How Was Viewership For WWE SmackDown's SummerSlam Go-Home Show?

After "WWE SmackDown" received a huge gain in viewership last week following the retirement of Vince McMahon hours before the broadcast, the question then turned to how "SmackDown's" go-home show the day before SummerSlam would do. As expected, the numbers were decent, though perhaps not as strong as the previous week's.

According to Wrestlenomics, "SmackDown" drew 2,193,000 viewers this past Friday, as well as 678,000 viewers in the coveted 18-49 demographic for a 0.52 18-49 rating. This was a drop from the unexpectedly historic "SmackDown" that preceded it, which drew 2,256,000 viewers and a massive 0.62 in 18-49, the highest rating "SmackDown" has done in the 18-49 demographic all year.

While the ratings were down compared to last week, overall the numbers are good news for the blue brand, as the 18-49 number was up 8% compared to the other three weeks in July. Numbers were also up in 35-49 5% and 18-34 4%. The show was rated number one in the night in 18-49 in television overall.

The go-home episode of "SmackDown" notably featured Drew McIntyre defeating long-time rival Sheamus in a "Good Old Fashioned Donnybrook" match. With the victory, McIntyre became the #1 contender for the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion and will challenge Roman Reigns for the title at WWE's next Premium Live Event, Clash at the Castle, in early September. The show also featured the return of Max Dupri, who was back with his Maximum Male Models group after he had reportedly been taken off TV just the week before.

The focus will now turn to "WWE Raw" this evening to see if WWE can carry over interest from both "SmackDown" and SummerSlam. The show will air at its usual 8 p.m. start time on the USA Network and will take place out of Houston, Texas. NXT 2.0 star Santos Escobar earlier teased a potential arrival on "Raw", while some are speculating WWE hinted at the return of Naomi and Sasha Banks when promoting the show on Twitter earlier.