By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

TNA Impact Wrestling on Thursday, October 6 scored a 1.01 rating, the lowest of the year and down from a 1.14 rating last week, for an episode marketed around Hulk Hogan's retirement tease.

Impact averaged 1.38 million viewers, which was the second-lowest audience of the year, just ahead of 1.36 million viewers on September 8.

-- On cable TV Thursday night, Impact ranked #21 overall, #13 among males 18-34, and #8 among males 18-49. There was plenty of tough cable TV competition including Tigers-Yankees playoff baseball (9.70 million viewers), Jersey Shore, and college football.

Despite an 11 percent decline in the overall rating and the tough competition, key male demographic ratings were very similar to last week, although Impact has been trending below the yearly average the past few weeks.

As we've noted in recent ratings reports, a significant portion of the Impact audience appears to be older than 49-years-old. Baseball also skews toward an older audience, which is likely why TNA's overall rating dropped 11 percent and key male demos (18-34 and 18-49) were virtually even.

Competition will likely be viewed as the key reason for Impact drawing its lowest rating of the year, but Impact was topped by lesser competition. Comedy Central's Gabriel Iglesisas half-hour special and Tosh.0 beat Impact in total viewers and adult male demos during the second hour. In overall viewers, Impact was topped by a Lifetime special, "After the Runway."

-- One year ago this week leading into the 10-10-10 Bound for Glory PPV, Spike TV presented a live Impact special that scored a 1.33 rating and averaged 1.70 million viewers. Two years ago this week, Impact's audience was nearly identical - 1.01 rating and an average of 1.30 million viewers.

Looking at the demographics, the year-to-year comparison captures the flip-side of TNA skewing toward an older audience, which is losing younger viewers. One year ago, Impact scored a 1.31 rating among teen males 12-17. This week's Impact scored a 0.33 rating in the demo, which is a 75 percent decline.

[Torch art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

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