Latest AEW Rampage Rating For CM Punk Debut Looks Exceptional So Far

The early numbers are looking hugely positive for CM Punk's wrestling return.

CM Punk AEW Rampage
AEW.com

On today's episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer has given an early indicator that the numbers for this past Friday's AEW Rampage are looking extremely strong.

As per Meltzer, Rampage did a 1.6 share in the 18-49 demographic in Chicago for its first 30 minutes. In comparison to last week's inaugural episode of the show, Rampage was up 57% in all households and 50% up in the 18-49 bracket.

The Chicago numbers are obviously likely to be higher than average across the US, with Chicago famously being CM Punk's hometown. As such, Meltzer stated how the final numbers will likely be a little less than the aforementioned ones when it comes to national figures, but who knows

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Either way, the return of CM Punk was a huge moment in wrestling history. The so-called lapsed fans have lapped it up, the AEW die-hards adored it, and anyone with even the slightest of interest in wrestling cannot not have raised at least a smile when Cult of Personality hit on Friday.

Now, it remains to be seen what the final, ever-important viewing figures will be for the Second City Saint's goosebumps-inducing return.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.