An average of 1.645 million viewers watched iMPACT! this week, an increase of 14% from last week’s figure. Its cable rating landed at a 1.22, up from last week’s 1.06.

Among adults 18-49, the rating was in line with last week’s 0.5; the biggest demographic gain came in male teens 12-17, for which the rating rose from a 0.97 to a 1.21.

A PWTorch.com commentary on the iMPACT! ratings boost recognizes the value that younger audience played and thus attributes the mere presence of MTV’s “Jersey Shore” season premiere with boosting television among teens and very young adults. The key to assessing that theory will come once hourly data is revealed for iMPACT!; if “Jersey Shore” were the driving force behind bringing more teens to television (and thus iMPACT!), the second hour of the TNA show, which went head-to-head with “Shore,” would have posted a considerably lower rating.

If that is not the case, then at least a solid portion of the ratings increase can be attributed to interest in TNA’s current product.

(Ratings Sources: Mediaweek, PWTorch.com)

“Schmucks” did not receive glowing reviews, but its appealing cast and director led it to an $8.4 million take Friday, enough for first place for the day.

“Inception,” meanwhile, grabbed $8.2 million and should be on track for a $25 million weekend. Though in second place as of this writing, if new release “Schmucks” loses any of its momentum, “Inception” will be able to claim a third straight weekend.

Elsewhere, new release “Charlie St. Cloud” earned $5.6 million for fourth place behind the $5.9 million for “Salt.” While the “St. Cloud” gross puts the film slightly above projections, Deadline reports that rival studios are claiming the first-day audience was largely comprised of Zac Efron-diehards and that the film will now show much in the longevity department.

“Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore” bombed with $4.2 million, landing behind “Despicable Me” ($4.6 million).

The episode garnered 5.3 million viewers, an increase from the 4.8 million who watched last season’s finale and the modest 1.4 million who tuned into last year’s series premiere. Though not as massive a premiere number as some critics were expecting, the viewer count is certainly strong for a series of the sort.

MTV’s highest-rated season premiere since the second season of “The Osbournes” bowed in 2002, the show averaged a 5.1 in people 12-34. It scored a 2.6 adults 18-49 rating (actually tied with last season’s finale), along with a 4.8 in women 18-34 and a 5.3 among teens.

FOX has yet to comment on the story.

When news first broke that “Idol” was considering a major overhaul to the judging panel that included more than simply finding a replacement for Simon Cowell, DioGuardi emerged as the strongest candidate to be dropped. Of last season’s three remaining judges–Jackson, DeGeneres and DioGuardi–Kara was the only one without any sort of deal extending into next season.

With Randy Jackson viewed as a near-lock to return for the upcoming tenth season and Jennifer Lopez having reportedly reached a deal to join the show as a judge, the belief is that only one slot remains. As part of the overhaul under the direction of Nigel Lythgoe, who is reportedly returning as an executive producer, the plan is to return to the three-judge format after two years with four judges.

The presumably-male replacement for Simon Cowell has not been named, although TMZ’s story suggests Steven Tyler is now a strong candidate.

The convention confirmed the story on its message board, noting that Heenan fractured his hip several weeks ago after falling. While in rehab for the injury, he fell again, fracturing his pelvis and breaking his shoulder. He thus needs surgery for the injuries and cannot attend the event.

– Not all health-related wrestling news this week is bad, however. Former WWE Superstar John Bradshaw Layfield Tweeted the following Thursday:

“My last test was today, after 3 months of worrying and doctor visits-I got a clean bill of health today and no sign of cancer!!!”

It had long been expected that dos Santos, who has emerged as one of UFC’s most touted heavyweight prospects, would secure a shot at the title with a victory. But the story adds the element that “The Ultimate Fighter” season ten winner Roy Nelson is also one big win away from a shot at the championship.

Nelson and dos Santos fight on the upcoming UFC 117 pay-per-view, headlined by Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen. The winner would be in line to fight the winner of UFC 121′s Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez title bout.

Deadline Hollywood reported late Thursday evening that Jennifer Lopez has been tapped to replace DeGeneres as a judge next season. FOX has only confirmed Ellen’s departure–not the news of Lopez’s deal–but the story is consistent with ongoing rumors that she was on producers’ short list for the revamped panel.

Lopez previously served as a guest mentor on the show, scoring critical approval for a well-reviewed turn in a role that could easily have been “phoned in.” She had also been identified in rumors last season about taking over for the departing Paula Abdul, but those turned out to be false–the role went to DeGeneres.

