Photos: Lionel Generation 6 paint schemes for 2013
TV Times for December 8 – 10 2012
By Lou Modestino
Penske entices Stewart to race in the Indy 500
There have been several reports around stating that NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion car owner Roger Penske is offering NASCAR standout driver Tony Stewart an Indy 500 ride. Could this be an attempt to heighten NASCAR fans’ interest in the event? Perhaps so. No doubt that Stewart has developed a strong base of fans over the years during his open wheel racing, compounded by the fact that he’s added still more fans after he successfully transitioned from open wheel and become a top NASCAR driver. This is an obvious effort to sell more tickets to the Indy 500 and to kick up TV ratings.
Erik Jones Wins the 45th Annual Snowball Derby
Shortly after winning the 45th Annual Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida, Byron, Michigan’s Erik Jones sat down with Speed51.com and SPEED TV’s Bob Dillner to discuss winning the crown jewel of short track asphalt racing. Jones held off NASCAR star Kyle Busch for the victory.
Chase Elliott Wins the 2012 Allen Turner Hyundai Snowflake 100
2012 Allen Turner Hyundai Snowflake 100 winner Chase Elliott at Five Flags Speedway on Snowball Derby morning.
Video: Magic Mile Inside Track: 2012 Year in Review
Gavin and Jonathan breakdown the best and worst of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2012 and pick out the drivers to watch in 2013.
TV TIMES for 11-30 to 12-2
By Lou Modestino
NASCAR and TV partners have big problems
From The Sporting News comes a very serious revelation. NASCAR had an up and down year on the TV ratings over the past few years. This year it was mostly down. For 2012, NASCAR had the smallest audience in five years. There was also a 25 percent drop in the very important 18-34 year old male demographic registering a 25 percent drop. Those NASCAR races which aired on Fox, TNT and ESPN averaged a 3.6 Nielsen rating and 5.8 million viewers through 35 of 36 races. The season-ending races at Homestead was down 5 percent and 10 percent respectively from last year. All that gave up all of the gains the sport made last year which was its first annual ratings increase since 2005.
Three races weren’t counted because of rain delays that forced the races to be held on weekday mornings. Ratings among advertisers’ favorite demographic, 18- to 34-year-olds, fell further. NASCAR races earned a 0.9 rating in that demo, down 25 percent from last year’s 1.2.
NASCAR executives attributed the declines to uncontrollable forces, starting with the Daytona 500’s first postponement in 54 years, from Sunday afternoon to Monday evening. NASCAR executives also cited competition from the London Olympics and NCAA basketball conference championship games as reasons for the downturn.
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