What’s Happening?
NASCAR’s secondary series is facing a huge brand change, leaving the title name “Xfinity Series” to become the brand-new O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. What is not changing, however, is its broadcast partner. The CW is headed for its 2nd season with the series and has been investing heavily in it. Year after year, we put up the rating numbers and rank them accordingly in comparison to the previous season. Here’s how it works:
- We will directly compare each race’s viewership from 2025 to that race’s (or closest comparable race’s) 2026 viewership. We will also keep a tally of how each race weekend fared compared to the same weekend last season.
- This can be confusing, as the “2026 Season as a Whole” section compares races not directly to themselves, but to their corresponding 2025 race weekends. For example, in that section, the 3rd race of the year is compared to 2025’s 3rd race of the season, regardless of the race track.
- If necessary, we will also address any potential dips in ratings, such as weather delays, postponements, or debuting races, like San Diego taking over for the Mexico City race.

| Race | 2025 Viewership | 2026 Viewership |
| Daytona (Spring) | 1.825 | 1.812 |
| Atlanta (Spring) | 1.306 | 1.366 |
| Circuit of the Americas | 1.120 | 1.072 |
| Phoenix (Spring) | 1.200 | 1.159 |
| Las Vegas (Spring) | 1.188 | 1.081 |
| Darlington (Spring) | 1.120 | 1.182 |
| Martinsville (Spring) | 1.014 | 1.198 |
Breaking Down and Analyzing the 2026 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Season as a Whole
In this section, we will compare the 2026 season to the 2025 season week by week. There is data missing from this section, as 2025 data will only be added one calendar year after that race occurred.
This section will also compare the 2025 playoff race viewership to the 2026 Chase viewership upon the beginning of the 2026 NASCAR OAP Series Chase. This breakdown can show a change in trends, or how changes to the system during the offseason have affected playoff viewership.
All Races (7 Total in 2026):
Includes data from all races. If data is missing, we will note which race it is from.
- 2026 Total/Average Viewership to Date: (Available Data From 7 Races): 8.977 Million/1.282 Million Per Race
- 2025 Total/Average Viewership to Date (Available Data From 32 Races): 8.666 Million/1.238 Million Per Race
- Total Viewership Difference (2026 vs 2025): +0.311 Million (+3.589%)
- Average Viewership Difference (2026 vs 2025): +0.044 Million (+3.589%)
Comparing the 2025 and 2026 Season Race by Race (All Races on The CW)
Martinsville Speedway (Spring) – NFPA 250
- 2026 Viewership: 1.198 Million Viewers
- 2025 Viewership: 1.014 Million Viewers
- Viewership Comparison (2024 vs 2025): +0.184 Million (+18.146%)
Darlington Raceway (Spring) – Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200
- 2026 Viewership: 1.182 Million Viewers
- 2025 Viewership: 1.120 Million Viewers
- Viewership Comparison (2024 vs 2025): +0.062 Million (+5.536%)
Las Vegas Motor Speedway (Spring) – The LiUNA
- 2026 Viewership: 1.188 Million Viewers
- 2025 Viewership: 1.081 Million Viewers
- Viewership Comparison (2024 vs 2025): +0.107 Million (+9.898%)
Phoenix Raceway (Spring) – GOVX 200
- 2026 Viewership: 1.159 Million Viewers
- 2025 Viewership: 1.200 Million Viewers
- Viewership Comparison (2024 vs 2025): -0.041 Million (-3.417%)
Circuit of the Americas – Focused Health 250
- 2026 Viewership: 1.072 Million Viewers
- 2025 Viewership: 1.120 Million Viewers
- Viewership Comparison (2024 vs 2025): -0.048 Million (-4.286%)
Atlanta (Spring) – Bennett Transportation & Logistics 250
- 2026 Viewership: 1.366 Million Viewers
- 2025 Viewership: 1.306 Million Viewers
- Viewership Comparison (2024 vs 2025): +0.060 Million (+4.594%)
Daytona (Spring) – United Rentals 300
- 2026 Viewership: 1.812 Million Viewers
- 2025 Viewership: 1.825 Million Viewers
- Viewership Comparison (2024 vs 2025): –0.013 Million (-0.717%)
This tracker will be updated throughout the season. Make sure to check back in for the latest!
