WWE Raw Ratings: First sub-2.0 rating since start of year, key metrics including hourly trend, comparisons to past years

PWTorch editor Wade Keller presents a special Thursday Flagship edition of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast featuring a WrestleMania 36 Preview with ex-WWE Creative Team member and professional stand-up comedian Matt McCarthy.

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Last night’s (May 7) episode of WWE Raw on USA Network drew a 1.94 rating, the first sub-2.0 rating since the 1.92 on Jan. 8. There were 15 out of 18 weeks in the span ending Jan. 8 where ratings were below 2.00, corresponding to football competition in the fall and winter.

The 1.94 last night still beat the year-ago rating of 1.90, but as usual fell short of the two-years-ago rating of 2.26.

The ten-week rolling average headed into this week was 2.28. The 2018 average is currently 2.24.

The first hour drew 2,788,000 viewers, then dropped slightly to 2,731,000 and then the usual dropoff in the third hour to 2,549,000. The first-to-third hour dropoff was 239,000, well below the 409,000 average so far this year.

The advertised main event was Sami Zayn vs. Roman Reigns vs. Finn Balor for a Money in the Bank spot.

The NBA is part of the reason for the dropoff this week. The two NBA playoff games last night topped Monday cable ratings in the adult 18-49 demo. Raw finished 5 in the cable ratings behind both NBA games, the NBA post-show, and “Love and Hip Hop Atlanta.” The NHL playoff games followed right behind Raw in the rankings.

NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S REPORT: Raw Ratings Report: Viewership and key metrics including hourly trends, comparisons to past years, 2018 average

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