NASCAR can’t afford just a short-term ratings boost

NASCAR being back in action before other major professional sports cannot be limited to a short-term benefit, says Stewart-Haas Racing driver Clint Bowyer.

We recently had the chance to discuss the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season with Stewart-Haas Racing’s Clint Bowyer and get his thoughts about several aspects pertaining to himself, his team and the current start of the sport.

Among the things he discussed was NASCAR being back amid the coronavirus pandemic before other major professional sporting leagues, including but not limited to the NBA, NHL and the MLB.

It goes without saying that sports are huge in the United States, so with no sports in over two months, it was inevitable that NASCAR’s return was going to attract an audience that would not typically tune in to a NASCAR race with several other sporting events on.

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That is exactly what happened, and NASCAR has seen further solid TV ratings through all eight of the Cup Series races which have been run since the unexpected 10-week hiatus came to an end at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, May 17. There is clearly potential for growth. But Bowyer has strong feelings on whether or not this benefit will be just a short-term benefit.

“No, hell no. It better not be,” Bowyer told Beyond the Flag. “If it is, that’s our fault. With every obstacle, there’s an opportunity, and this is certainly an opportunity to, let’s face it, win some fans back, and more importantly attract new fans.”

Bowyer believes that the exposure fans have to the sport right now with other sports sitting idle can be huge not just for the near future of the sport but in the long run. The exciting action we have seen in the first eight races back from the stoppage certainly lends itself to attracting new long-term fans.

“We have to win our fans back, if we lost any, with a good product on the race track, and that’s exactly how we’re going to win a new fanbase,” he continued. “New opportunities with the midweek shows and things like that and capturing a new audience, all these things are opportunities.”

Among these opportunities, as Bowyer mentioned, are midweek races, which NASCAR had been discussing for quite some time before finally effectively being forced to implement them this season in order to run a full 36-race schedule.

The Wednesday night race at Darlington Raceway was the first race on a Wednesday since 1984. A total of three midweek races have been contested since NASCAR’s return, and there are two more on the schedule.

“But you’re not going to do it beating the same old dead horse,” Bowyer concluded. “You’re going to have to think outside the box, and we have to be able to adjust with our program. Hey, let’s face it, it’s a different time, so you have to come up with different measures for our fanbase and continue that momentum.”

The next race on the schedule is scheduled to take place on Sunday, June 21 at Talladega Superspeedway. Fox is set to provide live coverage of this race, the GEICO 500, beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET.