Clint Bowyer and Tony Stewart are also responsible for the absurd commercial breaks during Daytona 500, claims Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The total viewership of the 2023 Daytona 500 was down by 8% compared to the 2022 edition of the event.
Follow Us
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Image via Forbes
The talk of the town on Sunday was Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s win in the 2023 Daytona 500, and the fans’ frustration regarding the commercials. There was an absurd number of commercials during the Fox Sports Great American race coverage. While the fans were all over the place, complaining about the Cup Series coverage, Dale Earnhardt Jr. pointed fingers at the announcers.
Fans have always felt the commercials during the race to be troublesome. They feel that Fox Sports rammed them with commercials during the race. They pointed out that it was worse than the previous seasons. Dale Earnhardt Jr, one of the most popular drivers and the “Pied Piper” of Daytona, shared his thoughts on this subject.
Earnhardt Jr revealed on his podcast, Dale Jr. Download, that the producers sometimes seek the announcers’ opinion regarding the break. “If they think the lead changes happen, they’ll try to hold off. Usually, they take a little direction from the booth. ‘Clint Bowyer, Tony Stewart, what are you feeling? Are they about to wreck? We need to stay here?” As they have to call the race, the announcers have a better idea of when to break for a commercial.
Related: Chase Elliott is all set for redemption in ‘unique and cool’ Auto Club Speedway
Dale Earnhardt Jr explained that it is quite expensive to put on races hence the number of commercials
However, Fox Sports were heavily blamed for their poor coverage and the inability to give the fans what they wanted. The network went into a break in one of the most thrilling scenes, it was when Kyle Larson overtook his teammate, Alex Bowman, on lap 11. The fans were frustrated that they missed this, among other lead changes.
Regarding the in-race ads, Earnhardt stated, “It’s expensive to put on these races. Sometimes, though I get just the frequency of it, or how it’s done. Could it be done differently to where we don’t step away from where the action really is?” The fans compared the NASCAR coverage to Formula One’s coverage. However, the distinction is that Fox Sports and NBC pay more for the broadcast rights than ESPN pays for Formula One.
The Daytona 500 had about 8 million viewers on Fox TV, and though it was 8 percent less than the previous year, the race ended up being the most-watched event of the weekend on TV. It reached a high point of 10.1 million viewers. The Daytona 500 had more audience than the Indy 500 and Formula One races in the US.
In case you missed it :
“Honoured and humbled,” Kenny Wallace to race in 2023 SRX season Finale
Stay Updated!
Justin P Joy
(4859 Articles Published)