Historical IndyCar TV Numbers
Raw Data (K=1,000)
| Venue | 2016 Network |
2016 Rating |
2016 Viewers |
2017 Network |
2017 Rating |
2017 Viewers |
2018 Network |
2018 Rating |
2018 Viewers |
2019 Network |
2019 Rating |
2019 Viewers |
| St. Pete | ABC | 1.0 | 1,400K | ABC | 0.8 | 1,190K | ABC | 0.81 | 1,144K | NBCSN | 0.32 | 495K |
| Phoenix | NBCSN | 0.29 | 363K | NBCSN | 0.21 | 343K | NBCSN | 0.19 | 253K | – | – | – |
| Austin | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | NBCSN | 0.23 | 341K |
| Barber | NBCSN | 0.26 | 279K | NBCSN | 0.39 | 470K | NBCSN | 0.2 | 310K | NBCSN | 0.19 | 296K |
| Long Beach | NBCSN | 0.37 | 402K | NBCSN | 0.21 | 321K | NBCSN | 0.24 | 370K | NBCSN | 0.28 | 436K |
| Indy GP | ABC | 1.0 | 1,300K | ABC | 0.7 | 1KK | ABC | 0.55 | 780K | NBC | 0.71 | 1,066K |
| Indy 500 | ABC | 3.9 | 6,000K | ABC | 3.4 | 5,500K | ABC | 3.1 | 4,900K | NBC | 3.40 | 5,400K |
| Detroit 1 | ABC | 0.7 | 1,000K | ABC | 0.6 | 847K | ABC | 0.55 | 751K | NBC | 0.55 | 761K |
| Detroit 2 | ABC | 0.6 | 918K | ABC | 0.9 | 1,400K | ABC | 0.63 | 936K | NBC | 0.71 | 1,091K |
| Texas | NBCSN | 0.3 | 388K | NBCSN | 0.35 | 561K | NBCSN | 0.21 | 336K | NBCSN | 0.24 | 366K |
| Elkhart Lake | NBCSN | 0.33 | 470K | NBCSN | 0.37 | 568K | NBCSN | 0.22 | 322K | NBC | 0.77 | 1,104K |
| Toronto | CNBC | – | 171K | CNBC (live) |
– | 187K | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Toronto | NBCSN (delay) |
0.3 | 530K | NBCSN (delay) |
0.32 | 489K | NBCSN | 0.29 | 458K | NBCSN | 0.33 | 502K |
| Iowa | NBCSN | 0.37 | 534K | NBCSN | 0.37 | 534K | NBCSN | 0.31 | 452K | NBCSN | 0.11 | 156K |
| Mid-Ohio | NBCSN | 0.55 | 811K | NBCSN (delay) |
0.39 | 576K | NBCSN (delay) |
0.39 | 644K | NBC | 0.47 | 670K |
| Mid-Ohio | – | – | – | CNBC (live) |
0.13 | 200K | CNBC (live) |
0.09 | 139K | – | – | – |
| Pocono | NBCSN | 0.45 | 635K | NBCSN | 0.4 | 618K | NBCSN | 0.34 | 542K | NBCSN | 0.36 | 549K |
| Gateway | – | – | – | NBCSN | 0.23 | 359K | NBCSN | 0.23 | 391K | NBCSN | 0.20 | 310K |
| Watkins Glen | NBCSN | 0.29 | 440K | NBCSN | 0.41 | 604K | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Portland | – | – | – | – | – | – | NBCSN | 0.35 | 529K | NBC | 0.74 | 1,101K |
| Sonoma | NBCSN | 0.33 | 528K | NBCSN | 0.33 | 536K | NBCSN | 0.38 | 629K | – | – | – |
| Laguna Seca | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | NBC | 0.50 | 732K |
Statistics – Annual Total Viewership
| ABC/NBCSN | 2016 | ABC/NBCSN | 2017 | ABC/NBCSN | 2018 | NBC/NBCSN | 2019 |
| Total Viewers | 16,169K | 16,303K | 13,886K | 15,376K | |||
| % Chg '16 to '17 |
+0.8% | % Chg '17 to '18 |
-14.8% | % Chg '18 to '19 |
+10.7% |
Analysis
Positives: Total viewership was up 10.7% in 2019 over 2018, because 3 additional races were on network TV (NBC) vs. 2018
Negatives: Despite more races on network TV in 2019, total viewership in 2019 was less than both 2016 and 2017 when the network was ABC instead of NBC
Statistics – Average Viewership per race by Network
| 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | ||||
| ABC Avg | NBCSN Avg | ABC Avg | NBCSN Avg | ABC Avg | NBCSN Avg | NBC Avg | NBCSN Avg |
| 2,123,600 | 489,091 | 1,987,400 | 498,250 | 1,702,200 | 436,333 | 1,490,625 | 383,444 |
Analysis
Positives: None. While total viewership was up by adding 3 network TV races, average viewership by network is down
Negatives: Average viewership on NBC races was down 12.4% per race vs. ABC in 2018, down 25.0% per race vs ABC in 2017 and down 29.8% per race vs. ABC in 2016. Average viewership per NBCSN race was down 12.1% from 2018
Conclusion
| As a result of the NBC IndyCar deal, the black you see above is exactly what TVs outside the USA get for IndyCar race broadcasts, i.e. nothing |
By moving all its races to NBC/NBCSN IndyCar has shot itself in the foot. ABC had offered 11 network races per year for 2019 and beyond vs. only 8 for NBC. Had IndyCar chosen ABC/ESPN not only would the total viewership have been up much much more, the average viewership per race would have been up, not down. We saw that when F1 moved from NBCSN to ESPN2 – much higher viewership and ratings on the ESPN network
Add to that the fact that IndyCar would not have gone dark globally because ESPN International would still be distributing the race broadcasts around the world to over 100 countries, and it becomes clear what a disaster the new IndyCar TV deal has been. We see that with so many teams still not set with sponsors and drivers for 2020. If you are confused why IndyCar is hurting for 2020 when the economy is so strong, look no further than the TV numbers – the data does not lie. It's the TV Ratings stupid.
Just about everything is down and whoever made the decision to switch made a serious error in management judgement.
Will Roger Penske start to clean house and put managers in charge who can make sound business decisions, or stay the course that will result in IndyCar floundering and its drivers, its heroes, remaining unknown to 99.9999% of the population?
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