NBC averaged 16.5 million viewers (total audience delivery) for the race segment of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday from 6:23-7:27pm ET, which saw Country House get the victory after Maximum Security was disqualified. That figure is up from 15 million last year for Justify’s win, and even with '17, when Always Dreaming won the race. The TV-only figure for NBC was 16.3 million viewers, while streaming delivered an average minute audience of 130,400 viewers. That record streaming audience is up from 123,100 last year. NBC carries the Preakness Stakes on May 18, but may have trouble attracting a strong audience, as both Country House and Maximum Security are out.
KING JAMES: Viewership figures for syndicated shows have a little bit of a lag, but the most recent figures for April 22-28 show that sports bettor James Holzhauer continues to draw big numbers for “Jeopardy!” The show averaged 11.97 million viewers that week, easily topping 9.75 million for “Judge Judy” and 9.24 million for “Wheel of Fortune.” The “Jeopardy” numbers have risen every week since Holzhauer’s streak began on April 4. The show led all syndicated programs with an average of 10.67 million viewers for the week of April 15-21, and led the week of April 8-14 with 10.01 million viewers. During Holzhauer’s first week, “Jeopardy!” was second to “Wheel of Fortune” with 9.58 million viewers, and the week prior to Holzhauer, “Jeopardy!” was tied for third at 8.8 million viewers. There is another set of “Jeopardy!” numbers with Holzhauer that will be reported next week, as the show has its Teachers Tournament from May 6-17 before coming back to a regular format.
NOTES: Each of ESPN’s weekday morning shows had audience gains in April. “SportsCenter: AM” from 7:00-8:00am averaged 321,000 viewers last month, up 17% from the same period in '18. From 8:00-10:00am last month, “Get Up” averaged 348,000 viewers, up 30%. From 10:00am-12:00pm, “First Take” averaged 413,000 viewers, up 2%....NHRA races on Fox and FS1 are averaging 562,000 viewers after seven races, down 13% from the same point last season.
The chart below lists final audience figures from select recent sports telecasts.
| TELECAST |
DATE
|
NET
|
TIME (ET)
|
RAT.
|
VIEWERS
(000)
|
| Kentucky Derby (race segment) |
5/4
|
NBC
|
6:23-7:27pm
|
9.4
|
16,341
|
NBA Western Conference Semifinals:
Warriors-Rockets: Game 3 |
5/4
|
ABC
|
8:30-11:19pm
|
4.4
|
7,227
|
NBA Western Conference Semifinals:
Rockets-Warriors: Game 2 |
4/30
|
TNT
|
10:35pm-1:10am
|
3.8
|
6,155
|
NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals:
Raptors-76ers: Game 4 |
5/5
|
ABC
|
3:30-6:15pm
|
3.0
|
4,627
|
NHL Eastern Conference Semifinals:
Bruins-Blue Jackets: Game 5 |
5/4
|
NBC
|
7:27-10:10pm
|
2.6
|
4,555
|
NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals:
Celtics-Bucks: Game 2 |
4/30
|
TNT
|
8:00-10:35pm
|
2.8
|
4,451
|
NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals:
Bucks-Celtics: Game 3 |
5/3
|
ESPN
|
8:10-10:51pm
|
2.6
|
4,057
|
NBA Western Conference Semifinals:
Nuggets-Trail Blazers: Game 4 |
5/5
|
TNT
|
7:00-9:43pm
|
2.5
|
4,055
|
NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals:
Raptors-76ers: Game 3 |
5/2
|
ESPN
|
8:12-10:42pm
|
2.5
|
4,010
|
NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals:
76ers-Raptors: Game 2 |
4/29
|
TNT
|
8:00-10:35pm
|
2.4
|
3,870
|
NBA Western Conference Semifinals:
Trail Blazers-Nuggets: Game 1 |
4/29
|
TNT
|
10:35pm-1:08am
|
2.3
|
3,679
|
NBA Western Conference Semifinals:
Nuggets-Trail Blazers: Game 3 |
5/3
|
ESPN
|
10:51pm-2:17am
|
2.3
|
3,651
|
NBA Western Conference Semifinals:
Trail Blazers-Nuggets: Game 2 |
5/1
|
TNT
|
9:09-11:47pm
|
2.2
|
3,552
|
| "NBA Countdown" |
5/4
|
ABC
|
8:00-8:30pm
|
1.8
|
2,691
|
| PGA Tour: Wells Fargo Championship: Final Round |
5/5
|
CBS
|
3:00-7:15pm
|
1.6
|
2,464
|
NHL Eastern Conference Semifinals:
Bruins-Blue Jackets: Game: 4 |
5/2
|
NBCSN
|
7:26-10:18pm
|
1.2
|
1,987
|
NHL Western Conference Semifinals:
Blues-Stars: Game 6 |
5/5
|
NBC
|
3:12-6:00pm
|
0.9
|
1,553
|
| PGA Tour: Wells Fargo Championship: Third Round* |
5/4
|
CBS
|
3:00-6:00pm
|
0.8
|
1,115
|
Concacaf Champions League Final:
Tigres UANL-Monterrey: Leg 2 |
5/1
|
UniMas
|
9:30pm-12:21am
|
0.5
|
920
|
| Liga MX: Chivas-Tigres UANL |
5/4
|
Univision
|
7:55-10:04pm
|
0.5
|
862
|
| EPL: Crystal Palace-Cardiff City |
5/4
|
NBC
|
12:30-2:30pm
|
0.6
|
764
|
| Monster Energy Supercross (taped) |
5/5
|
NBC
|
1:30-3:00pm
|
0.4
|
625
|
| Liga MX: Club America-Veracruz |
5/3
|
UniMas
|
9:30pm-12:03am
|
0.3
|
563
|
| "SportsCenter Special: NFL Draft grades" |
5/4
|
ABC
|
3:00-4:00pm
|
0.3
|
453
|
NOTE: * = Affected by rain.
