February 9th 2026

IMSA Rolex 24 sets attendance record, viewership soars

The sight of more fans on the ground for the 64th running of IMSA’s Rolex 24 At Daytona than any of its 63 previous runnings was matched by multiple records being set by the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship across its social channels during the Jan. 22-25 event.

With the final numbers tallied by IMSA, its broadcast partners and Daytona International Speedway, the series reports an encouraging start to the season anchored by an onsite audience of 180,000 spectators counted across the four days of action, which was the largest in the Rolex 24’s long history.

According to NBC, its network coverage drew over 1.1 million viewers, with its Sunday race finale window delivering a 49 percent improvement from 2025, and its Peacock streaming platform contributed another 784,000 unique viewers for a 102 percent year-over-year increase.

IMSA’s ongoing digital engagement plan was rewarded with the series official Instagram account surpassing 1 million followers, while its YouTube channel generated nearly 3.8 million views for the Rolex 24. That was a 30 percent increase over 2025, with 63 percent of its viewers falling into the 18-34 age range.

“In all aspects, the 64th Rolex 24 At Daytona was an all-time event,” said IMSA President John Doonan. “I’m humbled, honored and blown away by the incredible efforts of our staff, teams, manufacturers, drivers, partners, our teammates at Daytona International Speedway and most of all our fans, who contributed in so many ways to what was a record-setting WeatherTech Championship race at Daytona and start to our 2026 IMSA season.”

IMSA also reported exceptional gains with its social media presence, which grew by more than 390,000 during the month across its various platforms.

“Over the past several years, we’ve followed a clear and intentional strategy to grow the IMSA brand, elevate the event experience and broaden how fans can engage with us – whether they’re at the track or watching through modern linear, streaming or social platforms," said IMSA CEO Ed Bennett. "To see every one of those areas trending upward is incredibly rewarding. I’m proud of our entire community for helping drive this remarkable renaissance period of growth in sports car racing.”

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