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INAUGURAL WSORR SEASON A RATINGS SUCCESS ON SPEED TV (5-8-08)
CRANDON, Wisc., - As the World Series of Off-Road Racing® television season draws to a close, network executives, sponsors and Series officials are calling WSORR’s Tour 2007 a “hit” on SPEED. Just released ratings numbers indicate the WSORR programs from last season were the top-rated off-road short course race shows on SPEED based on total viewership of all programs.
“We’re ecstatic to have delivered the kind of rating numbers that pushed us to the top of all off-road Series broadcast on the true home of racing on television- SPEED TV,” said Steve Grein, executive producer of NeWave Television, the Series’ production company. “With one big show to go, WSORR broadcasts have reached more than 6,130,000 race fans on SPEED,” he added.
The top rated programs to date included the November 17th airing of Round III from Crandon International Off-Road Raceway, the February 16th airing of Round XI from Crandon, the February 2nd airing of SRT Highlights from Bark River International Raceway and the Round X action from Crandon that aired on February 9th.
“The BorgWarner Shootout has traditionally been the highest rated show in the past so we expect to finish the TV season on a real high note,” said Doug Davis, WSORR managing general partner. “When you have the sport’s biggest prize, the BorgWarner Cup, combined with the racing reputation of Lucas Oil and the Forest County Potawatomi, you have a winning combination for a hot and popular television broadcast,” Davis said. “I’m also very pleased to see that our SRT racing is also popular with TV race fans. Clearly, we have a vibrant and healthy Series that is a fun, affordable place to race that is also exciting to watch. We had record attendance for short course races in 2007 including the 43,000 who attended the World Championships at Crandon Raceway. It’s good to know that momentum carried over to the television broadcasts. I think fans tune in due to our Series name and their familiarity with tracks such as Crandon, Bark River and Lucas Oil Speedway,” he added.
According to Grein, “the goal at the onset of the Series was to bring the viewers, drivers, sponsors and teams a television package that was attractive to die-hard fans and newcomers to off-road. Lucas Oil and NeWave Television Productions have approached the Series with a fresh perspective and have delivered,” he commented. “I also want to recognize the great job our entire production crew did all season long and in particular our on-air production team. Having Brendan Gaughan’s analysis and insight was a true bonus this season. His reputation from his off-road and NASCAR experience obviously hit a positive chord with race fans,” added Grein.
“We were pleasantly surprised at the ratings results, particularly for a brand new Series,” said Bob Patison, executive vice-president of Lucas Oil Products. Lucas Oil is the title sponsor of the Series. “WSORR is certainly a proud addition to the Lucas Oil racing line-up on national cable television and we look forward to season number two,” Patison commented. The 2008 off-road racing campaign, to be broadcast again on SPEED TV, opens May 31-June 1 at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo. (lucasoilspeedway.com).
WSORR features 12 rounds of off-road racing this season for classes ranging from professional off-road pickup truck racers to sportsman buggy racers. The Series continues a tradition of off-road racing in the Midwest that spans 39 years and features a $100,000 weekend race purse at all events. Key sponsors for the World Series include Lucas Oil, Forest County Potawatomi, General Tire, United Trailer, BorgWarner, Sunoco Race Fuels, E3 Spark Plugs, Skyjacker, among others. For more information on WSORR, visit www.wsorr.com.
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