IndyCar: Detroit GP delivered impressive results

–Press Release–

The results and analysis reveal a record-setting weekend following the return of the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear to Downtown Detroit in 2023. Back home on the streets of the Motor City for the first time in 32 years, the June 2-4 Grand Prix weekend delivered incredible attendance, television viewership and total audience numbers across multiple platforms, along with significant charitable contributions raised during the event’s annual fundraiser.

Bolstered by sold-out grandstands (all 8,400 seats) on Sunday of race weekend, as well as unprecedented free access across more than half of the venue over the course of the three-day weekend, the Grand Prix welcomed an estimated total crowd of approximately 150,000 people (really? Wow!) to Downtown Detroit on the first weekend in June. In addition to the paid attendance areas inside the event’s footprint, the Grand Prix featured a more inclusive event than ever before in its Downtown return with free access provided all weekend in Hart Plaza, Spirit Plaza, the Detroit Riverwalk and all along Jefferson Avenue through courtesy viewing platforms and activation areas on the blocks immediately north of Jefferson.

According to Nielsen ratings information, viewership from the new 1.7-mile street circuit on the Streets of Downtown Detroit also produced impressive results. Featuring the cars and stars of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, the Chevrolet INDYCAR Grand Prix on Sunday, June 4 posted a total audience delivery (TAD) of 1.098 million viewers across television, digital and out of home viewing. With the race televised on NBC and streamed live on Peacock, that total represents an increase of 179% from the 2022 TAD in Detroit when the final INDYCAR race on Belle Isle was broadcast on the USA Network.

Nielsen reported that Sunday’s INDYCAR race drew a .65 national household rating – the second-highest rating for the event since 2014 and more than 40% above the five-year average. The Chevrolet INDYCAR Grand Prix had the highest viewership of any sports programming on NBC over the course of the week and the audience reach more than doubled the results of the 2022 Grand Prix. This year’s broadcast marked the third-highest viewed NTT INDYCAR SERIES race of 2023 behind the Indianapolis 500 and the season opener on the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla. Detroit race viewership saw its biggest growth among the female audience with an incredible increase of more than 273% from last year’s total audience results.

The strong national ratings were powered by tremendous local viewership. Led by programming and coverage through local NBC affiliate WDIV Local 4, the Detroit designated market area (DMA) led all U.S. markets with a 4.73 rating and a 19 share. This represents the highest ratings for the event in the Detroit DMA since 2016.

“We want to thank all of our great fans here in Metro Detroit and across Southeast Michigan for their support as we brought the Grand Prix back home to the Streets of the Motor City in 2023,” said Michael Montri, President of the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear. “We saw tremendous interest not only here locally but with viewership and coverage across the country. It was an amazing weekend and a great opportunity for Detroit and our entire region to shine in front of an audience watching all over the world.”

According to social media metrics, the 2023 Detroit Grand Prix also produced a winning formula across multiple channels and platforms. During the course of the three-day event weekend, the Detroit GP social channels soared with a reach of over 640,000 on Facebook and more than 40,000 on Instagram, along with over 360,000 new impressions on Twitter, from June 2-4. The positive social momentum was also evident on the NTT INDYCAR SERIES channels with over 7.2 million video views generated during the weekend (an increase of 183% from the 2022 event) and more than 1.7 million engagements across all series social platforms for an increase of 135% from last year’s event weekend.