NASCAR has been losing fans lately. There has been a 5 percent viewership drop in last year’s Cup Series races, compared to 2022. So what is the reason? Renowned journalist Jeff Gluck wondered the same. It’s not like NASCAR has made any major changes. So why can’t NASCAR accommodate both old and new fans?
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Meanwhile, Door Bumper Clear crew member and veteran spotter Brett Griffin feels like NASCAR is on a positive upswing due to the new media deal that starts in 2025 and the viewers need to start capitalizing on it. Waiting for FOX to watch the races will not be compulsory anymore as NBC takes over the first Cup race at Iowa Speedway on June 16, 2024, with Prime Video and TNT Sports coming in next year and evenly splitting ten mid-season races.
Griffin felt that the viewers should be educated about this viewing shift right away. He wrote, “As stated on DBC we are on a positive upswing and need to capitalize. BIG viewing shift coming in 2025. Need to prepare and educate fans for that now. Watching practice and qualifying is easy now. New TV partners coming across multiple series. Don’t wait til January to educate.”
Sadly, the fans didn’t want to be educated.
Fans snap back as Griffin demands fan education
While NASCAR expects a boost in viewership with the 2025 media deal (and also with its brand new Netflix docuseries), most of the fans on X failed to understand how that will help. Another group of motorsport enthusiasts felt like NASCAR doesn’t have to educate the fans for a viewership boost, which they felt is essentially fake.
On that note, someone said,
Another fan wrote,
While someone said,
A longtime NASCAR fan commented
Another added,
Whether the viewership shift will help NASCAR garner more fans in the long run, or it will generate further dissatisfaction among the existing fans, is something that only time will tell. But one thing is certain, the fans do not like the fact that NASCAR is being taken over to platforms, which the fans have to subscribe to to watch.
