Jon Moxley vs. top indie star sees AEW Rampage ratings rebound
The ratings and viewership stats have been disclosed for AEW Rampage, and they reflect a healthy bounce-back from last week's second-lowest viewership average.
Jon Moxley faced GCW and MLW star Mance Warner in the show's opener, with it being agreed that the latter could earn an AEW title shot should he win in his debut. They fought a physical battle, but Moxley kept his momentum going into this week's scheduled title defense against Chris Jericho.
Elsewhere on the card, the AEW Tag Team Champions were also in action as Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland faced off with Josh Woods and Tony Nese. Once again, the belts were not on the line, but Swerve and Lee continued their momentum by securing the win in any case.
The use of the champions on this week's card appeared to pay dividends. According to Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics, Rampage recorded a 0.15 key demo rating and an average of 468k viewers as opposed to last week's 0.11 and 375k, respectively.
patreon.com/wrestlenomics
WWE Smackdown, Friday on Fox (8-10pm):
2,093,000 viewers
P18-49 rating: 0.49
AEW Rampage, Friday on TNT:
468,000 viewers
P18-49 rating: 0.15
๐ patreon.com/wrestlenomics https://t.co/y8bghwUjFT
Rampage last week featured a trios match between Jay Lethal, Satnam Singh, and Sonjay Dutt against Orange Cassidy and Best Friends.
There were also first in-ring appearances for Lee Moriarty and Anna Jay in their new heel roles, facing and defeating Matt Sydal and Ruby Soho each.
You can check out the full results of AEW Rampage HERE.
What did fans make of the ratings increase for AEW Rampage?
Friday night's ratings are a focal point of conversation for wrestling fans, especially given that Rampage comes right after SmackDown. There is always a discussion to be had when either of the show's ratings slip, perpetuating the notion of a promotional rivalry.
Check out just a handful of fans' comments and suggestions for AEW Rampage:
"Rampage is so weird with how it'll just drop like barely over 300,000 viewers and then immediately shoot up 100,000 the next week. They did have a much better card though."
@BrandonThurston Rampage is so weird with how itโll just drop to like barely over 300,000 viewers and then immediately shoot up 100,000 the next week. They did have a much better card though.
Also surprised Smackdown didnโt carry the momentum from Monday. It even carried over to NXTโs number.
"Time to pull the plug on Rampage"
@BrandonThurston Time to pull the plug on Rampage
"Live Rampage have a better a vive, to be honest. I really think TK should air Rampage live and then tape a ROH episode afterwards"
@BrandonThurston Live rampages have a better vibe, to be honest. I really think TK should air rampage live and then tape a RoH episode afterwards.
"I'd give ROH the Rampage timeslot and call it a day at this point."
@BrandonThurston I'd give ROH the Rampage timeslot and call it a day at this point.
".49 vs .15 we're getting there. Friday Night Wars haven't ended yet."
@BrandonThurston .49 vs .15 were getting there
Friday Night Wars haven't ended yet
#StandWithAEW
The prevailing thoughts among fans, at least those vocal in the comments, are that Ring of Honor television should find its place on Friday nights, either after or in lieu of Rampage. Others have called for the show to be live on a permanent basis or completely scrapped altogether.
What do you think? What could make Rampage better for you? Make your feelings heard in the comments below.