Phoenix TV ratings continue NASCAR plummet

A tight race for the Chase For The Sprint Cup did not improve NASCAR’s television ratings as ESPN earned a 2.5 rating for the Kobalt Tools 500 Sprint Cup race from Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway with the race averaging 4.2 million viewers.

The rating was a 24 percent drop from the 3.3 earned last year when the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race aired on ABC. When taking into consideration only those homes that receive ESPN, the rating was 2.9.

None of the nine Chase For The Sprint Cup events this year have done better than those in 2009, and on average, Chase ratings are down 22.9 percent. When not including the Charlotte race, which aired on ABC, the Chase is down 24.7 percent for events that were on ABC last year and on ESPN this year.

The Nationwide Series race on ESPN2 drew a 1.2, up from a 1.1 last year when it also aired on ESPN2.