NASCAR’s Televised Return
Draws 6 Million Viewers On May 17, NASCAR returned to
television after a 10-week hiatus. The Real Heroes 400 was held at Darlington
Raceway in South Carolina. No fans were
present in the racetrack’s 47,000 seats. Only essential staff, such as teams and broadcasters,
were permitted to attend. They reportedly numbered
around 900 people. Virtual viewership on the other hand
occurred in record-breaking numbers,
with a total of 6.32 million viewers. According to Fox, that makes the event
the most-watched non-Dayton NASCAR
race in more than three years. Viewership was up 38 percent from
NASCAR’s last race, which occurred
pre-shutdown, according to Austin Karp
of Sports Business Journal. The race also averaged an additional 40,000
viewers on Fox Sports’ digital platforms. In terms of viewership, it trails only behind
the 2020 Daytona 500 as the company’s
largest NASCAR streaming audience.