Nascar is averaging 3.99 million viewers through six racesLowest viewership for Darlington race since 2.14m viewers on NBCSN in 2019
Nascar averaged 2.43 million viewers during last weekend’s Cup Series visit to Darlington Raceway on FS1.
The figure is one per cent on the comparable race weekend last year at Homestead-Miami Speedway, which averaged 2.46 million viewers on the same channel.
When compared to previous visits to Darlington, this is the lowest viewership for the race since it aired on NBCSN in 2019 and averaged 2.14 million viewers. The race has aired on FS1 since 2021 and has steadily declined in viewership over that time.
Nascar is now averaging 3.99 million viewers after six races, which represents a solid start to the 2026 season.
However, FS1 in isolation is averaging 2.68 million viewers after three races which is below the average audience of 2.76 million on the cable channel at the same stage last season.
Nascar’s struggle with viewership numbers in recent years has been due to an increased reliance on cable distribution in its media rights deals. Last season, 63 per cent of Nascar races aired on cable – the highest proportion ever.
Executives will hope to see a reversal in this trend at a time when competition from Formula One and IndyCar has never been greater.
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