26% decrease on last year’s playoff race in KansasUSA Network averaging 1.64m viewers after eight races
Nascar averaged 1.49 million viewers for its Cup Series playoff race at Kansas Speedway on USA Network.
It marks a 26 per cent year-over-year (YoY) decrease compared to last year’s playoff race at Kansas, which also aired on USA Network, though it took place earlier in the playoff schedule.
When compared to the previous year’s round of 12 finale, this season’s Kansas race represents a 41 per cent YoY decrease. However, the 2024 event was held at Talladega and aired on NBC, making the comparison less direct.
Nascar has now averaged fewer than two million viewers for five consecutive races, setting an unwanted record that is likely to persist until the playoffs shift to NBC in three races time.
Related posts
Overall, the playoffs are averaging 1.54 million viewers after five rounds, marking the worst performance for the Nascar postseason since its introduction in 2004. It’s not surprising, then, to see reports suggesting that Nascar executives are considering changing the format or even ending the playoffs altogether.
USA Network is averaging 1.64 million viewers, having aired three races toward the end of the regular season. With just two races remaining on the channel this year, it seems likely that the cable network will deliver the lowest average audience of the six channels broadcasting Nascar this season.
That would mean new media partners Prime Video (2.1 million viewers) and TNT (2.06 million viewers) exceeding the viewership performance of one of Nascar’s established cable channels.
