Tell me again why Darlington deserves two races . . .

[Lee Roy]

Final Richmond TV Ratings lowest of season: Fox's broadcast of Sunday's rain-delayed Crown Royal/Jim Stewart 400 Nextel Cup race at Richmond International Raceway earned a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 4.3 and 11 market share, Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Daily reports. It was the lowest rating for a Cup points event this season, .1 point lower than the 4.4 the April 21 Phoenix race contested on a Saturday night, when ratings are usually lower.

But wait, here comes Darlington.


Darlington overnight TV ratings off 7%: Fox's broadcast of Sunday's rain-delayed Dodge Avenger 500 Nextel Cup race at Darlington Raceway earned an overnight Nielsen Media Research rating of 4.0 and an 11 market share, Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating is 7% lower than the 4.3 Fox earned overnight last year, when the race was broadcast on Saturday night.(SceneDaily.com)(5-14-2007)

If all the NASCAR fans are so hot for Darlington, why weren't they watching????

[tstran17_88]

Maybe they had plans since both races were not run during the scheduled times? Don't know...I'll just wait to see what all the Smith/Ferko haters have to say.

[ms0362]

I like Darlington, but you make a valid point. The delay to Sunday didn't help, but most races are on Sunday anyway. The numbers are moving down from last year. I think the sport reached it's viewing peak.

[Alexamateo]

Speaking for my own family, we had mother's day plans that afternoon, not that we're a Nielsen family, but I am sure that we weren't the only ones affected.

I hate that it was delayed, because Darlington's one I always plan to watch.

[blakebeatty]

The average NASCAR race still races equal to or higher than the ratings seen by the "greatest spectacle in racing". I think that mothers day was an easy excuse. I didn't watch it due to commitments, where as i would definately have watched flag to flag saturday night

[nigelred5]

I"m sure the racing being squarely in the middle of Mother's Day dinner had nothing to do with it ;) Or the fact that I'm sure a lot of fans like myself just plain forgot what time it was re-scheduled for.

NASCAR never used to schedule a cup race at all on Mother's Day weekend. I was suprised it was even on to be honest.

[blakebeatty]

That could be too. I know that if you have satellite or digital cable, with a menu program grid that you can scroll through, the race is not listed, it just shows the scheduled programming.

[jslone]

Mothers day versus Nascar.I hate to say it,mothers day will win every time.You cannot predict the waether.

[djarumdudley]

if actual racing counts for anything, that is why Darlington deserves two dates again. the racing on the track and the drama provide by all the overheating engines provided more excitement than five Californias could dream of.
besides, wasn't this race a sellout?

[blakebeatty]

yes, sold out, but they suspect it is because now darlington fans only have 75000 tickets per years instead of 150 000 tickets to buy

[call_me_andrew]

But wait, here comes Darlington.



If all the NASCAR fans are so hot for Darlington, why weren't they watching????

By NASCAR's standards, a 4.0 and a 4.1 aren't that bad. Each race at Loudon had about a 3.0 last year.

[Speedworx]

Darlington doesn't deserve one race. Most of my NASCAR friends in America found the race so dull they went off and did other things.

Scrap Darlington and go to North Wilks or something.

[RGM Fan]

I think there are a lot of fans out there like me who are just getting disinterested. I used to watch every race from start to finish. This year I've watched the Daytona 500 and since Atlanta haven't watched more than 10 minutes of any race.

NASCAR ain't what it used to be, it's not even what was five years ago. The new cars are ugly as hell. Three teams make up most of the top 10 on any given week. A lot of finishes seem to be manipulated by officials throwing debries cautions in the last 50 laps.

It used to be if you weren't with the right team your best out look for the year was to win a race. This season if you aren't with the right team (Hendrick, Roush, Gibbs, Childress) getting a top 5 is a good year for you. Where there used to be 20 or so cars capable on any week now its like eight, and I just can't bring myself to care anymore.

