As it was noted earlier, CM Punk’s return to pro wrestling on AEW Rampage drew a total of 1,129,000 viewers.
Per ShowBuzz Daily, Rampage was the number 2 ranked show on cable on Friday night ahead of FOX News programming that includes Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity’s shows. NFL preseason football on ESPN took the top spot for the night.
Rampage drew 692,000 viewers (0.53 rating) in the coveted 18-49 demo, which is higher than any episode of Dynamite except for the premiere episode. The key demo came close to what SmackDown drew on FOX. SmackDown drew a total of 2,102,000 viewers and 738,000 (0.57 rating) in the key demo.
What makes AEW’s number so impressive is that they never outright advertised Punk’s debut and they are in a tougher timeslot at 10 pm eastern.
In theory, the buzz over Punk’s debut should help the number on Wednesday. Punk is scheduled to be on AEW Dynamite this week.
