Denny Hamlin questions if NASCAR should stop ‘chasing ratings’ with late start times

After another rainout forced NASCAR to finish the FireKeepers Casino 400 on Monday afternoon, many in the sport have been questioning the organization’s approach to TV viewership windows.

Some have pointed out that if the race had simply started a little earlier on Sunday the whole thing could have been completed. Instead, due to a late start time, inclement weather forced things to be moved to Monday after only a handful of laps were raced.

“I believe, I can’t be exact, but I’m sure, pretty sure that big shower that we had that canceled us was the last shower for quite some time,” Denny Hamlin said on his Actions Detrimental podcast. “So we would have been able to actually get the entire race in because there would have only been 100 laps to go, not 150.”

So why doesn’t NASCAR simply start some of these races earlier, particularly when there’s ample evidence that weather will be a factor?

“I mean there’s an argument to be had both ways,” Hamlin explained. “I believe, now again I don’t have all the information that NASCAR has, right, but man we have chased ratings for so long. We’re willing to be on different networks and we’re going to streaming and our start times are all over the place. Just chasing ratings. Chasing it. Is that the best thing for the sport versus having you know at Sunday, 1 o’clock you have a race to watch?”

The ratings chasing has made for an interesting debate. On the one hand, most want to see the sport of NASCAR continue to grow. On the other, drivers and teams want more consistency with start times and getting full races in.

That’s mostly driven by the networks.

“I think when it’s on a big network I kind of understand you’re wanting to be later because then it leads into something that people are supposed to (watch) or are coming to tune into,” Hamlin said. “And that was the whole point with the later start time is there’s more houses that tune in later in the evening on Sunday. Sunday during the day people go and they do stuff. And by the time they’re done doing their stuff, they want to come home because they’ve got work tomorrow, so they come home at a reasonable hour and get their stuff done and then they turn on the TV.”

NASCAR simply isn’t in quite as dominant a position as, say the NFL, Hamlin pointed out. People aren’t shifting their schedules around for NASCAR, which makes the sport’s decision-making a little more difficult.

There is some tinkering to try to maximize viewership. Hamlin just seemed frustrated with constantly chasing eyeballs.

“We’re chasing around all these slots and things like that,” Hamlin said. “I would just argue that on USA, what are people, why are you starting it late? What are you trying to get people to? I guess you’re trying to get more households to turn on the TV. But then you’re trying to get whoever’s tuning into the thing after yours, that if our race runs long and you actually get to watch the last 10 laps, maybe that person while waiting on your show sees the end of your race and is like, ‘Wow, this is amazing.’ Man, that is such a damn stretch. That is a stretch.”

This article first appeared on 5 GOATs and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads:

NASCAR Xfinity Series bubble watch: Sammy Smith, Ryan Sieg trade cut-line spots after…

NASCAR

Three to watch, one to avoid for NASCAR’s regular-season finale at Darlington

The NASCAR Cup Series is geared up for the annual Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, a Labor Day weekend tradition. This year, the race will also serve as the final event of the regular season and a last chance for drivers outside the playoff field to race their way in. Brad Keselowski won the previous Darlington race this season after contact between leaders Tyler Reddick and Chris Buescher in the closing laps. Buescher holds the final playoff spot, while Bubba Wallace (21 points behind) and Ross Chastain (27) have outside chances to catch him. Everyone behind them must win their way in. Here are three drivers to watch — a favorite, contender and dark horse — for the Southern 500: Favorite: Kyle Larson (+550, per DraftKings as of Friday afternoon) Larson won the Southern 500 a year ago and is considered the favorite again — and for good reason. The fact that 2023’s version of this event is his only career Cup Series win at Darlington undersells how good Larson is at the track, where he has led 785 laps and posted six finishes inside the top three. The only concern with Larson is that he’s known to try too hard sometimes, and Darlington is an unforgiving track on which one mistake can be costly. However, assuming he can run a clean race, one can expect the driver of the No. 5 car to pick up win No. 5 in 2024. Contender: Brad Keselowski (+1100) As noted, Keselowski was the winner of the spring race at Darlington this season, and while it’s his teammate, Buescher, who has a playoff spot on the line, one can assume with his points advantage that he will play it safer. Keselowski, though, has nothing to lose and a potential handful of playoff points to gain, and there’s no reason to believe he won’t be a threat. At +1100, Keselowski is tied for the fifth-best odds, a solid value. He may not be as tempting of a pick as Denny Hamlin (+600) or Tyler Reddick (+650), but the payout is much greater. Dark horse: Ross Chastain (+2000) Chastain only has two career top-10 finishes at Darlington, but he led significant laps in the 2022 and 2023 spring races before crashing out — in the latter instance while battling for the win. Chastain’s Trackhouse Racing team has often lacked speed in 2024, hence why he is listed at +2000. However, he has found his way near the front on strategy a few times this season, and one can only imagine the No. 1 team will be pulling out all the stops to give its driver a shot at the win. Avoid: Kyle Busch (+1100) Riding back-to-back top-five finishes in a last-ditch push to earn his way in, Busch is another big name in danger of missing the playoffs. That’s a big reason why oddsmakers are bullish on him this weekend at +1100 — the same odds as Keselowski — as well as the fact that Busch has a solid record at Darlington (a win and 899 career laps led). Perhaps it’s a little bit too bullish, though. In three races at Darlington since joining Richard Childress Racing, Busch has a best finish of seventh and has not led a lap. In the spring race this season, he ran 27th, a result that was not influenced by on-track misfortune. It’s hard to envision his team turning that around enough to win, so stay away from “Rowdy.” He will miss the playoffs for the first time in 12 years.