SmackDown ratings stay stagnant despite move to Thursday nights

Back on Jan. 15, WWE officially moved SmackDown to Thursday night on the SyFy channel. The idea, of course, is that Thursday is a far better night for television and viewership would gradually rise. Maybe not immediately, but there are some who are optimistic enough to think that, in time, the blue brand can compete with the company's flagship program, Monday Night Raw.

While the sample size is still ridiculously small, with just eight shows on the new night, there hasn't been much of a change in viewers.

Jan. 15: 2.67 million
Jan. 22: 2.81 million
Jan. 29: 2.95 million
Feb. 5: 2.44 million
Feb. 12: 2.59 million
Feb. 19: 2.40 million
Feb. 26: 2.62 million
Mar. 5: 2.68 million

Those are still solid numbers but they're roughly similar to viewers the show was drawing on Friday nights at this time last year. In the long run, moving SmackDown back to Thursday may prove to be best for business but there hasn't been any meaningful change just yet.

For a complete recap of this week's episode click here.