Although Lopez is certainly a high-level celebrity, the Deadline report makes it clear that Lopez has been recruited to replace DeGeneres–the long-awaited replacement for head judge Simon Cowell has yet to be revealed.

Deadline added that Jessica Simpson was in serious discussions to take over the to-be-vacant female post, but Lopez was the top choice, and as soon as her deal was confirmed, “Idol” was ready to make the announcement that DeGeneres was leaving.

DeGeneres, who replaced Paula Abdul as a judge effective last season, received tepid reviews for her performance at the table. In recent days, rumors suggested that she could be dropped as part of a plan to overhaul the show in the wake of Simon Cowell’s departure.

In a statement issued Thursday, DeGeneres nonetheless takes some personal credit for the severance, explaining that she did not feel the show was a good fit.

“A couple months ago, I let FOX and the American Idol producers know that this didn’t feel like the right fit for me,” she said in a statement. “I told them I wouldn’t leave them in a bind and that I would hold off on doing anything until they were able to figure out where they wanted to take the panel next. It was a difficult decision to make, but my work schedule became more than I bargained for.”

She also expressed difficulty over having to give harsh criticism to the show’s aspiring pop superstars.

According to Variety, insiders are calling the split “mutual.” Those behind the show were complimentary of Ellen in statements about her departure, with creator Simon Fuller noting, “I loved Ellen’s passion for the artists and her nurturing skills. She brought honesty and optimism to our judging panel and I will miss her greatly.”

While Randy Jackson appears a lock to return for next season, rumors suggest that Kara DioGuardi might also end up leaving the show ahead of its upcoming tenth season.

WWE was unable to secure Ultimate Warrior for last year’s WrestleMania weekend in Phoenix, a location dear of relevance for Warrior, but the company still wants to make something work involving the wrestler. Although many big names have been discussed for next year’s WrestleMania festivities in Atlanta, no marquee name has yet been confirmed, and the hope is that Warrior can be secured as one of the featured inductees.

In terms of reaching out to Warrior, Vince McMahon himself might establish contact to bring Warrior into the mix for the HOF induction at WrestleMania 27 weekend.

Although conventional wisdom based on the booking for RAW suggests that, come Summerslam, the WWE team will rally to defeat Nexus, the internal plan still calls for Nexus to win the upcoming 7-on-7 Summerslam bout. WWE has experienced an increase in buzz and viewership for the ongoing angle, and the present feeling is that it would not be worth risking the future viability of the angle with a major loss on pay-per-view.

What has not been decided, however, is how WWE will go about spurring Nexus’ victory at Summerslam. It is very unlikely that WWE would book Nexus to win the match on undisputed terms, but the company has yet to decide which WWE Superstar or Superstars will be involved in costing the WWE team the match.

Partial Source: F4WOnline.com’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Eminem’s “Recovery” has been tough to shake, but with a forecasted total of 160-175,000 first week sales according to Hits Daily Double, the A7X album will give it a run for its money. If that total, which was extended based on one-day sales data, holds up, it would mark the band’s best opening sales frame.

Nothing else is tracking particularly strongly this week, with new entries pacing as follows: Tech N9ne’s “The Gates Mixed Plate” (17-20,000) and Dru Hill’s “InDRUpendende Day” (12-15,000).

The album moved an additional 187,000 copies this week, topping the 176,000 for Ross’ album. It should be noted that Hits Daily Double, which reports data in advance of Billboard, tabulated the week in favor of “Teflon Don,” so it is possible other media outlets will run with the Ross album as the weekly winner.

In other sales news, Sheryl Crow’s “100 Miles from Memphis” opened to the tune of 55,000 units sold, while the latest “Kidz Bop” was good for 43,000. The Jonas Brothers’ “Jonas LA” soundtrack moved 32,000 copies in its first week.

In a Twitter post Wednesday, John Cena criticized Watson, notably attacking the developing wrestler’s notorious facial expressions.

“If Percy Watson makes another one of those faces where I’m supposed to think he’s mad, but it looks like he just crapped himself…I’ll eliminate him,” wrote Cena. “He has gone downhill every single week.”

Cena praised Watson’s athletic ability, but argued that he “may be suffering from yep yep syndrome; looking for something special when all he needs is what he’s got.”

