NXT Returning To Taped Shows After WWE SummerSlam 2021
Major changes coming to the WWE NXT taping schedule.
WWE will go back to taping episodes of NXT in advance after SummerSlam weekend (21 and 22 August), Fightful Select has confirmed.
While there is currently no word on whether or not this will be a permanent switch, several episodes of NXT will be taped next Monday and Tuesday, with a number of black and gold brand regulars sent emails to request their spots.
Last week's episode of NXT was the brand's first live outing in three weeks. The 27 July and 3 August episodes had been pre-empted due to Olympic games coverage on USA Network, necessitating WWE pretaping the shows at the Capitol Wrestling Center and putting them out on SYFY instead. Ratings suffered, with the P18-49 number falling to 0.12 and 0.10 when it typically lives closer to 0.20, though this likely had more to do with the change of station and increased competition than the pretaped format.
NXT was a taped show up until September 2019, when it went live on USA Network to go head-to-head with AEW Dynamite. Now, at least in the interim, WWE is going back to the old format.
Unfortunately for fans of WWE's developmental brand, this means spoilers are almost inevitable. Such is the nature of the pre-taped beast.