So, how did AEW Collision perform in the ratings? It has a whole Canadian tour around it, CM Punk returned after a lengthy period out for injury, it’s on TNT, there was a big main event, and it opened with a spicy return promo from Punk. There was a lot of anticipation, speculation, and other varied expectations heading into the debut.
How Did the Debut of AEW Collision Perform in the TV Ratings
The show came in ranked third for Saturday night with 816,000 viewers in the 18-49 demographic, according to Wrestlenomics.
Topping AEW Collision were the College World Series and UFC Fight Night. Honestly, that’s not bad at all. As others have expressed, a prime-time show on Saturday is something of a task since shows just don’t perform well on the night because of reduced viewership.
Basically, there aren’t that many people watching TV on Saturday evenings to where there are a bunch of must-see shows on the night. As a matter of fact, of the top 50 programs on cable that night, only four actually hit or exceeded 1,000,000 viewers. A million is considered so-so during competitive weekdays but can be considered a good showing depending on the network.
In the case of TNT, AEW Collision performed very well. The goal now is to improve on that this weekend. Interestingly, Collision landed less than Dynamite which managed to average 902,000 heading into Forbidden Door 2023. Normally, Dynamite averages 882,888 and did 832,000—which seems attainable by Collision.
The show has a couple of months to really establish itself as a Saturday institution before the fall. In the U.S, the fall television season is when new seasons tend to start for network and cable television. It’s also when new shows are debuted—things can be competitive—and football returns to TV.
It should be noted that AEW tends to experience ratings bumps whenever there is a Tony Khan announcement and wrestling fans will turn up whenever something new is afoot—the existence of AEW is an example of that.
Will AEW retain or improve on the ratings for Dynamite and Collision? Or will the ratings drop after the appeal of Collision fades? Could it be as soon as after AEW Forbidden Door 2023? Share your predictions in the comments.
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