John Cena has huge impact on SmackDown viewing figures after dramatic return
John Cena is, to many, many things. He's a 16-time world champion, a veteran sports entertainer, a Hollywood star. Above all else, though, he's someone who turns heads!
The 42-year-old may not be a full-time member of the WWE roster these days, but it's unquestionable that he demands - and gets - attention whenever he makes a fleeting return to programming.
It's WrestleMania season, so it is unsurprising that Cena has been back in town. The master of the Five-Knuckle Shuffle appeared on Friday Night SmackDown on FOX this past week to confirm that he'll be back on WWE's grandest stage next month.
Friday Night SmackDown ratings on the rise
It was confirmed that he'll face a daunting test at wrestling's show of shows after accepting a challenge from the sinister 'Fiend' Bray Wyatt.
That huge moment was a guarantee to make headlines and, thankfully for WWE, that has transpired to television ratings too. Overnight numbers are in for the 28 February edition of SmackDown, with the show pulling 2.716 million viewers, an impressive increase in last week's corresponding figure of 2.49 million viewers.
The breakdown per-hour of this week's show, in comparison to last week, is as follows:
- Hour One: 2.736 million viewers (2.542 million)
- Hour Two: 2.697 million viewers (2.438 million)
Figures and analysis courtesy of ShowBuzzDaily