The recent NASCAR Cup Series race at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) recorded 3.933 million viewers on FOX, a decline from the 4.132 million from the previous year. This decrease occurs in a context where cable news networks have experienced a significant surge in viewership.
Due to U.S. military actions in Iran over the weekend, cable news audiences have increased by 93% compared to last year and by 64% from the previous week. The audience for the NASCAR race surpassed that of other major sporting events, including the game between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs, which garnered 2.7 million viewers, as well as the PGA TOUR Cognizant Classic, with 2.5 million.
The O’Reilly Auto Parts Series event of NASCAR at COTA also saw a slight decline, with 1.1 million viewers, 4% less than last year. Nevertheless, the race had a strong following at the time of its conclusion.
A similar phenomenon was observed in the Craftsman Truck Series race held at the Street of St. Petersburg, which attracted one million viewers. Despite being the first event of its kind on an urban circuit, the competition was also able to benefit from this widespread increase in cable news audiences.