Potential insight into WWE's supposed hatred for AEW and Tony Khan - Reports
Competition is always good for business no matter what sector of the world people work in, but it appears that WWE doesn't want to have to deal with AEW being their main rival.
All Elite Wrestling has become the biggest alternative to WWE since the turn of the 21st century, with World Wrestling Entertainment even altering its schedule thanks to AEW being on TV.
WWE has famously tried to compete with AEW on certain fronts, from putting Premium Live Events on the same weekend as All Elite Wrestling's big shows, to NXT being moved to a two-hour prime-time TV slot to counter Dynamite when the show debuted in 2019.
“They beat our developmental system, good for them.” - HHH on #aew beating #nxt in the Wednesday night wars https://t.co/JkJmArnDfB
But does WWE hate their competition? Speaking in the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer commented on how the Stamford-based promotion feels internally about All Elite Wrestling and Tony Khan, and how they do not want them to succeed.
"Hatred is a weird word. I don’t know if WWE hates AEW, and as far as Tony Khan goes, he does speak for himself and All Elite Wrestling. WWE certainly wants AEW to fail as competition and will go to significant lengths to see it happen. They certainly internally don’t have good things to say about AEW, but hatred and wanting to make sure they don’t grow may not be the same thing," Said Dave Meltzer.
This update comes as a result of Tony Khan's recent comments about WWE, claiming that the two companies are in a "real war" following supposed contract tampering and attempts to hurt All Elite Wrestling's relationship with New Japan Pro Wrestling.
AEW Dynamite's success forced WWE to move NXT's TV timeslot
While the "Wednesday Night Wars" may have seemed like nothing more than a way to pit two sets of fans against each other, despite wrestlers from both companies being very good friends. However, it seemed odd that WWE would move one of their shows onto the same night and time as a promotion they didn't see as a threat.
AEW vs NXT quarters. Dynamite won 6 and NXT managed to win 2.
Giant lead-in for AEW and it's funny because NXT used to have much better lead-ins every week during the actual Wednesday Night Wars. https://t.co/znuMwYH2wP
However, WWE was forced to backtrack after 18 months of competing with Dynamite when it was announced in April 2021 that NXT would be moving to Tuesday nights on the USA Network.
This came as a result of All Elite Wrestling beating NXT every week bar one in the key 18-49 demographic between October 2019 and April 2021. Dynamite and NXT have only gone head-to-head on a single occasion since, with Dynamite gaining the higher TV rating for their "Title Tuesday" special in October 2022.
Do you think the two companies are at war with each other? Let us know in the comments section down below!
Please credit the "Wrestling Observer Newsletter" and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling when using quotes from this article.