Dover’s 2025 NASCAR Weekend Sees Mixed Viewership Results

NASCAR’s return to Dover Motor Speedway in July 2025 delivered record Xfinity viewership and a drop-off for the Cup Series broadcast on TNT and truTV. While weather delays played a key role in shaping Sunday’s numbers, the Xfinity race marked the series’ strongest Dover showing in nearly a decade.

Key Highlights

  • Xfinity race at Dover averaged 1.047 million viewers, most since 2016.

  • Viewership up 19% from 2024’s FS1 broadcast.

  • NASCAR Cup Series race averaged 2.009 million viewers across TNT and truTV.

  • Cup viewership down from last year’s 2.401 million on FS1.

  • Rain delay caused a 27% drop in Cup viewership during final hour.

Dover 2025 Cup Viewership

The NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover averaged 2.009 million viewers across TNT and truTV. While the number remains solid given the network shift, it represents a 16% drop compared to the 2024 event, which aired on FS1 and drew 2.401 million viewers.

A late-race rain delay of nearly an hour had a noticeable impact, with viewership dropping 27% during the interruption. Unlike last year’s April event, which ran uninterrupted, the 2025 edition was pushed to a July slot under NASCAR’s new media rights agreement.

The shift to TNT has been under scrutiny by fans and analysts alike, with some expressing frustration over streaming availability, commercial load, and race pacing. Still, the numbers remain within the expected range for summer coverage, especially given the weather disruption and competition from other sports on Sunday afternoon.

Cup Recap: Hamlin Wins Again, Elliott Takes Points Lead

On-track, the 2025 Cup Series race at Dover was a battle of patience and strategy. Denny Hamlin earned his fourth win of the season, holding off Chase Elliott in a restart-heavy finish that extended into wet conditions.

The race saw multiple late cautions and featured a rain delay that reshuffled pit strategy. Elliott’s second-place run was enough to give him the regular-season points lead over Ryan Blaney, who struggled and finished 17th.

Notably, Shane van Gisbergen rebounded from an early spin to finish sixth, and Carson Hocevar ran well in the top 10 before falling to 13th on the final restart.

Chase Elliott's 2017 Martinsville Heartbreak Sparked

Full Cup Series Finishing Order – Dover 2025

FinDriverDiff
1Denny Hamlin
2Chase Briscoe0.31
3Alex Bowman0.409
4Kyle Larson0.667
5Ty Gibbs1.465
6Chase Elliott1.497
7Bubba Wallace1.655
8Ryan Blaney1.824
9Chris Buescher2.006
10Brad Keselowski2.223
11Kyle Busch2.282
12Tyler Reddick2.537
13Michael McDowell2.746
14Joey Logano2.812
15Austin Dillon2.886
16Austin Cindric3.135
17Justin Haley3.156
18Christopher Bell3.28
19Ryan Preece4.064
20Ty Dillon5.992
21John Hunter Nemechek1 lap
22Zane Smith1 lap
23Ricky Stenhouse Jr.2 laps
24Riley Herbst2 laps
25Todd Gilliland2 laps
26Daniel Suarez3 laps
27Erik Jones3 laps
28Josh Berry3 laps
29Cole Custer4 laps
30Shane van Gisbergen7 laps
31William ByronOut
32Noah GragsonOut
33Ross ChastainOut
34JJ YeleyOut
35Carson HocevarOut
36Cody WareOut
37AJ AllmendingerOut

Xfinity Recap: Connor Zilisch Keeps Rolling With Shortened Win

Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race saw rising star Connor Zilisch pick up another impressive victory in a race shortened by weather. Zilisch, who has been dominant in recent starts, led a race-high 72 laps before lightning forced an early end.

The event averaged 1.047 million viewers, a 19% increase from last year’s Dover race on FS1 and the most-watched Xfinity event at the track since 2016. Viewership peaked at 1.093 million between 5:30–5:45 p.m. ET, moments before the red flag was issued.

Despite the abbreviated distance, the race was competitive up front with Zilisch, Cole Custer, and Chandler Smith trading the lead under green. NASCAR called the race official after 143 laps of a scheduled 200.

Cook Out 400 Full Results

Full Xfinity Series Finishing Order – Dover 2025

Pos#Driver
188Connor Zilisch
219Aric Almirola
320Brandon Jones
47Justin Allgaier
52Jesse Love
639Ryan Sieg
754Taylor Gray
80Sheldon Creed
918
William Sawalich
1016Christian Eckes
1125Harrison Burton
1241Sam Mayer
1321Austin Hill
1499
151Carson Kvapil
1626
Dean Thompson
1717Jake Finch
1824Ryan Truex
194Parker Retzlaff
2027Jeb Burton
2110Daniel Dye
2232Rajah Caruth
2342Anthony Alfredo
248Sammy Smith
2544Brennan Poole
2651
Jeremy Clements
2711Josh Williams
2845Lavar Scott
2970
Leland Honeyman
3071Ryan Ellis
315Kaz Grala
3231Blaine Perkins
337Nick Leitz
3491Josh Bilicki
3514Garrett Smithley
3628Kyle Sieg
3748Nick Sanchez
389Ross Chastain

NASCAR Cup Series Driver Standings

News in Brief: NASCAR 2025 Dover Viewership

Dover’s 2025 NASCAR weekend delivered strong storylines but mixed television results. The Cup Series held its viewership above three million with Denny Hamlin’s 58th career win, while the Xfinity Series saw a drop due to a rain-shortened race. Connor Zilisch continued his breakout year with a fourth victory, and Chase Elliott took the Cup points lead from William Byron. Both races advanced key names in the In-Season Challenge, and attention now turns to next week’s events as networks prepare for the final stretch of regular-season NASCAR coverage.

ALSO READ: Throwback: The Epic 2006 Dover Duel Between Jeff Burton and Matt Kenseth

Our Reader’s Queries

Q. Who won NASCAR Dover in 2025?

A. Denny Hamlin edges out Chase Briscoe in double overtime to win at Dover

Q. Who won stage 1 at Dover?

A. Chase Elliott fended off Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin to secure the opening stage win at Dover.

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