Tag: NXT

Backstage Updates On WWE NXT TV Possibly Airing From Arenas Outside Of Florida

There has been talk of taking the weekly WWE NXT TV show out of Full Sail Live in early 2020. Now it looks like NXT will continue to run Full Sail Live at times, just not every week.

The current talk going around is that NXT will continue to run Full Sail Live in 2020, just not weekly, with the idea of doing the other shows in arenas outside of Florida, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

Full Sail is a lot more cost-effective for the show, but the location and the look is believed to be part of the reason for the drop in viewership, especially with head-to-head competition with AEW Dynamite, according to the Observer.

WWE officials have reportedly had discussions with arenas for NXT TV starting in January 2020. The Observer adds that the main reason for doing the weekly USA Network NXT TV show from Full Sail Live was because they rushed to get the show on the air so they could get the jump on AEW, and didn’t have time to book arenas.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Finn Balor Turns Heel On WWE NXT

The closing segment of last night’s WWE NXT saw Finn Balor turn heel.

Last night’s main event saw Roderick Strong retain his NXT North American Title in a hard-hitting Triple Threat over Keith Lee and Dominik Dijakovic. After the match, the rest of The Undisputed Era (NXT Champion Adam Cole, NXT Tag Team Champions Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish) hit the ring to celebrate with Strong and attack Lee.

The beatdown stopped when the music hit and out came Tommaso Ciampa with his crutch. Ciampa stood in the ring and faced off with The Undisputed Era until Johnny Gargano came out next to join him. DIY reunited to face off with The Undisputed Era until Balor’s music hit and then he came out to an even bigger pop. Balor, Gargano and Ciampa faced off with The Undisputed Era in the middle of the ring until Balor turned heel out of nowhere and dropped Gargano with an overhead kick.

The crowd and the announcers were stunned as the rest of The Undisputed Era attacked Ciampa and beat him down while Balor watched from the corner. Cole traded a quick stare with Balor, then dropped Ciampa with a running knee to the back of the head. Balor then left the ring, to a mixed reaction, and dropkicked Gargano into the barrier. Balor pulled Gargano over to the bottom of the ramp after that, and spiked his head into the steel.

At first it looked like Balor was joining The Undisputed Era but that was never made official. After Balor dropped Gargano on the ramp, he pointed down at Gargano and looked up at The Undisputed Era, as if he was offering Gargano to the group. The group stood in the ring with their signature poses while Balor offered the beaten Gargano to them. This may have been an indication that Balor turned heel without joining the group. Balor then marched up the ramp and went to the back as his music played, with an angry look on his face. NXT then went off the air with The Undisputed Era standing tall in the ring.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1187191291987156993

https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1187189810252804096

https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1187190332577857537

Balor took to Twitter today and issued his first comments since the big turn.

He wrote, “I’m back”

https://twitter.com/FinnBalor/status/1187190122703413254

WWE NXT Preview 10/23/19

Tonight’s WWE NXT episode will air live from Full Sail Live in Winter Park, Florida.

  • Roderick Strong to defend NXT North American Title against Keith Lee and Dominik Dijakovic
  • Bianca Belair and Rhea Ripley clash as NXT Women’s division heats up
  • How is Finn Bálor’s past his future?
  • Can Pete Dunne deal with both Damian Priest and Killian Dain?

AEW Dynamite Tops WWE NXT In Viewership As Both Shows Viewership Drops

AEW Dynamite has topped WWE NXT in viewership for the third week in a row, but viewership for both has continued to drop since their TV debuts.

Wednesday’s Dynamite episode on TNT drew 1.014 million viewers while NXT drew 712,000 viewers on the USA Network, according to Showbuzz Daily. AEW topped NXT in total viewership by 42.4%.

AEW ranked #5 in the Cable Top 150, while NXT ranked #30. AEW ranked #25 in viewership, for the second week in a row, while NXT ranked #35 in viewership.

Last week’s Dynamite episode drew 1.018 million viewers and ranked #8 in the Cable Top 150, and #25 in viewership, so it dropped 0.4%, not including the airing on truTV last week. Last week’s NXT episode drew 790,000 viewers and ranked #27 in the Cable Top 150, and #33 in viewership, so it dropped 10%.

AEW drew a 0.44 rating in the 18-49 demographic, topping the 0.20 that NXT drew in the same demo by 120%. Last week’s AEW episode drew a 0.46 in that demographic while NXT drew a 0.22.

Last week’s Dynamite episode aired on truTV due to MLB coverage getting in the way of the regular schedule, and the show drew an additional 122,000 on trueTV. Dynamite did not air on truTV this week, just the regular timeslot on TNT.

Basketball Wives topped the night in the 18-49 demographic at #1 with a 0.54 rating, but just 1.208 million viewers. Tucker Carlson Tonight topped the night on cable in viewership with 4.068 million viewers, but ranking #11 on the Cable Top 150 with a 0.32 rating in the 18-49 demographic.

Chicago Med on NBC at 9pm topped the night in viewership on network TV with 8.934 million viewers. The Masked Singer on FOX at 8pm topped the night on network TV in the 18-49 demographic with a 2.2 rating.

To compare, Monday’s WWE Draft edition of RAW on the USA Network drew an average of 2.287 million viewers, down from last week’s 2.334 million viewers for the post-Hell In a Cell episode, and ranked #13 for the night in viewership on cable and #6 in the Cable Top 150 with a 0.74 rating in the 18-49 demographic. Tuesday’s WWE Backstage preview episode that aired on FS1 at 8:13pm drew 597,000 viewers and ranked #25 on the Cable Top 150 with a 0.20 cable rating in the 18-49 demographic.

