Overview
- FOX says the Daytona 500 averaged 7.489 million viewers, up 11% year over year, with a 9.154 million peak and the event’s best average since 2023.
- Friday’s Truck Series opener on FS1 drew 1.387 million viewers, a 37% increase and the series’ most-watched race since 2016.
- The O’Reilly Auto Parts (Xfinity) opener on The CW averaged 1.812 million viewers, largely flat from last year, and peaked at 2.321 million.
- Ratings were measured under Nielsen’s Panel + Big Data model adopted in September, a shift that complicates direct comparisons with prior years.
- NASCAR advanced Sunday’s start by an hour to dodge rain, a move analysts estimate trimmed potential viewership by several percentage points, as FOX noted the race outdrew every non-prime-time Winter Olympics window on TV.