Rock's return spikes 7-year-highs in U.K. WWE tv ratings

[ClassicsGuy]

The Rock's return to WWE spiked 7-year-highs in U.K. viewing figures for WWE programming.

 

The Smackdown show on February 18th (first show after Rock's return earlier that week) did 201,000 viewers, most viewers for a weekly WWE tv show on Sky since an August 20th, 2004 edition of WWE Raw.

 

The Elimination Chamber ppv on February 20th as a live tv special on Sky Sports 1 did 265,000 viewers, the most viewers for a WWE ppv as a non-ppv tv special in the U.K. since Wrestlemania 20 on March 14th, 2004 (which did 450,000 viewers).

[ThePhenom]

Thats brilliant news, both WWE and TNA are doing great over here at the moment. WWE is also doing very well in America and Mexico as well, they must be very happy, and rightfully so. Congrats to them, Vince should be throwing as much money as he can right now at The Rock to keep him around.

[pizzazz941]

It's a sad state of affairs though that a man who hasn't wrestled in seven years gets massively higher ratings than the current product. I'm not saying the return of the Rock wouldn't and shouldn't draw people in, but when it does better than anything they've done in seven years, that should set off alarm bells.

[ThePhenom]

It's a sad state of affairs though that a man who hasn't wrestled in seven years gets massively higher ratings than the current product. I'm not saying the return of the Rock wouldn't and shouldn't draw people in, but when it does better than anything they've done in six years, that should set off alarm bells.

But he is one of the biggest draws in modern wrestling history, and was one of the main guys in the boom period. He's going to pull in the viewers, because he is the sort of person most of the people actually want to see - the ratings, buyrates, exposure for his time period confirms that.

[Magnum]

It's a sad state of affairs though that a man who hasn't wrestled in seven years gets massively higher ratings than the current product. I'm not saying the return of the Rock wouldn't and shouldn't draw people in, but when it does better than anything they've done in seven years, that should set off alarm bells.

 

I think the alarm bells were already ringing. As I said on the Wrestlemania thread, it's telling that the last 3-4 Wrestlemanias have been primarily sold on the back of names from the Attitude era and earlier like Taker, HBK, Flair, Bret and now Rock. I think Vince must've known how badly Wrestlemania would tank without HHH, Undertaker and Rock.

 

The WWE have been operating a 'safety first' booking policy for the last several years in terms of not changing the status quo at the top of the card or the general formula of its TV too much and generally just aiming to retain their moderate audience rather than build on it. But if their generally good work this year, and especially bringing back Rock and letting him and Cena off the leash a bit on the mic, has paid off with increased ratings, hopefully it will motivate them to build on that and take a few more risks in the coming months.

[ClassicsGuy]

It's a sad state of affairs though that a man who hasn't wrestled in seven years gets massively higher ratings than the current product. I'm not saying the return of the Rock wouldn't and shouldn't draw people in, but when it does better than anything they've done in seven years, that should set off alarm bells.

 

I think the alarm bells were already ringing. As I said on the Wrestlemania thread, it's telling that the last 3-4 Wrestlemanias have been primarily sold on the back of names from the Attitude era and earlier like Taker, HBK, Flair, Bret and now Rock. I think Vince must've known how badly Wrestlemania would tank without HHH, Undertaker and Rock.

 

The WWE have been operating a 'safety first' booking policy for the last several years in terms of not changing the status quo at the top of the card or the general formula of its TV too much and generally just aiming to retain their moderate audience rather than build on it. But if their generally good work this year, and especially bringing back Rock and letting him and Cena off the leash a bit on the mic, has paid off with increased ratings, hopefully it will motivate them to build on that and take a few more risks in the coming months.

