How The Wednesday Night War Was Won On The Very First Night

AEW Dynamite and NXT each showed their hand in just 15 minutes...

by Michael Sidgwick
Tony Khan
AEW

The Wednesday Night War is over.

Sure, there are some weeks like this one, in which you're reminded that AEW Dynamite isn't quite perfect. And yes, NXT presents good-to-very-good bell-to-bell action and might win a rare week in which it revives an old WCW pay-per-view brand and literally plasters it on the show.

But it's over. NXT has bested Dynamite just once in the key demo, and has scored what amounts to a few consolation goals in terms of overall viewership. AEW is even tripling NXT in the demo when not merely battering it. Where AEW has become the epicentre of pro wrestling conversation, there is no buzz on the back-and-yellow brand. The second Fight Pit didn't draw as well as the original, but that can be classed as a noble failure. NXT did the work. But in what can be classed as an indictment, NXT b*llocksed up Rhea Ripley's push despite her building the audience like no other performer.

The real war is now being fought between Dynamite and WWE Monday Night RAW. AEW is gunning for those demos and has even fired off some shots in 18-49: the fallout from Winter Is Coming scored better ratings than WWE's flagship managed the week prior. The Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer calculated that Dynamite, should viewing trends continue, is on course to defeat RAW regularly by November/December 2022.

The Wednesday Night War was over, in fact, on the very first night.

CONT'D...(1 of 6)

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!