Viewers Up 23%; Households Increase 14%
The Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series has seen tremendous growth on SPEED Channel in the first part of 2005 with both viewers and households posting double-digit gains, and if the numbers from last month's Porsche 250 presented by Bradley Arant are any indication, this positive trend is going to continue in the second half of the racing season.
Through the first seven races of 2005's 14 race schedule, the Rolex Series has seen an impressive 23% increase in viewers and an equally strong 14% increase in households reached on SPEED Channel. These gains translate to an average Rolex Series race audience of more than a quarter-million viewers per show.
The jump in households reached was good enough to put the Rolex Series in some impressive company as one of the top-five motorsports series race event programs on SPEED in the first half of 2005. The rankings, which are based on the average number of households reached, saw the Rolex Series join the Crown Royal IROC Series, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, the ARCA Re/Max Series and Formula One as the top-five most watched auto racing series on SPEED so far this year.
The television audience growth - which has been matched by similar increases in on-site attendance at Rolex Series races this year - has been attributed to action-packed competition on the track that has been among the best sports car racing to be held in North America in decades.
"It's no secret that the Rolex Series is growing," Grand American President Roger Edmondson said. "The competition is fierce with our great teams and drivers putting on racing that is among the most competitive in sports car history. As the fastest growing sports car series in the country, we expect our television numbers, attendance and entries to continue to increase, and we are pleased that our competitors are getting the recognition they deserve."
In addition to the strong Rolex Series numbers, the Grand-Am Cup Series was ranked as the seventh most watched racing series on SPEED in the first half of the year. Grand-Am Cup race telecasts routinely attract an average audience of 197,000 viewers for the tape-delayed races that typically air in mid-day Saturday telecasts.
The second half of the 2005 Rolex Series began with the Porsche 250 at Barber Motorsports Park, July 31, and that race's live telecast on SPEED ranked among the top motorsports series programs on any network that weekend. In the overall weekend rankings, the Porsche 250 was the eighth most-watched race series event program on television - broadcast and cable combined - and trailed only qualifying and race event programming for the NASCAR Busch Series, IRL IndyCar, NHRA, the ARCA Re/Max Series and the Lucas Oil Dirt Track Series. Based on households reached, the Porsche 250 Rolex Series race was also the top sports car series and road racing program airing on SPEED that weekend. The telecast saw triple-digit increases with a 153% increase in viewers and a 141% jump in households. The race telecast also kept pace with 2005's average viewership with an audience of nearly a quarter-million people.
Television numbers from last Friday's telecast of the CompUSA 200 from Watkins Glen, Round Nine on the 2005 Rolex Series schedule, will be released in the near future.
Next up for the Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series is the EMCO Gears Classic at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Saturday, August 27. Tickets are available by visiting midohio.com or by calling 1-800-MID-OHIO. SPEED Channel will televise the EMCO Gears Classic at 12:00 Noon ET on Sunday, August 28.
The Grand American Road Racing Association, which operates and sanctions the Rolex Sports Car Series and the Grand-Am Cup Series, is the premier road racing organization in North America. The 14-race 2005 Rolex Series schedule and the 11-race Grand-Am Cup calendar deliver professional sports car racing to key markets throughout North America in addition to being televised in the United States and Canada on SPEED Channel and distributed globally through ESPN International. With title sponsorship support from Rolex Watch USA, the Rolex Sports Car Series showcases emerging and legendary drivers from around the globe and thoroughbred racing machines from the industry's leading constructors and the world's top automobile manufacturers. Learn more about Grand American at grandamerican.com.
