TV Ratings - Last Place for BC

This is an article from March 2013. Doesn't make much sense now, does it? Or else they simply failed. The spin on this year's ratings from the BC leaders should be entertaining. Probably more entertaining the the NBC telecast!

I disagree with their premise anyway. Saturday night is a night to go out! Those at home are probably those who want to watch a football game! If there were no football games at night, might make sense. But there is football all day and night on Saturdays. I would guess the bigger games are held for night viewing?

Breeders’ Cup track will affect NBC plans in ’14
By Liz Mullen
Sports Business Journal

NBC will broadcast the Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita Park during prime time again this year, but whether the network is able to do it in 2014 may depend on the host site for horse racing’s championship event, said Jon Miller, NBC Sports president of broadcasting.

“We encourage them to pick a site like Santa Anita to host it for 2014,” Miller said. “We have been clear with Breeders’ Cup that is a sure way to continue this [prime-time viewing] going forward.”

The Breeders’ Cup is a two-day event which historically has been held the last week of October or the first week of November at various major tracks around the country. The organizing committee has not yet named a host track for the event beyond this year, when it will be held on Nov. 1 and Nov. 2 at Santa Anita in the Los Angeles area. For this November, NBC plans to bring back its hourlong program featuring the Breeders’ Cup Classic race live from 8 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 2, after airing the other 14 races leading up to it live on NBC Sports Network on Friday and Saturday.

But Miller noted if it is held at an East Coast or Midwest track in the future, inclement weather and the lack of lighting at some tracks for night racing could pose potential problems in airing an hourlong program featuring the Breeders’ Cup Classic race live in prime time.

NBC prefers to run the Classic at night for many reasons, including that it has other sports programming, including college football, earlier in the day that time of year.

Miller was noncommittal when asked if NBC could broadcast the race earlier in the day on the network. “It depends on the day,” he said. “We will work with [the Breeders’ Cup] to try to find a window. But we have a pretty packed network schedule of live sporting events in the fourth quarter on NBC.”

Gary Quinn, NBC vice president of programming and owned properties, said: “The Breeders’ Cup knows what the playing field is. We made it clear what we have available on NBC and what we want to do in prime time.”

Peter Rotondo, Breeders’ Cup senior vice president of media, stated in an email in response to questions that officials are working toward host track agreements for 2014, and beyond, and expect to have details in place in the next several months.

“We feel our partnership with NBC got off to a very encouraging start in 2012 with a sensational telecast that captured the drama, prestige and excitement of the Breeders’ Cup and drew a very strong rating,” Rotondo said. “We have been in discussions with NBC on how we build and expand off 2012.”

I just wish you'd all give up on the "speedball" track, Horses breaking down, etc.
Horses breakdown sad to say almost every day.

Why can't you say something positive? Instead of constantly putting up negative thoughts from the BC.
If the BC had been run at Belmont with the same results, you'd all be very quiet and praising what went on.

Pres

I have to confess, I switched over to Mike and Molly, and I really don't like that show!

I believe this was the shortest broadcast coverage ever - only one hour and a single race. And from the article you posted, it appears that NBC dictated most of the conditions of the broadcast.

NBC has Notre Dame football and there is no way they are going to bump that for the BC.
The BC would have to work around that schedule.
They have to push the fluff and the TMZ stuff because that is popular with what audience they do have.
The overall reality is they are down to one race on the main network.....where do you go from here

I was watching the Mike Francesa sports show today and I think he had the answer for the BC. Mike is a horse owner and avid racing fan. Today he mentioned the BC and the speed favoring track at SA. He stated that Churchill Downs should become the home of the BC for the following reasons. it would put an end to the East vs West coast battles since trainers an owners like CD. Secondly the track is fair. The staff handles large crowds such as those at the Derby and Oaks very well. It also can handle night racing which NBC wants. Since it is apparent that the BC will never return to a rotating basis this seems a viable option. After all how can you call it a world championship event when horses that run from off the pace didn't have prayer. And for the record I don't give a hoot for the BC.

CD has had some extreme biases involving the rail during BC