2013 Daytona 500 on FOX Ranks as Highest-Rated & Most-Watched Since 2008
Sunday's rating reaffirmed the Daytona 500 as one of the biggest events in sports. The 2013 race ranked as the top-rated sports event on any network since the Super Bowl and garnered more viewers than last week's NBA All-Star Game (+108%, 8.0 million), the 2012 Kentucky Derby (+53%, vs. 10.9 million), the Final Round of the 2012 US Open (+74%, vs. 9.6 million) and the Final Round of the 2012 Masters (+24%, vs. 13.5 million).
As strong evidence that this year's compelling stars and storylines transcended the traditional NASCAR fan base, Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season opener was bolstered by a +42% ratings increase in the country's top 10 markets, with the top five markets notching jumps of 25% or more. Significant surges in Chicago (+91%, 8.4 vs. 4.4), San Francisco (+64%, 5.9 vs. 3.6), Los Angeles (+60%, 6.4 vs. 4.0), Boston (+59%, 8.1 vs. 5.1), New York (+43%, 5.0 vs. 3.5), Houston (+33%, 5.3 vs. 4.0) and Dallas (+25%, 8.1 vs. 6.5) helped power this year's ratings gains over 2012. Greensboro was the 2013 Daytona 500's No. 1 market, averaging a 21.8/38, followed by Indianapolis (20.5/40), Charlotte (20.3/40), Jacksonville (19.6/33) and Dayton (19.1/35). Albuquerque saw the nation's biggest increase, up +115% (10.3 vs. 4.8).
Tune-in for Sunday's green flag was a strong 8.6/20, with 14.3 million viewers and peaked from 4:30 4:45 PM ET when 21.4 million viewers (12.7/26) watched as Johnson held off Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s charge in the exciting final laps to take home the 2013 prize.
Sunday's race witnessed viewership increases in female demographic categories including +16% among Women 18-34 (2.2 vs. 1.9), +3% among Women 18-49 (3.2 vs. 3.1) and up +8% among Women 25-54 (4.2 vs. 3.9). Across key male and adult demographics, the year-to-year increases were also impressive as Sunday's race was up +14% among Men 18-34 (4.0 vs. 3.5), +8% among Men 18-49 (6.4 vs. 5.9), +11% among Men 25-54 (8.2 vs. 7.4), and +7% among Adults 18-49 (4.8 vs. 4.5). FOX