WWE NXT’s debut episode is a sign of the brand’s high ceiling
WWE NXT’s debut episode on the USA Network couldn’t have gone any better, and the viewership numbers are a sign that this brand’s ceiling is as high as wrestling fans hoped.
Whether you want to buy into the “war” rhetoric or not, the fact of the matter is that the spirited competition between WWE NXT and AEW on Wednesday nights will be a great thing for diehard wrestling fans. We have craved this type of close attention from promotions pushing each other to be at their best, especially since the number of diehard wrestling fans has seemingly been underestimated and even underserved by the mainstream.
This notion that wrestling has more “diehard” fans than many think was somewhat confirmed by NXT’s excellent viewership in its debut on the USA Network this Wednesday.
According to The Wrap’s Tim Baysinger, NXT received 1.2 million viewers in its debut hour, with the second hour being played on the WWE Network. The article also notes that 553,000 of those viewers were in the 18-49 demographic.
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It will be interesting to see how that number looks in a few weeks when AEW’s “Dynamite” airs on TNT at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday, because it could go either way. Some viewers could check out AEW’s debut and either stick or cool off, or NXT’s viewership could pick up from either an overall boon in wrestling or more fans (including “less hardcore” fans) wanting to check out WWE’s Wednesday night offering.
Those 1.2 million fans who tuned into NXT likely came away impressed with the quality of the show. Wrestling fans who followed NXT religiously on the Network mostly raved about TakeOver specials, since weekly shows were one hour and could be a mixed bag. But this two-hour episode was an upgrade, accentuating the positives of NXT’s previous programming by having longer matches while still keeping the Third Brand’s same charm.
Stars like Io Shirai, Bianca Belair, Xia Li, The Velveteen Dream, Roderick Strong, and, of course, Lio Rush were among the standouts. These are some of the most talented wrestlers in the world, and they are about to make a new audience fall in love with them, much like the NXT faithful have grown fond of these superstars.
NXT’s high debut viewership is about half of the main roster shows’ weekly following, which certainly bodes well for what this brand can accomplish going forward. More fans could join the bandwagon as they take notice of the high-quality programming with no strings attached, as there’s a consistency and fresh presentation with NXT that most other wrestling shows (at least the mainstream ones) simply don’t have.
There are characters kids can get behind, especially those who are struck by the diversity of the NXT roster as compared to other companies.
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In many ways, NXT has a lot of what AEW does with the added presence and familiarity of the WWE brand. Both AEW and NXT would, ideally, help each other boost the overall presence of professional wrestling, so, if anything, AEW might help more than hurt that 1.2 million viewership that NXT gained in its debut.
Yes, this is indeed an exciting team to be a wrestling fan.