Dale Earnhardt Jr. admits he is confused by the drop in NASCAR’s TV ratings despite the sport ‘moving in the right direction’
Every playoff race of the 2023 season saw a drop in viewership compared to the 2022 season.
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Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Via IMAGO)
The 2023 NASCAR TV ratings have seen a drop in viewership and, most importantly, in the season finale numbers. It has been a concern for the premier stock car racing sanctioning body for a long time. Now, Hall of Fame Dale Earnhardt Jr. has given his take on the situation and explained why he finds it confusing.
Dale Jr. was asked by ex-racer Kenny Wallace what he thinks about the current state of the sport according to the TV numbers. The two-time Xfinity Series champion said that NASCAR is moving in the right direction. Still, there are some issues, such as the TV number he finds confusing, as with the entertaining season 2023 offered, it wasn’t supposed to happen.
I think NASCAR today is moving in the right direction. There are some things that I can’t explain away that aren’t great. The TV numbers confuse the hell out of me because I was very entertained in the playoffs. I thought that the championship race itself was very entertaining. I don’t know where the numbers are. I don’t know why our numbers aren’t better.Dale Jr. said via Kenny Conversations.
Fewer fans watched the final 13 races of the season compared to the 2022 season. Ryan Blaney’s championship triumph had just 2.92 million viewers. The drop in average viewership in the last two seasons has also continued. In 2023, the average viewer’s number is 2.86 million. It was 3.03 million in 2022 and 3 million in 2021.
Dale Jr.’s NBC was strong compared to Fox
Dale Earnhardt Jr., as the lead broadcaster of the 2023 season at NBC, played a significant role in the good average viewership this year. NBC and USA Network combined saw an increase in viewership as the average number went up to 2.47 million from 2.45 million in 2022.
Fox, on the other hand, saw a big drop. Their viewership decreased to 3.32 million from 3.69 million in 2022, a 10% drop. The number is above NBC’s due to the massive 8.17 million viewers who saw the 2023 Daytona 500.
One major reason for the drop, unfortunately, was the drop in production at Fox. NBC went deep with the technical explanations, grid walks, and track visits, while Fox held on to their usual formula. Fox Sports needs to up their game in 2024 with Kevin Harvick coming to the booth, while NBC should continue improving the current product.
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Justin P Joy
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