With only so many days in the week, pro wrestling shows inevitably intersect and compete against each other. AEW Dynamite, upon debut, aired simultaneously on Wednesday nights with WWE NXT, which eventually moved to Tuesdays.
Now, AEW and WWE programming will cross over again, as Double or Nothing and NXT Battleground both happen on Sunday, May 28.
On Thursday’s Double or Nothing media call, when asked if it feels like a rivalry between AEW and WWE, AEW CEO and GM Tony Khan said he welcomes the competition, as long as it’s ethical.
“I think it’s been that feeling from day one since we launched the TV show, and it probably changed a little bit on April 14, 2021,” Khan said. “It feels like the old days, in some ways. I’m always eager to compete in whatever arena I’m in, and I really love the competition in pro wrestling — as long as it’s done with some ethical standards.
“If people run events at similar times, I don’t know if that’s necessarily unethical. I don’t have a big problem with it. I wish everyone the best, and I expect we will do the best show on Sunday. I think there will be a big audience for AEW Double or Nothing, but certainly, that spirit of competition is something that we’ve dealt with since the launch of AEW. I have never had any problem with it, as long as it’s an ethical competition, which I don’t always think it has been, coming from the other side.”
Khan did not specify what had been unethical.
Once Collision starts running on Saturdays, the competition will escalate, as that is the same day WWE usually hosts premium live events. But if WWE eventually runs a premium show against an AEW PPV on a Sunday, it will be interesting to see how all sides react.