 

It doesn't help when

 

<-- click on 'spoiler' to show/hide the spoiler

HHH does an interview like the one he did on Raw this past week, where he buried the entire roster bar Taker, saying there is no-one back in the locker room that provides him or Taker with a challenge anymore. You know, despite the fact HHH had been gone nearly a year, and in that time, Del Rio has debuted as a top star, Barrett has become a big star, Miz has ascended to champion, etc. The way he treated Sheamus was a joke too. Creating new stars that can draw WM buys without relying on the past can be done, but it isn't helped when the likes of HHH publicly bury everyone for no reason at all.

 

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[Magnum]

It's a sad state of affairs though that a man who hasn't wrestled in seven years gets massively higher ratings than the current product. I'm not saying the return of the Rock wouldn't and shouldn't draw people in, but when it does better than anything they've done in seven years, that should set off alarm bells.

 

I think the alarm bells were already ringing. As I said on the Wrestlemania thread, it's telling that the last 3-4 Wrestlemanias have been primarily sold on the back of names from the Attitude era and earlier like Taker, HBK, Flair, Bret and now Rock. I think Vince must've known how badly Wrestlemania would tank without HHH, Undertaker and Rock.

 

The WWE have been operating a 'safety first' booking policy for the last several years in terms of not changing the status quo at the top of the card or the general formula of its TV too much and generally just aiming to retain their moderate audience rather than build on it. But if their generally good work this year, and especially bringing back Rock and letting him and Cena off the leash a bit on the mic, has paid off with increased ratings, hopefully it will motivate them to build on that and take a few more risks in the coming months.

 

It doesn't help when

 

<-- click on 'spoiler' to show/hide the spoiler

HHH does an interview like the one he did on Raw this past week, where he buried the entire roster bar Taker, saying there is no-one back in the locker room that provides him or Taker with a challenge anymore. You know, despite the fact HHH had been gone nearly a year, and in that time, Del Rio has debuted as a top star, Barrett has become a big star, Miz has ascended to champion, etc. The way he treated Sheamus was a joke too. Creating new stars that can draw WM buys without relying on the past can be done, but it isn't helped when the likes of HHH publicly bury everyone for no reason at all.

 

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<-- click on 'spoiler' to show/hide the spoiler

Agree in principle, but the damage to the likes of Wade Barrett and Sheamus was done long before HHH opened his mouth. That's what I mean about them hopefully taking some risks with the booking in the future - giving a younger wrestler a feud with Cena or Orton isn't going to make them into a legit money-drawing star, but letting them get the better of Cena or Orton might. Creating new stars to sell Wrestlemania can be done only if the emphasis on protecting the existing top stars is relaxed a bit.

 

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[JohnnyChimpo]

<-- click on 'spoiler' to show/hide the spoiler

Also, its all about context. Triple H didnt actually bury the roster, what he said was there was no other challenges for him to face as in, he is a 13 time World Champion, he has held all the other belts he can go for, he has won Elimination Chambers, Hell in a Cell, Iron Man matches, ladder, last man standing etc. The only real challenge he has left is ending The Streak. Not that Del Rio isnt a worthy competitor, or that he could squash The Miz, more that he has no motivation to go after The Miz, that only leads to another World Title, and he has been there, done that. He has already completed that challenge.

 

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[Turnbucklepads]

It's a sad state of affairs though that a man who hasn't wrestled in seven years gets massively higher ratings than the current product. I'm not saying the return of the Rock wouldn't and shouldn't draw people in, but when it does better than anything they've done in six years, that should set off alarm bells.

But he is one of the biggest draws in modern wrestling history, and was one of the main guys in the boom period. He's going to pull in the viewers, because he is the sort of person most of the people actually want to see - the ratings, buyrates, exposure for his time period confirms that.

 

He's not saying that. He's saying why can't someone else on the current roster draw those numbers, without the need to go back to a guy from the last boom period.

I love the fact that Rock is back, but its shit that no one in the WWE can draw those numbers already.

