Daytona 500 Viewership Rises Despite Rain Delays

The 2025 Daytona 500 saw a 13% increase in viewers compared to last year, but struggled to reach pre-pandemic audience levels.

The 2025 Daytona 500 averaged 6.761 million viewers on Fox, up 13% from last year's rain-delayed Monday race but down from 2023's 8.17 million viewers.
Rain delays disrupted the race, pushing its conclusion into primetime, where it competed with the NBA All-Star Game and NBC's SNL50 special.
The event peaked at 7.959 million viewers shortly after the race began, but viewership fluctuated during the delays and recovered for the final laps.
This marks the first race under NASCAR's new $7.7 billion media rights deal, which includes coverage by Fox, NBC, Amazon, and TNT through 2031.
NASCAR's efforts to broaden its audience, including a Netflix docuseries and diversity initiatives, are credited with helping boost engagement and viewership.