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The May 24 episode of WWE Monday Night Raw went head-to-head with first round playoff action in two different sports. They also didn’t announce much in advance, and what was promoted - a Women’s Tag title rematch and a singles match between guys in a tag team feud - wasn’t terribly high profile.
So it’s not surprising Raw’s numbers were down. The more than 10% drop in viewership from May 17’s 1.83 million might raise an eyebrow, though.
Raw averaged 1.62 million across its runtime this past Monday. Here’s the hourly breakdown from PW Torch:
Hour 1: 1.66 million
Hour 2: 1.66 million
Hour 3: 1.55 million
Ratings were also down. The show averaged a .45 in the 18 - 49 year old demographic. A week ago, that number was .48.
Without a full ratings report (we miss you Showbuzz Daily!) it’s hard to know how much impact the competing hockey and basketball games had, or where WWE & USA fell in the rankings for cable originals on the night.
We do know wrestling’s numbers have been down across the board the last few weeks. Combining a return to working in front of full crowds with fewer NBA and NHL games on the schedule should perk things up in the next couple months.
We shall see.
For complete results and the live blog for Raw this week click here. To read a review of the night’s events click here. For a full playlist of the show click here.