The recent WWE RAW episode showcased a segment in which CM Punk decided on his future with the promotion. On RAW, CM Punk finally made his decision to sign with the red brand, leading to a face-off with the reigning WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Seth Rollins. Their engaging promo segment earned widespread acclaim from online fans.
The heated promo segment between Rollins and CM Punk saw Rollins accusing him of being a fraud for calling WWE his home. Despite Rollins’ accusations, Punk stayed composed and issued a caution that this would be the sole instance where he allowed slander without consequences.
Interestingly, the segment was not featured in the main event of RAW; instead, it took place during the second hour of Monday Night RAW. Wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer unveiled on his podcast the reason behind WWE’s choice to place the segment in the second hour.
According to Meltzer, WWE strategically chose not to close RAW with CM Punk’s decision, opting for a lengthy main event in the final slot. Dave Meltzer revealed the move aimed at maximizing viewership by placing Punk’s pivotal moment at 9 o’clock, recognizing it as prime time for the highest audience engagement.
It’s important to note that CM Punk had his time cut during the main event segment of the 27th edition of RAW following the Survivor Series.
How did the CM Punk and Seth Rollins segment on RAW perform in ratings?
WWE made a strategic decision not to close Raw with the CM Punk segment following Dave Meltzer’s statement that the promotion aimed to secure prime time for maximum audience engagement. It appears that the move resulted in strong viewership numbers for the segment.
According to Brandon Thurston of WrestleNomics, the segment that aired at 9:00 p.m. Eastern stood out as the most-watched quarter-hour of the show. The Punk/Rollins segment pulled in 1.88 million viewers and achieved a 0.62 P18-49 rating.
These figures are significant, particularly when considering that the total viewership for the entire episode was 1.466 million, accompanied by a 0.46 P18-49 rating. Furthermore, the segment showed a significant 25% quarter-to-quarter growth, marking the highest since early 2022 on RAW.
