AEW news: AEW's plan with MJF's "pipe-bomb" didn't go as planned losing 16% of viewership

On AEW Dynamite MJF’s promo didn’t go as AEW planned. MJF’s pipebomb sent tremors across the wrestling world less than 48 hours ago, and while the promo improved his standing, AEW had a somewhat different strategy for the ‘worked shoot’ portion. AEW’s strategy, according to the current Wrestling Observer Newsletter, was for MJF to deliver a heel promo and then have his mic cut off halfway through, giving the impression that the sequence was spontaneous and he was out of hand. The promo was said to be inspired by Brian Pillman’s WCW work shoot promos from the mid-1990s.

The execution of MJF’s commercial was great, but the substance was dubious. The pipebomb of 2022 resembled a Twitter piata full with online wrestling easter eggs. The commercial was aimed squarely at the hardcore crowd, who have been enthralled by AEW’s recent behind-the-scenes turmoil. MJF completely ignored an AEW Double or Nothing fan event last week. MJF also skipped the AEW Double or Nothing press conference, making him a no-show at two different fan events this weekend.AEW made no mention of MJF’s Dynamite no-show, which drew over 15,000 spectators to the Inglewood Forum—the largest TV wrestling attendance of 2022. I can speak to the fact that the live reaction to MJF’s promo was among the loudest I’ve ever heard. Even a vast arena, however, did not represent the interests of AEW’s far larger television viewership.

READ MORE: MJF makes things real with a ‘pipe bomb’ promo for Tony Khan

AEW Dynamite lost 169,000 viewers

AEW drew no reference of MJF’s Dynamite no-show, which attracted over 15,000 fans to the Inglewood Forum, making it the biggest TV wrestling crowd of 2022. It can be attested to the fact that the live reaction to MJF’s promo was one of the most raucous ever witnessed. Even a massive arena, though, couldn’t convey the views of AEW’s far greater television audience. The good news is that AEW Dynamite’s premiere at the Fabulous Forum in Inglewood, California, had a 4 percent increase in viewership. AEW Dynamite had its biggest audience since April 13, with 969,000 viewers, and its highest 18-49 viewership since March 23. After a 10-week gap, the last time AEW Dynamite drew over one million viewers was on March 23.

The show’s largest drop occurred during MJF’s pipebomb promo, which sounded like an extreme wrestling statement. Wrestlenomics’ Brandon Thurston claims that during the first six minutes of MJF’s promo, which began in QH21, AEW’s viewership increased by 2% quarter-to-quarter (QTQ). In the 18-49 demographic, QTQ’s viewership soared to 12%. The portion also included CMFTR’s post-match promo and the conclusion of CMFTR vs. Max Caster and the Ass Boys. He wrote his analysis on Twitter, “Quarter-hour analysis is impaired by a number of external factors.”

Quarter-hours for last night’s AEW Dynamite on TBS, including the MJF promo that was mostly in QH2 and partly in QH3.

➡️ Further breakdown across more demos available now for subscribers: https://t.co/DTqC3I6tRO pic.twitter.com/tvpDQss56Q

— Brandon Thurston (@BrandonThurston) June 2, 2022