If it felt like the championship race had a lot of commercials, it did.
A race-by-race ad tracker known as CawsNJaws, whose numbers Jayski runs every week, counted 129 commercials from 59 different advertisers during NBC's 206-minute broadcast of the title race at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday.
The breakdown:
About 54 minutes of total ad time, roughly a quarter of the broadcast window
50 traditional, full-screen commercials, about 20 minutes
79 side-by-side commercials, about 34 minutes, where the race stayed on screen in a smaller box
NBC went to side-by-side 13 times
The good news: Most of the ad time ran in side-by-side, so fans kept seeing green-flag racing during breaks instead of cutting away completely. On a night when the championship was decided on track, that matters.
The not-so-good news: NBC's own promos were the most-seen “advertiser” of the day, and 20 minutes of full cutaways is still 20 minutes of not seeing the race that decides a title.
Reaction Lap take: Side-by-side is the right idea, and NASCAR should push its TV partners to use it even more in 2027, especially in the final 50 laps of a championship race. Fans will put up with ads. They won't put up with missing the pass for the title.
Source: CawsNJaws ad tally via Jayski.com
