WWE SmackDown sees another boost in overnight ratings as Drew McIntyre is ambushed by returning star

WWE SmackDown once again topped the two million mark this week as Braun Strowman made his return to the blue brand.

The latest episode of SmackDown emanated from the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA. The show featured some top stars from the blue brand. The list included former WWE Champion Drew McIntyre, Ronda Rousey and the main roster in-ring debut of Solo Sikoa.

SpoilerTV reported that WWE SmackDown on FOX drew an average of 2.217 million viewers in overnight ratings. This was an increase from last week’s number of 2.077 million. The first hour of the show drew 2.227 million viewership, while the viewership fell slightly to 2.207 million in hour two.

In the key 18-49 demographic, the show got a rating of 0.5 and took the top spot for the evening.

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What happened on WWE SmackDown this week?

Imperium opened the show this week in a six-man tag team match against the Brawling Brutes. The Gunther-led tandem had an impressive showing as Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci planted Ridge Holland with the Imperial Bomb for the win.

Drew McIntyre had a run-in with the Bloodline and attacked the faction with a steel chair. He took out Sami Zayn with a stiff chair shot and challenged Sikoa for a match.

Toxic Attraction were back as they took on Women's Tag Team Champions Raquel Rodriguez and Aliyah in a number one contendership match. The return didn't turn out as planned as Raquel planted Jacy Jayne with the Tejana Bomb for the win.

Ronda Rousey was out of suspension and immediately made an impact as she won a fatal five-way elimination match to face Liv Morgan at Extreme Rules. The match also featured Natalya, Sonya Deville, Xia Lee and Lacey Evans.

In another tag team affair, Hit Row and the Street Profits joined hands to defeat The Maximum Male Models and Los Lotharios. Braun Strowman was out next and he laid waste to Alpha Academy's Chad Gable and Otis.

In the main event, McIntyre squared off with Solo Sikoa. After numerous interferences from The Usos and Sami Zayn, The Street Profits, Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins came out to take down the Bloodline. As Drew hit a Claymore on Sikoa, Karrion Kross returned to SmackDown and locked the Kross Jacket on Drew. The cameras went off as we saw the Scottish Warrior fading out under the hold.

What did you think of this week's episode of SmackDown? Sound off in the comments below.

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You can catch the complete highlights of WWE SmackDown here.