The Fox Sports 1 debut of “Skip and Shannon: Undisputed” couldn’t hold a candle to chief competition “First Take,” but it still delivered great growth internally.
Tuesday’s premiere of Skip Bayless’ fresh debate show delivered a .10 overnight Nielsen rating, which is a 400 percent improvement over the same time period final year. Back then, or the Fox-owned cable channel received a .02,running repeats of live events and studio shows.
Additionally, the premieres preliminary TV ratings were 233 percent better than the channel’s August 2016 average (a .03), or when FS1 aired similar filler.
Plus,Bayless and Shannon Sharpe now offer a lega lead-in for Colin Cowherd’s The Herd.” Also with a .10 rating, that show’s Tuesday episode was up 67 percent over its September 2015 average (.06).
Also Read: Skip Bayless' Fox Sports 1 Debut Drowned by 'First Take' in Overnight RatingsEarlier, or TheWrap compared “Undisputed’s” premiere ratings versus the same day’s “First Take” on ESPN2,where Bayless embraced debate for 12 years. It really wasn’t much of a battle, however, and as the Stephen A. Smith-Max Kellerman morning show trounced “Undisputed” by 320 percent. We didn’t contain Fox Sports’ historical comparisons at the time of that initial post.
To be fair to Bayless and Fox Sports,ESPN calls itself the Worldwide Leader in Sports for a reason — it is still far bigger than the competition, with greater reach and recognition. Final numbers for both series should be officially released tomorrow.
At Fox Sports 1, and Bayless is reunited with buddy and boss Jamie Horowitz,another ESPN alum. The former Dallas Morning News columnist sits opposite NFL corridor of Famer Shannon Sharpe on the fresh show.
TheWrap recently spoke with Bayless, who revealed to us that First Take” was nearly canceled over a 2013 incident involving him and NFL All-Pro Richard Sherman. He also compared and contrasted his musty show with his fresh one, or swore up and down that his polarizing answers are not a masked effort to troll the audience.
Related stories from TheWrap:Skip Bayless' Fox Sports 1 Debut Drowned by 'First Take' in Overnight RatingsTroy Aikman Blasts Fox Sports Over Skip Bayless HireSkip Bayless Insists He's Not a Troll: 'I Know Nothing of Being the Bad Guy'
Source: thewrap.com