TV Ratings: NASCAR Talladega, Atlanta NHRA

NASCAR's return to restrictor-plate spectacle at Talladega brought a boost in TV audience from recent events, but still was a slight downturn from last year.

The GEICO 500 at Talladega earned a 3.53 rating on Fox, averaging 5.9m viewers. That's down from a 4.04/6.67m for last year, also on the Fox broadcast network.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series race from Talladega was also down, scoring a 1.34 rating and averaging 2.0m viewers compared to a 1.94/2.9m in 2016, with both events also on Fox.

The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series scored a 0.24 rating, averaging 378,000 viewers for the delayed finals from Atlanta on Fox Sports 1.