[ThePhenom]

It's a sad state of affairs though that a man who hasn't wrestled in seven years gets massively higher ratings than the current product. I'm not saying the return of the Rock wouldn't and shouldn't draw people in, but when it does better than anything they've done in six years, that should set off alarm bells.

But he is one of the biggest draws in modern wrestling history, and was one of the main guys in the boom period. He's going to pull in the viewers, because he is the sort of person most of the people actually want to see - the ratings, buyrates, exposure for his time period confirms that.

 

He's not saying that. He's saying why can't someone else on the current roster draw those numbers, without the need to go back to a guy from the last boom period.

I love the fact that Rock is back, but its shit that no one in the WWE can draw those numbers already.

Because there isn't anyone on the current roster from today's era that people want to see as much. I'm sure John Cena could draw the numbers if he's promo's (WWE's fault, not Cena's) were as entertaining and revolutionary. What you have to remember is, it's a TV show. The people choose who they find entertaining, in this case they chose The Rock, his character pulled the numbers in 13 years ago, and they still do today because the man is special. It's just the simple fact that no one on today's roster stands out enough for people to want to spend as much of their time and money on it.

[PSF]

Lets be honest, if Cena wrestled at Mania, then suddenly thought fuck I'm done with wrestling but returned in 6 years time, his appearence would probably have the same effects as the Rocks.

 

We all get bored easily and im sure if the Rock hung around the viewing figures would drop back to normal post mania when the novelty has worn off.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

It's just the simple fact that no one on today's roster stands out enough for people to want to spend as much of their time and money on it.

It isn't a simple fact at all. Thats what they said about Rocky Maivia in 1997. If the company shouldn't push the boat out on you, you haven't got much of a chance.

[ColinBollocks]

Lets be honest, if Cena wrestled at Mania, then suddenly thought fuck I'm done with wrestling but returned in 6 years time, his appearence would probably have the same effects as the Rocks.

 

We all get bored easily and im sure if the Rock hung around the viewing figures would drop back to normal post mania when the novelty has worn off.

In terms of figures, it wouldn't. John Cena isn't that big of a star. The Rock was WWEs biggest star during their biggest boom period and then went on to become an even bigger star in the mainstream.

 

The Rock may even draw in TNA, maybe.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

If Cena left now and WWE found a big star and he was on top for the next 6 years and Cena returned, the interest would be massive. People would watch to see how the star who everyone said "he ALWAYS wins, he's ALWAYS on top etc." and see if he would be able to beat the next big star. Rock's a big name, but its just initial interest. If Rock was on TV every week until Backlash (or whatever the April PPV is), business would be back to normal. It happened with Hogan in 2002, when he returned No Way Out, WrestleMania and Backlash did great business built around him. When he got the belt, business bombed drastically, because the nostalgia had not only worn off, giving him the belt was a bit of a piss take. When Austin returned in 2003, he created a little business increase as well, but it soon died off when he was on TV every week. Bret Hart even drew the first two Raw's he was on, then he'd be turning up all the time looking like the bloke from Wayne's World who needed to fill a brandy glass with M&M's or Ozzy wouldn't go onstage that night and nobody wanted to see him again. Thats why the Rock is being saved for certain appearances every now and again. You dont need to spunk your load on a special attraction like the Rock before WrestleMania. Anyway, isnt the Rock going to give Cena the rub at Mania and shake hands, give him a hug, maybe a reach around and possibly a neck on? Cena will be coming out of it looking good at the end, so I doubt WWE is losing focus of who their real star is.

[The Total Package]

lol waynes world.

 

If Cena left now, WWE would be fucked, who else could carry that company, they would have to put the belt on Borton, that will send everyone home straight away.

 

The Rock hype has already died down from 2 weeks ago imo, its expected, you get a spike and then a massive drop after WM, as Ian said happened already with Austin/Hogan, I remember I actually got sick of seeing Austin, not because I hate him or anything, it was just WWE treating it like it was something massive, when he had been on the month before and before that, its not special anymore!