Syfy Moving ‘SmackDown’ to Thursday

SmackDown is moving back to its original night, as Syfy announced that the WWE program would move to Thursdays beginning Jan. 15, 2015.

SmackDown has averaged 3.1 million viewers on Fridays, leading primetime among cable networks. The series aired on Thursdays during its first seven years, when it aired on the former UPN.

“WWE’s sizable and passionate fan base make SmackDown the #1 entertainment show on Syfy and the most-watched, regularly-scheduled program among key demographics on the network,” said Michelle Wilson, chief revenue and marketing officer, WWE.  “We look forward to bringing the WWE audience to Thursday nights on Syfy.”

SmackDown is the second-longest weekly episodic program on TV, with almost 800 original episodes, second to fellow WWE program Monday Night Raw.