Viewership for first Indianapolis 500 on NBC is up 11% vs. 2018

‘Greatest Spectacle in Racing’ averaged total audience delivery of 5.446 million viewers on NBC, NBCSports.com & NBC Sports App

Race peaked at 6.7 million viewers as Simon Pagenaud outdueled Alexander Rossi in thrilling conclusion

With a thrilling finish and 300,000-plus fans in attendance, the star-studded 103rd Indianapolis 500 – the first broadcast on NBC – delivered an 11% viewership increase vs. 2018. That marks its best household rating in three years – and it’s now NBC Sports’ most-streamed INDYCAR race ever, according to Fast National data from Nielsen and digital data from Adobe Analytics.

The “Greatest Spectacle in Racing” averaged a total audience delivery (TAD) of 5.446 million viewers Sunday afternoon across NBC, NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app (12:43-4:03 p.m. ET), up 11% vs. the 2018 race (TV-only 4.913 million, ABC). Viewership peaked in the final quarter-hour (3:45-4 p.m. ET) when 6.700 million viewers watched Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud outduel Andretti Autosports’ Alexander Rossi in a thrilling finish to take the checkered flag at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. NBC’s TV-only viewership averaged 5.414 million viewers and delivered a 3.43 household rating, which is the best for an Indy 500 in three years (3.88 in 2016).

Yesterday’s Indy 500 also stands as the most-watched Sunday afternoon sporting event on NBC in more than four months, since the NFL Wild Card game between the Eagles and Bears on Jan. 6 (36 million viewers). It was also the most watched sporting event of the day across all TV.

Digitally, the 103rd Indianapolis 500 is now NBC Sports’ most-streamed INDYCAR race ever, setting records with 161,000 uniques, 8.4 million live minutes, and an average minute audience (AMA) of 31,700 viewers.

Locally, Indianapolis led all markets with a 10.98 HH rating for its primetime replay. Dayton (9.77), Sacramento-Stockton (7.97), Cincinnati (7.34), and Fort Myers-Naples (7.30) rounded out the top five for live coverage in the afternoon.