Jan. 15 Smackdown Viewership

On Thursday, Jan. 15, “Smackdown” returned to Thursday evenings for the first time in more than a decade. The show would see former WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan wrestle for the first time in more than seven months, picking up the pinfall victory in the six-man main event.

According to a report from TVByTheNumbers.com, the special edition of “Smackdown” obtained an average of 2.675 million viewers. This figure is up about 10 percent from the show’s previous showing on Friday, Jan. 9, which garnered 2.432 million viewers. Additionally, the Jan. 15 showing of “Smackdown” was the highest-rated and most-viewed cable program on Thursday evening.

During the show, WWE would take the time to build up next week’s “Smackdown” on Jan. 22. Following Daniel Bryan’s victory in the main event, The Authority announced that on the Jan. 22 “Smackdown,” Bryan will face Kane in singles action. If Bryan loses, he will not compete in the 30-man Royal Rumble match.

Editor’s Note

This is a pretty nice viewership bump for its first show on Thursday nights. I expect the number to increase in due time, as more people are aware of the move. Additionally, with WrestleMania season coming up, viewership should go up, as WWE will hopefully legitimize “Smackdown.”