Despite Michael Jordan’s 23XI Racing team securing its second consecutive victory with Tyler Reddick at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, NASCAR’s television ratings remain stagnant. Sunday’s Cup Series race on FOX averaged a 2.4 rating and 4.49 million viewers, a 2% decline in viewership compared to the previous year.
The lack of a “Jordan effect” comes as a surprise to some analysts, especially following Reddick’s high-profile win at the Daytona 500. While Jordan’s presence in victory lane has boosted social media engagement, it has yet to translate into a broader television audience for the weekend following the sport’s biggest race.
Key Performance Metrics
- Peak Audience: The race reached a peak of 5.5 million viewers during the final laps, even while competing for attention with the Winter Olympics Closing Ceremony.
- Olympic Headwinds: Despite the competition from the final day of the 2026 Winter Games, the Atlanta race ranked as the second-most-watched sports event of the week, trailing only NBC’s Celtics-Lakers NBA broadcast.
- Xfinity Series Surge: In contrast to the Cup Series, the newly rebranded O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly Xfinity) saw a growth spurt on The CW, drawing 1.4 million viewers—its largest post-Daytona audience since 2022.
While 23XI Racing continues to establish itself as a powerhouse on the track, the challenge remains to convert Michael Jordan’s global stardom into sustained ratings growth for NASCAR.