As its highest-profile celebrity host to date, Shaquille O’Neal was expected to lead RAW to a ratings number higher than those posted by past hosts Seth Green and ZZ Top. And though his appearance did not get the mainstream media hype WWE had desired, he did have the additional benefit of hosting the post-Night of Champions show. Simply put, a poor rating seemed out of the question.
Sure enough, O’Neal’s appearance led WWE to a strong 4.0 rating. Though down from the 4.5 peak from earlier in the summer, it is still a welcome improvement from last week’s 3.5.
The hourly breakdown, according to PWInsider.com, was 3.9 and 4.0. Given the unusually-high viewership volume at the top of the show, it is clear that Shaq drew extra eyeballs to RAW.
