazer was melted.
“As I’m doing a report on camera, my mustache that I had back then is all singed, the hair on the back of my hand is gone, my microphone windscreen is melted—it’s just dripping down across the microphone, and the sleeve on my polyester blazer is all basically melted into a goo—and all you can see is these brass buttons hanger there,” Punch said.
During the entire period these events were taking place, ABC’s coordinating producer of motorsports at the time, Geoff Mason, was watching the entire series of events unfold right on his TV set in New York.
“They had had high cameras on all of this and I don’t realize as I’m giving a report that people in the (TV) truck and people watching back at ABC in New York are just aghast that I was in the middle of this,” Punch said. “Our coordinating producer of motorsports at ABC was Geoff Mason. Geoff was watching back in NY and he immediately called the truck and asked, ‘Why in the world are our people not in fire-protective gear?’”
The Atlanta race on March 19, 1989 was the last race in which a pit road TV reporter did not wear fire protective gear. In fact, all nearly every motorsports that is televised and broadcast on radio with pit road reporters wear a fire protective suit.
Pit road safety for the pit road reporters was not the only thing that changed as a result from this accident. NASCAR also implemented numerous pit road rules to prevent accidents like this from happening in the future.
“It’s not that he (the gas man) was sloppy; that was the nature of pit stops back then,” Punch said. “You’d always see gas trickling down the side of the car and the car would leave and there’d always be a puddle of gas on the ground behind the car. They’d just put a little speedy dry on it and sweep it up.
“After that it became much more sophisticated with really, really tight dry brakes. It made it harder to gas the car. That led to a lot of safety innovations.”
So, next time a pit road reporter is show on TV in a fire-retardant suit, it is because of a call Mason made just 20 years ago.
“To this day, I’m so appreciative of Geoff Mason just steeping in and absolutely making a great call for safety first,” Punch said.
Sprint Cup and Natiownide final ratings from Homstead down
(ESPN PR)
ABC’s live coverage of the Ford 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 22 earned a final national household rating of 3.6, averaging 5,606,608 viewers. The rating was down from a 4.0 for last year’s event that also aired on ABC.
After averaging a 3.8 rating for its coverage of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup in both 2007 and 2008, ABC’s average for the 10 Chase races was a 3.5 for 2009.
ESPN2’s live coverage of the NASCAR Nationwide Series Ford 300 at Homestead earned a final national household coverage rating of 1.3, down from a 1.6 rating for last year’s race that also aired on ESPN2. The telecast averaged 1,685,543 viewers.
ESPN2’s average rating for 26 NASCAR Nationwide Series race telecasts in 2009 was a 1.4, down from a 1.5 average in 2008 but even with the final average for 2007.
ABC’s overnight ratings down 11.1 percent at Homestead
Despite an increased amount of drama an excitement for the season finale, overnight ratings from the Nielsen Media Research company were down 11.1 percent when compared to last year’s ratings for the Ford 400 on ABC, according to a Street and Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily report.
The broadcast earned a 3.2 rating, which means roughly 5 million people watched the race. The Ford 400 drew a 3.6 rating last year.
The 3.2 rating is the lowest TV rating of the entire 2009 Chase for the Sprint Cup Series.
TV rating for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series have been on a steep decline since 2004. In fact, ratings for the Ford 400 have dropped 43% percent from the 2004 rating of 5.2 during that time period.
Nielson releases the final TV ratings for ABC on Thursday.
ESPN: Cut the crap and display race title sponsors
When ESPN announced its return to NASCAR coverage a couple of years ago, I was excited. The network that did the best job ever of producing NASCAR coverage was finally returning after a six-year layoff, and I had missed them greatly.
I looked back fondly to the days of Bob Jenkins, Benny Parsons, and Ned Jarrett in the booth. Terry Lingner’s production of the races was always stellar, and pit reporters like Dr. Jerry Punch and Bill Weber set a standard that no reporter since has ever achieved.
While none of the old team was returning, and the few who were coming back were rejoining in different capacities, I still felt as if, once they got their act together, they’d be an upgrade over NBC since Weber took over as play-by-play announcer.
The first couple years of ESPN’s return have seen a fair share of mistakes. Some have been remedied – namely, placing Rusty Wallace in the broadcast booth, and having college football specialists host NASCAR coverage – but some, like the criminal under-utilization of Allen Bestwick, have not. (I feel as if Bestwick is a better play-by-play announcer than Punch; if I was in charge, they’d swap positions for a couple of races as an experiment.)
Now, I can forgive some of the issues with ESPN’s NASCAR coverage, even though it’s been three years and the kinks should have been worked out by now. It’s better than that infernal Digger character (and if a driver ever hits and kills Digger at 200 MPH, I think he should be given a contingency bonus). But there is one issue with the coverage that I cannot forgive, and will actively crusade against until it is remedied.
