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WWE ‘Raw’ After SummerSlam Is Most-Watched Episode Since Greatest Royal Rumble Week

USA Network’s Shield reunion and Roman Reigns title defense draws 3.1 million

Jennifer Maas | August 21, 2018 @ 3:45 PM
Raw

Courtesy of WWE

“Raw” can thank WWE’s Sunday pay-per-view programming for delivering its most-watched episode since the week of the Greatest Royal Rumble back in April.

On Monday, USA Network’s Shield reunion and Roman Reigns title defense brought in 3.1 million total viewers, according to overnight numbers from Nielsen. The telecast, which aired one day after WWE’s SummerSlam special, brought in the highest overall eyeball count since April 23. That “Raw” took place not long after Wrestlemania 34, which aired on PPV April 8.

The the hype created by the results of the 31st annual SummerSlam — which ran on WWE Network and featured Reigns taking that Universal Championship title off Brock Lesnar — suggested that “Raw” would see a big boost in viewership the following night. Which, clearly, it did.

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Monday’s installment saw Braun Strowman cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase, a move that was futile when Dean Ambrose (who just returned to “Raw” last week) and Seth Rollins teamed up with Reigns to reunite The Shield.

While it was expected that Lesnar would lose his rein to Reigns during SummerSlam, it was also presumed that he’d show up for “Raw” the next night. Especially because it was, you know, advertised he’d be at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn for weeks earlier. But Lesnar was nowhere to be seen while the “Raw” cameras were rolling on last night.

WWE SummerSlam: Look Back at 30 Years of Main Event Winners (Photos)

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We promise, Brock Lesnar and Hulk Hogan haven’t won ALL of them — it just feels that way

The 31st annual SummerSlam is set for Sunday on WWE Network. Before Roman Reigns tries to that that Universal Championship title off Brock Lesnar (again), let's head back in time to remember who won each main event match since the pay-per-view's 1988 inception.  

And before you complain, no, these are not all photos from the specific matches -- it's a rights issue. Give us a break and just enjoy the trip down memory lane.  

Also Read: Ring of Honor’s Tenille Dashwood on Why So Many Wrestlers Are Using Their Real Names Now

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