After four races of ESPN’s new NASCAR agreement, the Busch Series is averaging 2,234,000 households, including a big jump from last year’s audience for Saturday’s race from Las Vegas, the first of six in 2007 to be aired on ABC. The broadcast earned a 2.4 rating and averaged 2,699,000 households, an increase of 58% compared to the same race in 2006 (1,713,000 homes). Also, ESPN2’s three races are the network’s top three ratings of 2007. The telecast of the season-opening event from Daytona International Speedway was ESPN2’s most-viewed auto racing telecast ever with 2,200,600 household impressions (2.4 rating).

It was the seventh-most-viewed telecast overall in ESPN2 history, with a larger audience than anything the network aired in 2006. ESPN’s eight-year NASCAR agreement provides benefits far beyond the race telecasts and television alone. This past weekend, the motorsports section of ESPN.com enjoyed 79% more traffic than the same weekend a year ago (739,000 page views, up from 414,000). For the season to date, racing content has generated nearly double the number of page views per day than 2006 (up 98%, from 199,000 to 393,000).

The NASCAR Busch Series will continue Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway on ABC with NASCAR Countdown at 2:30pm/et. ABC will also televise the March 24 event from Bristol Motor Speedway.

[ESPN PR]