The Brickyard 400 brought record numbers of people, not to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but to their TV sets this past weekend.
The Brickyard set a record for the highest-rated and most-watched broadcast ever on NBCSN , with 5.2 million viewers. It may have been Jeff Gordon’s return from retirement that boosted the broadcast to an 11 percent jump from last year.
It was the highest-rated race on cable since the 2014 Sprint Cup finale, and the most-watched show of the weekend on cable, despite track attendance being down.
At the Speedway, though, the crowd looked sparse, with less than half of the stands filled.
“NASCAR’s having its challenges at tracks all over the country, so it’s not just here. Then you leer in the heat, and it’s a real challenge,” said Gerry Dick, with Inside Indiana Business.
He said one instance is the track at Daytona, where recent renovations cut out seating.
Dick recalled the near sold-out crowd 23 years ago when the Brickyard debuted in Indianapolis, with a much-hyped premier. Since then, the crowds have diminished.
He said , in analyzing the reason for low ticket sales, that one reason is the difference in the racing and in the excitement level.
“Cars are bigger in NASCAR, obviously. There’s less room for the passing and the dicing and all the things that go on in Indy Car. So, to many people, it’s a boring form of racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.”
Dick said that the Brickyard is probably not going anywhere, though, thanks to sponsorships and five-year deals signed by NASCAR with tracks around the country.