As Andy reported earlier here on eWrestlingNews.com, WWE SmackDown topped RAW in the ratings department this week with the show moving to Tuesday nights and being live, the WWE Draft and more. Tuesday night’s WWE Draft edition of SmackDown drew 3.17 million viewers, with a 1.18 rating. Those numbers are up a huge 111% and 53% from the previous week’s final Thursday broadcast which drew 2.068 million viewers, with a 0.56 demo rating. Compared to Monday’s WWE RAW broadcast, WWE SmackDown was up 4% and 1%. WWE RAW drew 3.133 million viewers, with a 1.13 rating.
As you’d expect, the WWE Draft (which was heavily promoted beforehand) and the show going LIVE and moving nights obviously contributed to the big ratings increase. Although a big drop is likely for next week, it’ll be interesting to see how the new live format and exclusive roster draws for the brand.
WWE SmackDown ranked #1 among cable originals for the night, beating out The Haves & Have Nots on OWN.
