NASCAR has confirmed that Netflix’s hit series “NASCAR: Full Speed” will return for a second season after posting strong ratings compared to its first season. Earlier this year, Netflix released the first five episodes of an in-flight documentary about the NASCAR season. The show follows the streaming site’s success with other series. In particular, NASCAR’s motorsports sister, Formula One (F1), has grown in popularity in recent years following the launch of “Moving for a Living.”
Elsewhere, tennis’ ATP tour was featured in “Breakpoint,” and the PGA Tour confirmed earlier this year that its Netflix spinoff “Full Swing” will return for a third season in 2025. The same can’t says of “Full Speed” after NASCAR’s social media channels confirmed the show will return next year. After the company found success elsewhere, its efforts to reach new and wider audiences seemed to be paying off.
After a significant drop in spectators between 2015 and 2023, the race appears to have been supported by older and more passionate fans in recent years. During that time, NASCAR ratings dropped from 5 million to 2.86 million. However, Netflix’s digital shift seems to have paid off again for this campaign, with over 3.5 million viewers. According to research conducted by Ampere, 34% of NASCAR fans in the US are between the ages of 55 and 64. With the average age group of Netflix users being 75% between 18 and 34, this gives NASCAR the opportunity to market its product to a younger audience. The public also seems to have bought into it.
According to a Nielsen Streaming Data report from earlier this year, the documentary’s five episodes totaled 292 million minutes in the first three months of the show’s release, from January 30 to April 7. That means 1.24 million people watched episode 5 from start to finish. Those numbers are positive for executives at NASCAR headquarters, and they seem excited to continue that growth with the launch of Season 2.
Tim Clark, NASCAR’s executive vice president and chief brand officer, welcomed the opening of the planned second season. He said in a statement: “Early on in the Full Speed process, we knew we wanted to find more ways to take advantage of and capitalize on new opportunities in NASCAR as the cultural demand for exciting sporting events continues to grow. “Words Pictures is where the Connor team excels at not only coming up with big ideas and visions, but executing them in a way that captivates audiences.”
