ESPN drove its NASCAR Sprint Cup coverage to the top of last week’s cable primetime ratings charts.
The network’s Aug. 31 coverage of the Sprint Cup Atlanta Race – the first race for driver Tony Stewart since being involved in an Aug. 9 fatal racing accident in New York – helped the network finish first among cable networks in primetime during the week of Aug. 25 to Aug. 21, according to Nielsen. ESPN’s 2.3 million viewers easily topped USA’s 1.8 million watchers and Fox News’ 1.63 million viewers.
FXX’s 12 consecutive days of The Simpsons episodes boosted the network to a fourth place finish for the week, averaging 1.4 million viewers, while Disney Channel finished fifth with 1.58 million viewers.
TNT (1.53 million viewers); History (1.51 million); TBS (1.48 million); HGTV (1.33 million) and Nick At Nite (1.05 million) rounded out the top 10 most watched networks for the week.
Nickelodeon and Disney Channel finished in a virtual tie for the most watched network on a 24-hour basis, averaging 1.2 million viewers. FXX, Adult Swim and Fox News all tied for third with 1 million viewers each.
ESPN was tops among adults 18-49 and 25-54 for the week in primetime, while FXX was the choice among adults 18-34.
Most Watched Shows For The Week of Aug. 25 to Aug. 31
DateProgram NetworkTotal Viewers
8/31 NASCAR Sprint Cup Race ESPN 5.2 million
8/26 Rizzoli & Isles TNT 5.1 million
8/30 College Football ESPN 4.6 million
8/25 WWE Monday Night Raw (9 to 10 p.m.) USA 4.0 million
8/25 WWE Monday Night Raw (10 to 11:07) USA 4.0 million
8/25 Love & Hip Hop Atlanta VH1 3.9 million
8/30 College Football ESPN 3.9 million
8/25 WWE Monday Night Raw (8 to 9 p.m.) USA 3.8 million
8/27 American Pickers History 3.1 million
8/26 The O’Reilly Factor Fox News 3.0 million
Source; Nielsen