Here’s an example: “NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Pocono presented by Old Spice.”
Never has a broadcast network done something so downright money-grubbing nasty as this. ESPN circumvents both NASCAR and the race title sponsors by selling the naming rights to their broadcasts. For a race sponsor to be mentioned on TV by the ESPN announcers, they must pay ESPN as well as the race track.
If you didn’t recognize the race I named above, try the “Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500.”
That’s right; ESPN sold out broadcast rights to take away advertising time from the American Red Cross. That’s like putting a giant Nilla Wafers ad in the back of a church and using them as the body of Christ.
Let’s go a little more in depth: Check out the ESPN.com schedule pages for NASCAR’s top three series, Sprint Cup, Nationwide, and Camping World Trucks. I want folks to notice something here. Even on ESPN’s website, they refuse to refer to the races by their proper names in Sprint Cup and Nationwide. They don’t even give the proper names for the races in Sprint Cup that they don’t broadcast.
But look at the Camping World Truck schedule: Everything is completely accurate. Note that the Speed Channel, not ESPN, handles Truck broadcasting duties. Obviously ESPN saw no point in devoting any energy to making a quick buck off that series.
Hell, look at Jayski.com’s series pages – the pages for the two series ESPN broadcasts have shiny new layouts; the Truck page still has Jayski’s old one.
Not only is ESPN cheating the race sponsors out of exposure during their 17 Sprint Cup and 35 Nationwide races a season, they’re showcasing bias and presenting factually incorrect reporting. What ESPN calls the races is not what they are actually called.
Metaphorically, it’s like ESPN is the mafia, charging a poor small business owner for “protection.” It’s also like calling the Super Bowl “NFL Championship Game presented by GoDaddy.com.” Does that fly with you, loyal fans?
I feel like this issue will eventually drive race sponsors away, and that’s one of the last things NASCAR needs. Why should a sponsor pay a race track all that money for exposure when ESPN won’t even mention your product unless you pony up even more?
Worse, it sets a standard that could cause even more problems as television technology improves. What if sponsors begin paying the broadcasters to superimpose their logos over the entire car?
What if McDonald’s decides to tell Burger King “up yours” and pays to have the golden arches superimposed on Tony Stewart’s hood? Would you stand for that?
It’d likely be cheaper for McDonald’s, because they wouldn’t have to pay Tony Stewart anything, but it’d make it pointless for the sponsors to pay any of the race teams directly. With no race teams, you can’t run a race. I know this is an exaggeration, but it is the path on which we’re headed.
We all know that NASCAR is driven by money, but there needs to be a line. I have no problem with ESPN tagging a phrase like “Broadcast presented by Old Spice” onto the end of the race name, but the current system is ridiculous, unethical, and compromises any journalistic integrity ESPN’s NASCAR coverage has. Somebody – be it the NASCAR or the FCC – needs to step up and put an end to this.
ABC’s rating from Kansas drops 8.6-percent
ESPN PR
ABC’s live coverage of Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Kansas Speedway earned a final national household rating of 3.2, down from the 3.5 rating for last year’s race that also aired on ABC. Sunday’s telecast averaged 5,252,060 viewers. The rating rose from the 2.6 overnight rating that was reported Monday.
ESPN2’s live coverage of Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Kansas Speedway earned a final national household coverage rating of 1.2, down from the 1.3 rating for last year’s race that also aired on ESPN2. Saturday’s telecast averaged 1,545,275 viewers. The Kansas race was the first Nationwide Series event to be down in ratings after five consecutive races on ESPN2 to be up from last year’s race or corresponding weekend.
TV execs not against ‘two day shows’ next year
It has been a popular rumor recently that NASCAR is looking to have more two day shows for NASCAR race weekends. Originally designed to save costs for teams, it cuts out anywhere from one to two days that teams have to be at the racetrack for the event. This not only helps teams save money on hotels, but it also makes it easier to arrange travel for the next event if they can show up Friday instead of Wednesday or Thursday.
A two day weekend basically means that the Sprint Cup Series drivers would practice and qualifying on Saturday in preparation for a race the next day. The same applies to the Nationwide and Camping World Series.
However, NASCAR hasn’t confirmed or denied whether or not they will begin utilizing more two day weekends next season. NASCAR CEO Brian France, who was on a teleconference today to announce the switch to more universal race starting times for next season’s Sprint Cup Series races, continued to offer the same stance that NASCAR has taken all year on the question of two day shows.
“Let me just say that that comes from a cost discussion that we have on … we’re trying to save the teams money in their annual budgets,” France said. “We have cut weekends back some from time to time. We’re not cutting races back and not shortening those. You’ve got to remember qualifying, practice, is good content. It actually rates fairly well for all of our partners.”
However, France did bring up a valid point about how increasing the amount of two day shows next year could cause some bad ramifications for track promoters.
