With the coronavirus affecting AEW, NXT and a number of wrestling promotions around the world, both AEW and NXT had vastly different shows, but only one saw a big increase in viewership.
According to Showbuzz Daily, the March 18 episode of AEW Dynamite drew 932,000 viewers, the highest the show’s produced since January 15. It is also higher than the 766,000 viewers that the March 11 episode produced.
NXT’s viewership, on the other hand, was seriously hindered, only averaging 542,000 viewers, the lowest since NXT permanently moved to a live format on the USA Network last September. It is only the third time ever NXT averaged less than 600,000 viewers for an episode on the USA Network.
In the 18-49 demographic, AEW Dynamite drew a 0.35 rating, which was 20th best among original cable telecasts for the day. NXT only drew a 0.16 rating in the 18-49 demo, which was 81st best on cable for the day.
It should be noted that NXT did not have any live wrestling throughout the entire show. Instead, NXT aired lengthy videos showcasing the feuds between Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa, Rhea Ripley & Charlotte Flair as well as a look at Finn Balor.
AEW Dynamite did have live wrestling matches at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida, capped off by a main event match between The Inner Circle’s Santana, Ortiz & Jake Hager against the team of Cody, Matt Jackson & Hangman Page. Dynamite also featured the AEW debuts of both Matt Hardy and Brodie Lee.
For full reports on both AEW and NXT shows, check out Fightful's results section and you can check out the post-show podcast where Sean Ross Sapp, Alex Pawlowski and Warren Hayes gave a recap of both shows at this link.
For a full rundown of viewership numbers from various WWE programs and AEW Dynamite, check out Fightful's resources page.
