watkins Glen Tv ratings

[Lousada]

I believe it was up against the Wimbledon finals on Sunday (I don't watch tennis). So if that was the case, it did OK. But no one should be celebrating about a .9 even if it's about the same as last year. In fact we should be asking why, now a year into unification, the ratings have been at best even and at worst a significant dropoff.

They are always against 250+ other programmes. I don't think there is a noticable overlap between Indycar and tennis fans. Most important ratings drags are other racing series. Nascar wasn't on, F1 wasn't on and ALMS wasn't on this weekend.

[SarahFan]

They are always against 250+ other programmes. I don't think there is a noticable overlap between Indycar and tennis fans. Most important ratings drags are other racing series. Nascar wasn't on, F1 wasn't on and ALMS wasn't on this weekend.

Wow

No other racing related compitition and a sub 1 rating.....that is very very telling IMO

[Jacques]

Taken from the article :

Once again, ratings dropped for the IRL on ABC. The Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen, ABC's second-to-last IRL telecast of the year, drew a 0.9 overnight rating on Sunday afternoon -- down 10% from a 1.0 last year. All four of ABC's IRL telecasts have had at least a 10% decline in overnight ratings.

[NickFalzone]

This is true, although the reality is that other racing series are also down quite a bit in the ratings. NASCAR is down around 12% this season in the ratings. The difference is that NASCAR has MUCH farther to fall, whereas IRL has basically been bordering on complete insignificance for the last 5 years outside of the 500. I thought, and probably many in IRL management did as well, that unification would get some real excitement about the series again and translate into bigger crowds and tv ratings. We've seen maybe a slight uptick in track attendance in the last 2 years, but tv viewers really just do NOT care about this series anymore. When you're talking 1s and sub 1s, as we have been for the last couple years, it doesn't really matter if it's a .5 on ABC or a .9, it's a terrible rating, in the league of volleyball or motorcross (see the link above). Even if the ratings stabilize next season, I don't know how long the series sponsors will continue to put up with sub 1 ratings. This is something that I think IRL management needs to address, and someone in the press needs to ask them in a public forum. Basically they just need to be praying for a miracle, because nothing ratingswise suggests that popularity is just around the corner.

[SarahFan]

http://thescore.ibj.com/content/?p=1068

final of .87

[Jacques]

This is true, although the reality is that other racing series are also down quite a bit in the ratings. NASCAR is down around 12% this season in the ratings. The difference is that NASCAR has MUCH farther to fall, whereas IRL has basically been bordering on complete insignificance for the last 5 years outside of the 500. I thought, and probably many in IRL management did as well, that unification would get some real excitement about the series again and translate into bigger crowds and tv ratings.

Even with the 500, the IRL is now at CC levels. That cannot be spun into anything good.
If Nascar is falling too, it does not help the IRL any because Nascar will start to squeeze Indy even more.

[NickFalzone]

What's puzzling to me is that the ratings were down last season and are again down this season. Both seasons have done worse in the ratings than the regular IRL seasons BEFORE unification. I have seen very little to no uptick from unification. I guess maybe it lessened the ratings slide the IRL was on and if unification had not happened the ratings would be nonexistant. But it is strange to me that for one, the ratings are as bad as they are on ABC, and two, that the higher rated races the last 2 seasons tend to be the road and street courses (VS audiences not included). IRL oval racing outside of Indy is just a ratings dead zone.

[NickFalzone]

Even with the 500, the IRL is now at CC levels. That cannot be spun into anything good.
If Nascar is falling too, it does not help the IRL any because Nascar will start to squeeze Indy even more.

I think NASCAR is just in a temporary holding pattern while they figure out the issues with the COT and the manufacturers. I could easily see CUP ratings back up in 2-3 seasons from now, assuming things fall their way with the current issues. IRL is in a state of deep depression that is going to take a miracle to get out of.

[CCWS77]

One possible theory is that hope of unification actually attracted some fans because they thought in the future things would improve. When unification happened, and yet virtually nothing about the IRL changed, anyone who thought that might have left.

[Jacques]

I think NASCAR is just in a temporary holding pattern while they figure out the issues with the COT and the manufacturers. I could easily see CUP ratings back up in 2-3 seasons from now, assuming things fall their way with the current issues. IRL is in a state of deep depression that is going to take a miracle to get out of.

Yes, I tend to agree.
Nascar had deep support. It was also wider than Indy's.
Trying to explaing the IRL's inability to prosper, by pointingt to Nascar's "troubles," is just another form of denial. One needs to fix one's house instead of pointing how bad the neighbor's house is.