“It’s also promotionally difficult for the tracks themselves that are trying to build interest for the weekend in their local market when there’s not practice and activity at the track,” France said.
Some have also speculated that a change to more two day weekends would also bring harm to NASCAR’s television partners. However, Fox Sports’s David Hill things otherwise.
“It’s actually better for us, because we don’t have to extend the other time for the crews doing the set up. It’s a huge set up,” Hill said. “So the fact that we can’t do anything while the track’s hot. So the call of the cooler the track, the closer to the weekend, the better it is for us.”
David Levy, president of Turner Broadcasting’s distribution sales and sports, also said that the change would not harm the way TNT, which does six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races during the summer months, covers NASCAR.
Sprint Cup Series Events Moving To Earlier, Uniform Start Times For 2010 Season
NASCAR PR
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Continuing the sport’s “back to basics” approach, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) and its television broadcast partners today announced earlier, uniform start times for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races in 2010.
NASCAR worked closely with FOX, Turner, ESPN/ABC and the tracks on this project for the fans. The race start times for NASCAR Sprint Cup races in 2010 in the Eastern and Central regions of the country will begin at 1 p.m. ET, West Coast events will begin at 3 p.m. ET, and night races will begin at 7:30 p.m. ET. (The one exception is NASCAR’s longest night race, the Coca-Cola 600, which will have the same 5:45 p.m. ET start time.) Following the invocation and national anthem, the green flag will drop at approximately 15-20 minutes past the hour after each listed race start time.
“NASCAR fans have been asking for earlier and more consistent start times, and we are making this change for our fans, beginning with the Daytona 500 next February,” said NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France. “We are revisiting our sport’s tradition of earlier green flags, and the added consistency will make it easier for fans to know exactly when the races are being televised. Additionally, the new start times will help track operators get fans in and out of the track earlier in the evening. Many fans heading home from the race earlier will be able to eliminate the costs of an extra travel day.”
A total of 28 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in 2010 will be held at an earlier time compared to 2009, with 20 races moved to 1 p.m. ET, including the Daytona 500. Moving up the start of “The Great American Race” two-and-a-half hours will produce the earliest start time for the Daytona 500 since 2003, when the race was also scheduled for 1 p.m. Five races move earlier to a 3 p.m. ET start and three races start earlier at 7:30 p.m. ET.
In making the decision for earlier, more uniform start times, NASCAR consulted its Fan Council, comprised of 12,000 avid fans who serve as a sounding board on important topics. Half of NASCAR avid fans said they are often unclear about what time NASCAR races actually start. When given the chance to choose a start time, more than two-thirds of avid NASCAR fans preferred early Sunday afternoon.
“It’s become clear to us that traditional, early Sunday afternoon, start times are favored by NASCAR fans who both attend races and watch on television,” said FOX Sports Chairman David Hill. “NASCAR, perhaps more than any other sport, belongs to the generations of fans who have passed on their passion, father to son, mother to daughter, so whatever we can do to make them feel better connected to the sport they love should be done.”
“Many fans have been interested in standard start times for NASCAR’s television partners. In the long term, we believe this change will make the viewing experience better for everyone,” said David Levy, president of Turner Broadcasting’s distribution, sales and sports. “NASCAR races continue to deliver solid, consistent ratings for TNT. When you combine TV ratings with the number of people who visit NASCAR.COM, the sport clearly remains very healthy and popular.”
“We enthusiastically support consistent start times and are happy to have worked with NASCAR on this move,” said John Skipper, ESPN’s executive vice president, content. “We are thrilled about our position with NASCAR and bullish about the long-term prospects.”
“An earlier starting time for the Daytona 500 is great news for our race fans,” Daytona International Speedway President Robin Braig said. “In recent years, race fans made their desire very clear for an earlier starting time. With the help of our partners in the sport at NASCAR and FOX Sports, we’re proud to deliver an earlier starting time for the 2010 Daytona 500.”
“This is a very positive move for our fans,” said Jerry Gappens, executive vice president and general manager for New Hampshire Motor Speedway. “For example, it allows us another hour of daylight to run our races and to get traffic out before nightfall. Based on the letters I receive from fans, I know they will appreciate NASCAR making this change. For years, the NFL has been very successful with its standardized start times of 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. You never have to guess when their games start on Sunday. I think that same template will help our sport as well.”
“We believe this will be well-received by NASCAR fans who attend races in Dover, especially those traveling long distances,” said Denis McGlynn, president and CEO of Dover Motorsports, Inc. “A large percentage of our fans come from the Northeast, and some drive great distances to get here. Consistent, earlier start times is great news for both fans headed to the track and those watching at home.”
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points races will be seen on either FOX, TNT, ESPN or ABC. The 2010 television schedule for points races is below.
