Three Televised Promotions See Drop In Total Viewership But Rise In Key Demographic
This past week's ratings for "AEW Dynamite" were stagnant, "WWE Raw" is down, "SmackDown" is on the rise, and "AEW Rampage" is struggling. The ups and downs of televised wrestling were not confined to the two major promotions though, as smaller wrestling shows like "Impact on AXS," and "NJPW on AXS" found themselves grasping for viewers last week, while "Women of Wrestling" took a minor dip.
According to Wrestlenomics, Impact Wrestling's latest episode saw a 15% drop in viewership, falling to 81,000 viewers, though it saw a 36% rise in the 18-49 demographic, which clocked in at 15,000 viewers. A mixed bag for the program. Following Impact, NJPW's latest episode on AXS TV saw a 14% drop in total viewers, 50,000 overall, and a 14% rise in the 18-49 demographic, with 8,000 tuning in. As shown by the numbers, a steep drop-off from Impact's audience. While last week's Impact and NJPW broadcasts were down double digits, the viewership for the January 29 episode of "Women of Wrestling" in syndication on CBS Media Ventures only fell 5% overall, at 309,000 overall viewers, and saw a 7% rise in the 18-49 demographic at 76,000.
This week's "Impact on AXS TV" was headlined by Impact Wrestling Digital Media Champion Joe Hendry successfully defending his title against Matt Cardona. This week's "NJPW on AXS" was centered on Los Ingobernables de Japon's Tetsuya Naito facing Pro Wrestling NOAH's Kenoh. The January 29 episode of WOW was main-evented by Leia Makoa defeating Tormenta in swift fashion.