Below is 2019 NXT Viewership Tracker:

September 18 Episode: 1.179 million viewers (one hour on the USA Network)
September 25 Episode: 1.006 million viewers (one hour on the USA Network)
October 2 Episode: 891,000 viewers (season premiere, both hours on the USA Network)
October 9 Episode: 790,000 viewers
October 16 Episode: 712,000 viewers

Below is 2019 AEW Dynamite Viewership Tracker:

October 2 Episode: 1.409 million viewers (premiere episode)
October 9 Episode: 1.018 million viewers (on TNT, 122k on truTV)
October 16 Episode: 1.014 million viewers

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE NXT Preview 10/16/19

Tonight’s WWE NXT will air live from Full Sail Live in Winter Park, FL.

WWE Talents To Receive Time Off During Christmas Week

WWE is set to tape the pre-Christmas edition of RAW on Tuesday, December 17 in Sioux City, Iowa. The taped show will air on Monday, December 23, according to @Wrestlevotes.

All WWE talents are scheduled to have some time off between Sunday, December 22 and Thursday, December 26. The SmackDown episode on Friday, December 27 will air live.

There will also be no live WWE NXT episode on Wednesday, December 25 for Christmas. There’s no word yet on what they have planned for NXT that night.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE NXT TV To Begin Airing From Bigger Arenas Soon?

It looks like the weekly WWE NXT TV show could be hitting the road soon.

There has been a lot of talk about taking the black & yellow brand on the road each Wednesday night, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

WWE officials are reportedly looking at running arenas with around 5,000-seat capacities, similar to what AEW has been doing. They have reached out to some arenas that size to shoot TV on Wednesday nights, which would be for NXT.

The current target for NXT airing from arenas outside of Full Sail Live looks to be January 2020. The talk of going on the road goes back to before the first USA Network ratings came out. The word then was that they were only running Full Sail Live in Winter Park, FL each week because they had no time to set things up with arenas, and that a move to different arenas would take place some time in early 2020.

There has been speculation on WWE eventually taking NXT TV on the road ever since the USA Network move was announced. There had been speculation among some that Vince McMahon would see what AEW was doing weekly with their arena shows, and then would see how the small crowd at Full Sail Live looked in comparison. The move to arenas for NXT is probably pushed by the fact that AEW Dynamite has beat NXT in viewership in week 1 and week 2.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE NXT Preview 10/9/19

Tonight’s WWE NXT will air live from Full Sail Live in Winter Park, Florida on USA Network.

* Lio Rush challenges Drew Gulak for the NXT Crusierweight Championship tomorrow night

* Kushida and WALTER to clash on NXT

* Isaiah “Swerve” Scott to battle Roderick Strong

* How will Finn Bálor’s arrival impact NXT?

* How will Tommaso Ciampa’s quest to regain the NXT Title continue?

* Can anyone stop Shayna Baszler?

How Did AEW Dynamite And WWE NXT Do In Viewership For Their First Week Head-To-Head?

Wednesday’s WWE NXT season premiere episode on the USA Network drew 891,000 viewers while the AEW Dynamite premiere episode on TNT drew 1.409 million viewers, according to Showbuzz Daily. AEW Dynamite viewership topped NXT by 58%.

AEW ranked #2 in the Cable Top 150 18-49 demographic list, while NXT ranked #10. AEW ranked #16 in viewership, while NXT ranked #27 in viewership.

This is the first week that both hours of NXT have aired on the USA Network. Hour 1 of the first week drew 1.179 million viewers and ranked #4 on the Cable Top 150 while hour 1 of the second week drew 1.006 million viewers and ranked #8 on the Cable Top 150.

The MLB Wild Card game on ESPN topped the night in the 18-49 demographic and viewership with 3.969 million viewers. Chicago Med on NBC topped the night in network TV with 7.669 million viewers.

To compare this week’s WWE TV viewership, Monday’s RAW season premiere drew an average of 2.571 million viewers, up from last week’s 2.210 million viewers, and the best red brand viewership since the post-SummerSlam episode on August 12, which drew 2.729 million viewers.

2019 NXT Viewership Tracker:

September 18 Episode: 1.179 million viewers (one hour on the USA Network)
September 25 Episode: 1.006 million viewers (one hour on the USA Network)
October 2 Episode: 891,000 viewers (season premiere, both hours on the USA Network)
October 9 Episode:

2019 AEW Dynamite Viewership Tracker:

October 2 Episode: 1.409 million viewers (premiere episode)

The AEW Dynamite replay drew 423,000 viewers on TNT, according to PWTorch. The replay aired right after the Dynamite premiere went off the air at 10pm ET.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE Makes Name Change To Cruiserweight Title?

Triple H recently talked about the WWE Cruiserweight division possibly blending in with NXT and having the Cruiserweight Championship move under the NXT brand. That change went into effect this week, as the WWE Cruiserweight Championship has been re-branded as the NXT Cruiserweight Championship on WWE.com.

Plus on last night’s NXT, they promoted a Crusierweight Championship for next week’s NXT between Cruiserweight Champion Drew Gulak and Lio Rush, by referring to the title at the NXT Cruiserweight Championship.