2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Schedule With Start Times (All Times Eastern)
Date Day RaceSite Network Start Time
Feb 14 Sun. Daytona 500 FOX 1:00 PM
Feb 21 Sun. Auto Club Speedway FOX 3:00 PM
Feb 28 Sun. Las Vegas Motor Speedway FOX 3:00 PM
Mar 7 Sun. Atlanta Motor Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
Mar 21 Sun. Bristol Motor Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
Mar 28 Sun. Martinsville Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
Apr 10 Sat. Phoenix International Raceway FOX 7:30 PM
Apr 18 Sun. Texas Motor Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
Apr 25 Sun. Talladega Superspeedway FOX 1:00 PM
May 1 Sat. Richmond International Raceway FOX 7:30 PM
May 8 Sat. Darlington Raceway FOX 7:30 PM
May 16 Sun. Dover International Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
May 30 Sun. Lowe’s Motor Speedway FOX 5:45 PM
Jun 6 Sun. Pocono Raceway TNT 1:00 PM
Jun 13 Sun. Michigan International Speedway TNT 1:00 PM
Jun 20 Sun. Infineon Raceway TNT 3:00 PM
Jun 27 Sun. New Hampshire Motor Speedway TNT 1:00 PM
Jul 3 Sat. Daytona International Speedway TNT 7:30 PM
Jul 10 Sat. Chicagoland Speedway TNT 7:30 PM
Jul 25 Sun. Indianapolis Motor Speedway ESPN 1:00 PM
Aug 1 Sun. Pocono Raceway ESPN 1:00 PM
Aug 8 Sun. Watkins Glen International ESPN 1:00 PM
Aug 15 Sun. Michigan International Speedway ESPN 1:00 PM
Aug 21 Sat. Bristol Motor Speedway ESPN 7:30 PM
Sep 5 Sun. Atlanta Motor Speedway ESPN 7:30 PM
Sep 11 Sat. Richmond International Raceway ABC 7:30 PM
Sep 19 Sun. New Hampshire Motor Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Sep 26 Sun. Dover International Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Oct 3 Sun. Kansas Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Oct 10 Sun. Auto Club Speedway ABC 3:00 PM
Oct 16 Sat. Lowe’s Motor Speedway ABC 7:30 PM
Oct 24 Sun. Martinsville Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Oct 31 Sun. Talladega Superspeedway ABC 1:00 PM
Nov 7 Sun. Texas Motor Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Nov 14 Sun. Phoenix International Raceway ABC 3:00 PM
Nov 21 Sun. Homestead-Miami Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
ABC Earns 3.1 National Rating for Dover NASCAR Sprint Cup race
(ESPN PR)
ABC’s live telecast of Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Dover (Del.) International Speedway earned a final national household rating of 3.1, down from the 3.3 rating for last year’s race that also aired on ABC. The telecast averaged 5,084,257 viewers.
ESPN2’s live telecast of Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Dover earned a final national household coverage rating of 1.2, up from the 1.1 rating earned for last year’s race. It was the fifth consecutive Nationwide Series race on ESPN2 to be up from last year’s race or corresponding weekend. The Dover telecast averaged 1,459,145 viewers.
ABC Earns 3.2 National Rating for NASCAR Sprint Cup Event
ABC’s live telecast of the Sept. 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway earned a final national household rating of 3.2, averaging 5,044,391 viewers and up from the 2.5 overnight rating revealed on Monday. The race was the first event of the 10-race Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
The final rating was down from the 3.8 rating for last year’s race, which also aired on ABC. The race earned a 3.3 rating in 2007, also airing on ABC.
ESPN reports third-straight week of ratings increase
ESPN PR
Following two consecutive weeks of rising TV ratings for both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series on the ESPN networks, ratings rose again for this past weekend’s Nationwide Series race at Montreal. The Sprint Cup Series had the weekend off.
ESPN2’s live telecast of the event from Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal earned a 1.6 final national household coverage rating, up from the 1.5 rating for last year’s race that also aired on ESPN2, and the 1.4 rating for the inaugural race in 2007 that aired on ESPN2. The telecast averaged 2,094,211 viewers.
During the previous two weeks, ESPN’s live coverage of Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series races from Michigan International Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway all earned ratings increases from the previous year’s telecasts.
ESPN’s Bristol ratings mark second straight increase
For the second consecutive weekend, the ESPN crew has something to be happy about after going through one of the worst TV ratings slumps NASCAR has suffered in its broadcasting history.
This past weekend at Bristol scored a 3.8 final rating for the Sprint Cup Series telecast and a 1.5 rating for the Nationwide Series broadcast — both up from last year.
Saturday night’s race, which scored a 3.5 rating in 2008, posted an average household number of 5,322,577 households.
Despite that Nationwide Series event at Bristol being moved from ESPN to ESPN2, the race still increased from its 2008 number of 1.4. The race was shown in an average of 1,956,225 homes.