Maybe its just me, but I doubt it.

[Sparky1329]

I think there are a lot of fans out there like me who are just getting disinterested. I used to watch every race from start to finish. This year I've watched the Daytona 500 and since Atlanta haven't watched more than 10 minutes of any race.

NASCAR ain't what it used to be, it's not even what was five years ago. The new cars are ugly as hell. Three teams make up most of the top 10 on any given week. A lot of finishes seem to be manipulated by officials throwing debries cautions in the last 50 laps.

It used to be if you weren't with the right team your best out look for the year was to win a race. This season if you aren't with the right team (Hendrick, Roush, Gibbs, Childress) getting a top 5 is a good year for you. Where there used to be 20 or so cars capable on any week now its like eight, and I just can't bring myself to care anymore.

Maybe its just me, but I doubt it.

It's a very rare day when I sit down to watch a whole race anymore. You may be right.

[harvick#1]

I know I hardly sit through a full race anymore, its just not what it used to be, maybe just DW and Hammond just blabin the whole time about Jooyner and Hendrick

[RaceFanStan]

I watch the races all the way through.
I am also usually logged-in into nascar.com's leader board ...
nascar.com's lap by lap report plus an auxilary FM tuner with MRN on ...
I guess it boils down to how bad do you have it ?
Yes, it is different but for me it is still the best racing available. :D

(Sometimes I am also here making reports or talking about NASCAR.) :D

[Lee Roy]

I think there are a lot of fans out there like me who are just getting disinterested. I used to watch every race from start to finish. This year I've watched the Daytona 500 and since Atlanta haven't watched more than 10 minutes of any race.

NASCAR ain't what it used to be, it's not even what was five years ago. The new cars are ugly as hell. Three teams make up most of the top 10 on any given week. A lot of finishes seem to be manipulated by officials throwing debries cautions in the last 50 laps.

It used to be if you weren't with the right team your best out look for the year was to win a race. This season if you aren't with the right team (Hendrick, Roush, Gibbs, Childress) getting a top 5 is a good year for you. Where there used to be 20 or so cars capable on any week now its like eight, and I just can't bring myself to care anymore.

Maybe its just me, but I doubt it.

You may have a point. It's happening to a lot of racing series. Nobody watches Champ Car and Indy Car races any more. I guess it could happen to better racing series too.

[RGM Fan]

You may have a point. It's happening to a lot of racing series. Nobody watches Champ Car and Indy Car races any more. I guess it could happen to better racing series too.

Actually I've started watching Champ Car this year. I can see a lot of potential there and the races are less than half as long. It reminds me a lot of NASCAR in the 90s actually.

[Lee Roy]

Actually I've started watching Champ Car this year. I can see a lot of potential there and the races are less than half as long. It reminds me a lot of NASCAR in the 90s actually.

I used to go to CART races in the late 1990s and up to 2001, it was great stuff. The garbage that Champ Car is putting out now is pathetic. I don't give it long to live.

[Mark in Oshawa]

LeeRoy, you know you should tell us how you feel..... not hold it all in there...

That said, Champ Car isn't as good as it should be so I wont dispute your point entirely. That however is NOT what the thread is about.....

Darlington provides drama almost every time and it is the oldest "big track" in NASCAR. IT should always have one race a year, for it is also the only race in the State. Two races may have been too hard to sell tickets for, but I always watch Darlington. Since I was on the road, I caught only the last 100 laps when I stopped. Mother's day killed their TV ratings, and since all TV ratings for NASCAR seem to be tailing off, it is the series that is losing steam, not Darlington.

NASCAR is getting to be too slick, too stage managed and too much money. There are 43 cars out there, but only 10 seem to have a crack at winning now. The COT has made the differences between the superteams and the rest WIDER, not less as it was thought.....You couple that with the controversay over the "debris" cautions and NASCAR is now fighting a PR battle against a changing faceless enemy.....apathy.