205 Live airs every week after Smackdown Live and is a platform for the WWE Cruiserweight division to shine. The show premiered in late November of 2016 and the members of the show have put on some solid matches since the brands inception.
The problem is, it doesn’t seem like many fans are sticking around after Smackdown Live to watch the show.
According to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio (subscribe here), 205 Live has been performing very poorly on the WWE Network. The show is apparently being beaten (numbers wise) on a weekly basis by NXT, a show that is taped. It appears that a large chunk of fans aren’t changing the channel after Smackdown Live to follow along. This really is a shame considering the 205 Live roster is consistently putting on solid matches that are being missed by a large majority of WWE fans.
There have been some mixed responses regarding the Smackdown Live crowds in person and 205 Live. In some cases, we have heard that a solid chunk of the crowd sticks around to watch 205 Live after Smackdown. In other arenas, there are a ton of visible empty seats and a lot of fans leave. Meltzer noted that taping the show before Smackdown Live begins could help from a crowd reaction standpoint.
See Also: Vince McMahon Teases Some Big Plans For 205 Live In The Future
This doesn’t mean that the show is getting cancelled anytime soon, it just signifies that the show isn’t performing as well as expected.
Let us know what you think in the comment section below. What would you do if you were WWE? Like Us On Facebook:
Just make Smackdown 3 hours with Crusierweights in the middle of SD but don’t change the rope color and let them interact with main roster talents
as an avid wrestling fan… general rule – I don’t care about match quality as much as storyline. 205 live is simply for marky technical/spot wrestling fan. don’t get me wrong, I enjoy it, but there is a time and place for spot wrestling, but not the entire match.
there is no reason for me to tune in and watch cruiserweights perform when WWE is basically telling me that they don’t care by putting them on in a horrible slot.
ideally, I would make 205 live like NXT or the CWC… give them their own show on their own night w/ built in storylines and matches.
I thoroughly enjoy 205Live each and every week. The matches are great, and most of the storylines are good. I’m particularly enjoying the Akira Tozawa / Brian Kendrick feud. I don’t understand why every WWE fan doesn’t enjoy the Cruiserweight division as much as I do.