WWE SmackDown ratings virtually unchanged for taped show

Despite the fact the show was taped earlier in the day and went up against strong competition from the NBA, NHL, and major network season finales, SmackDown averaged 2.298 million viewers on Tuesday night, up very slightly from the 2.293 million that it posted last week. 

The show finished eighth for the night on cable television in terms of total viewers and fourth in the 18-49 demo with a 0.70 rating.

The NBA Eastern Conference finals topped the ratings with 8.229 million viewers, the last 90 minutes of which aired directly opposite SmackDown. The NHL’s Eastern Conference finals also aired against the show, averaging 1.421 million viewers, as did the last half of the NBA draft lottery broadcast, which did 2.42 million.

SmackDown was up year-over-year by almost six percent, beating the show from the same week in 2017, which did 2.175 million viewers. SmackDown retained 84 percent of the Raw audience from the night before, right in the usual range during the NFL offseason.