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Unlike the last couple weeks when its television numbers have improved, things did’t seem to be lined up in NXT’s favor on July 20.
It wasn’t a themed show, and while it did have a title match headliner, it was one that didn’t have a ton of build (and didn’t have Samoa Joe as special guest referee). What’s more, many fans were unhappy with how the brand’s champion was booked on Raw the night before, and the second half of the show had to go against Game 6 of the NBA Finals, which was watched by about 12.5 million people.
Nevertheless, according to Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics, NXT’s audience and demo rating grew for the third straight week.
Viewership rose slightly from last week, to 709,000. That’s the best number the black-and-gold brand’s had in more than two months. The rating among 18 - 49 year old looks to be a .20, also a slight increase, and that best in that metric since early June.
Maybe there’s something to Triple H’s theory about Raw being NXT’s “lead in”? That show saw its numbers shoot up on Monday night. Or perhaps folks are just really into the Samoa Joe/Karrion Kross angle?
We’ll find out when they shoot for a month of increasing numbers next Tuesday. It’ll be an even bigger challenge, as the Olympics push them to SyFy for the next two weeks. But not many people expected any gains last night, so... maybe there’s a chance?
Here’s a look at the black-and-gold brand’s viewership and 18 - 49 year old demo rating since they moved to Tuesdays after WrestleMania 37.
- Apr. 13: 805,000 / .22
- Apr. 20: 841,000 / .23
- Apr. 27: 744,000 / .22
- May 4: 761,000 / .18
- May 11 - 697K / .17
- May 18 - 700K / .15
- May 25 - 698K / .13
- June 1 - 668K / .19
- June 8 - 669K / .20
- June 15 - 695K / .19
- June 22 - 665K / .17
- June 29 - 636K / .13
- July 6 - 654K / .18
- July 13 - 705K / .19
- July 20 - 709K / .20
For complete results and the live blog for NXT this week click here. To read a recap & reactions of the night’s events click here. For a full playlist of the show click here.