NASCAR on NBC & TNT ratings up 36 percent

August 16, 2001
5:25 PM EDT (2125 GMT)

NEW YORK -- NASCAR's "Race for the Championship" on NBC and TNT, through six races, is averaging a 5.1 national rating/14 share, 36 percent better than last year's 3.7/11 average over the same time period (5 telecasts).

Sunday's NASCAR Winston Cup Racing from Watkins Glen on NBC finished with a 4.7 national rating/13 share, 62 percent ahead of last year's adjusted national rating of 2.9/10 for the same race on ESPN, according to figures released today by Nielsen Media Research.

For four consecutive races, NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing on NBC has been the top-rated network sports programming each weekend. NBC's coverage of Sunday's Watkins Glen race was the highest-rated sports programming of the Aug. 11-12 weekend.

NBC's Saturday coverage of the Busch North Series, NASCAR Touring race from Watkins Glen earned a 1.6 national rating/5 share. There was no comparable telecast last year.

Watkins Glen was the sixth NASCAR Winston Cup race in NBC and TNT's new six-year agreement with NASCAR to telecast "The Race for the Championship" over the second half of the NASCAR season.

NASCAR Winston Cup Series points leader Jeff Gordon takes a two-race winning streak into Michigan this weekend for TNT's coverage of the Pepsi 400 from Michigan International Speedway.

Coverage begins Friday with Bud Pole Qualifying on CNNSI at 3 p.m. On Saturday the NAPA Online.com 250 Busch Grand National race begins at 1 p.m. on TNT with Pepsi 400 "Happy Hour" at 3:30p.m. On Sunday, TNT's exclusive coverage of the Pepsi 400 begins at 1:30 p.m.