NASCAR TV Ratings Are In for TNT’s Sonoma Debut
· Yahoo Sports
NASCAR’s return to TNT Sports has its first report card.
The television ratings from last weekend’s Sonoma Raceway doubleheader have been released, providing an early look at how fans responded to the first race of TNT’s five-week summer Cup Series package. While Sunday’s Cup Series audience was lower than last year’s Sonoma event, the context behind the numbers tells a more complete story.
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Meanwhile, Saturday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race continued an impressive run for The CW, extending one of the network’s strongest streaks since becoming the series’ television home.
Cup Series opens TNT summer package with 1.8 million viewers
Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 averaged 1.8 million viewers on TNT Sports.
The race served as the first of five consecutive NASCAR Cup Series broadcasts on TNT after the season’s opening months aired across FOX Sports and Prime Video.
At first glance, the audience represented a decline from last year’s Sonoma race, which averaged 2.2 million viewers. However, the 2026 event aired opposite the FIFA Club World Cup, while last year’s race did not face the same international sports competition.
Shane van Gisbergen’s dominant victory also gave TNT an ideal storyline to launch its summer schedule. The Trackhouse Racing driver completed a weekend sweep after winning Saturday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race before backing it up with Sunday’s Cup Series victory.
Whether Sonoma proves to be the low point or simply reflects unusually difficult competition will become clearer over the next month as TNT continues its five-race NASCAR schedule.
The CW keeps its momentum going
Saturday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race also produced another strong television audience.
The CW averaged 1.145 million viewers, with the broadcast peaking at 1.231 million viewers during the closing stages of the race.
According to The CW, the broadcast also achieved several milestones:
- Most-watched Sonoma race since the series debuted at the track in 2023.
- Total audience increased 18% compared to last year’s Sonoma race on the network.
- The 19th consecutive O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race to surpass one million total viewers, excluding weather-delayed broadcasts.
The continued growth comes after The CW assumed exclusive rights to the series beginning with the 2025 season and has consistently delivered audiences above the one-million-viewer mark throughout 2026.
All eyes turn to Chicagoland
The television spotlight now shifts to one of the most anticipated weekends of the season.
TNT remains home to the Cup Series as NASCAR returns to Chicagoland Speedway for the first time since 2019, a comeback that has generated significant interest among fans after a seven-year absence.
The combination of a returning venue and another weekend of TNT coverage will provide a better indication of whether Sonoma’s audience was primarily impacted by outside competition or if it reflects the baseline for NASCAR’s new summer television package.