Although Watson has received face time and was booked to defeat WWE Pro Zack Ryder Tuesday night, it is clear that WWE’s internal opinion of the wrestler is not as favorable as that of the NXT audience. His positioning as fourth in the NXT Poll, behind Michael McGillicutty, Kaval and Alex Riley, despite almost certainly doing well in the fan vote, indicates that WWE is not currently eyeing him as the show’s winner.

By no means are the numbers strong, but it is always good news when a first-year series begins finding a steady audience. Monday’s airing posted a 0.4 adults 18-49 rating with 993,000 viewers, its highest viewer count in several weeks.

Last week’s episode garnered the same 0.4 demo rating with 935,000 viewers, an improvement from the prior week’s 885,000 and 0.3 rating.

The episode on July 5 earned only 799,000 viewers, a steep decline from the 895,000 count for the June 28 airing.

– In other ratings news, “The Secret Life of the American Teenager” fell to 2.559 million viewers with a 1.1 in the adults 18-49 demo, a 2.5 in women 18-34 and a 2.4 with teens. The prior week’s airing averaged 3.043 million viewers with 1.3, 2.9 and 2.9 in the aforementioned respective demos. Lead-out “Huge,” however, improved its viewership slightly, moving from 1.481 million viewers with a 0.6 in A18-49, 1.2 in W18-34 and 1.4 in T12-17 to 1.584 million viewers (0.6A18-49, 1.5W18-34, 1.5T12-17).

New series “Rizzoli & Isles” also fell, dropping to 6.548 million viewers with a 1.3 among adults 18-49. Last week’s airing averaged a 1.5 with 7.272 million.

Source: Mediaweek

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The second season two NXT Rookie was eliminated when the results of the latest NXT Poll were revealed, causing plenty of contention between the final six competitors on WWE NXT.

Eli Cottonwood was eliminated
The results of the NXT Poll were revealed, and after the votes of the WWE Universe and the WWE Pros were combined, Eli Cottonwood was eliminated. Meanwhile, the immune Michael McGillicutty, who still boasts a perfect record, ousted Kaval for the No. 1 spot.

The results of the NXT Poll were as follows:

1. Michael McGillicutty
2. Kaval
3. Alex Riley
4. Percy Watson
5. Lucky Cannon
6. Husky Harris
7. Eli Cottonwood

After his elimination, an emotionally-charged Cottonwood attacked Harris and the other NXT Rookies. He shockingly shoved his WWE Pro, John Morrison, while walking up the ramp. When the final six NXT Rookies had a chance to tell the WWE Universe about becoming WWE’s next breakout star, Cottonwood returned, causing a brawl to erupt at the close of WWE NXT.

Husky Harris def. Kaval
Hoping to make a last-minute impact, and a move upward in the NXT Poll, a confident Husky Harris defeated fellow NXT Rookie, Kaval. Earlier, Harris had a heated confrontation with Kaval, calling him “small fry” and referring to his WWE Pros, Lay-Cool, as his girlfriends. A confident Harris carried momentum into the ring, and during the match after he accidentally knocked Lay-Cool off the ring apron, capitalized on a distracted Kaval, pinning him in the last match before the WWE Pros voted in the NXT Poll. Harris upped his record to 3-2, while Kaval’s fell to 1-4.

Michael McGillicutty def. Eli Cottonwood
Michael McGillicutty kept his record perfect with a victory over fellow NXT Rookie, Eli Cottonwood. McGillicutty, who won the NXT Rookies’ Obstacle Course Challenge the previous week, earning himself immunity from elimination, pinned the mustache-obsessed Cottonwood, who was disqualified during last week’s competition. McGillicutty’s untarnished record stood at 5-0, while the 7-footer Cottonwood’s fell to 2-2.

“Showtime” Percy Watson def. Zack Ryder
It’s “Showtime!” NXT Rookie Percy Watson earned a big win over a WWE Pro less than an hour before the results of the NXT Poll would be revealed. With his WWE Pro, MVP, cheering him on from the ring apron, Watson pinned Zack Ryder, becoming the first NXT Rookie to beat a WWE Pro in singles competition. “Showtime’s” record improved to 2-3 with his victory over Long Island Iced Z.

The NXT Rookies grabbed the Open Mic
The final seven NXT Rookies had one minute each to say whatever was on their minds, aside from why they shouldn’t be eliminated. Each NXT Rookie sounded off one more time before the WWE Pros cast their votes in the NXT Poll. Who left a lasting impression before tonight’s elimination?