FINAL YEAR OF ESPN PROVIDES DECLINES IN NHRA VIEWERSHIP
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NHRA's television package for 2016 promises a brighter future for drag racing broadcasts with 17 live Sunday final elimination television shows including four on the FOX broadcast network, and eight primetime Friday night qualifying shows.
The four Sunday finals shows that will air live on the FOX broadcast network will include each stop in three-race NHRA Western Swing as well as the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals from Indianapolis.
In all, FOX Sports 1 (FS1) and FOX will air more than 120 hours of original television programming. FOX Sports’ combined networks, including FOX, FS1 and FS2, will air more than 450 hours of programming throughout the year, including coverage of the Lucas Oil Series, J&A Service Pro Mod Series and repeats of Mello Yello Series race coverage.
NHRA races also will appear in Canada and the Caribbean through FOX Sports Racing, as well as being available through FOX Sports GO, the critically acclaimed app that provides live streaming video of FOX Sports content at home or on the go and now is available to 86 million subscribers.
The seven races during the Mello Yello Series regular season that will feature live Sunday finals race coverage on FS1 include the season-opening Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona, Calif. (Feb. 14, 5-8 p.m.), the CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals in Phoenix (Feb. 28, 5-8 p.m.), the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals from Gainesville, Florida (March 20, 1-4 p.m.), the NHRA Nationals from Las Vegas (April 3, 5-8 p.m.), the NHRA SpringNationals from Houston (May 1, 3-6 p.m.), the Route 66 NHRA Nationals from Chicago (July 10, 2-5 p.m.) and the Lucas Oil Nationals from Brainerd, Minnesota (Aug. 21, 2-5 p.m.).
Live coverage of Sunday finals also will be showcased during each stop of the six-race NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship. - Bobby Bennett
The TV audience for the NHRA Mello Yello series on ESPN declined in the cable sports network’s last season of national event coverage.
The average household viewership on ESPN/ESPN2 for final eliminations was 513,000, with a 0.3 rating, according to data furnished to ESPN by Nielsen Media. That’s down from 569,000/0.4 in 2014 and 524,000/0.3 in 2013.
U.S. household ratings are a measure of all homes with TV rather than just those with cable. Nielsen reports there are 116.4 million American TV households.
The TV numbers are a key metric within the drag racing industry. They are a measure of the sport’s overall popularity and are considered by most companies when deciding whether or not to commitment sponsorship dollars to teams, tracks or NHRA.
Five races were shown live this past season, up from three in 2014 and one in 2013.
Four events were on ESPN, and the average viewership for those was 680,000, down from 779,000 for three races in 2014. The average rating was 0.5 both years. There were no races on ESPN in 2013.
For the 20 races on ESPN2, the average viewership was 481,000. That was a decline from 536,000 for 22 events in 2014 and 524,000 in 2013. The average rating was 0.3 all three years.
The numbers for qualifying shows also decreased. The 2015 season average viewership was 303,000, a 0.2 rating. In 2014 it was 353,000/0.2. In 2013 it was 348,000/0.2.
Ratings and viewership can be affected by a variety of factors, such as date, air time, weather delays and competition from other entertainment or news programs.
ESPN did not have the rights to NASCAR’s Sprint Cup and Xfinity series’ this year so NHRA received no benefit of promotions for its events on those broadcasts as in previous seasons.
NHRA and ESPN announced last summer their long relationship would end. Fox Sports will be NHRA’s new TV home beginning next year.
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