WWE's Attitude Towards AEW Changed After Last Week's Monster Rating
AEW Dynamite hitting 1.2 million may have triggered a change in mentality for WWE.
AEW Dynamite hitting an unopposed viewership of 1.2 million this week is being considered a big deal within WWE.
This is according to Dave Meltzer, who stated on a recent episode of Wrestling Observer Radio that the bulk of last week's WWE releases (including Samoa Joe) went down last Thursday morning, but WWE's attitude towards AEW had changed greatly by the evening.
The Wednesday evening television ratings would have likely come in during this window.
On Joe, Meltzer said that if the former NXT and United States Champion can get cleared, there will be plenty of options available to him as a free agent. The veteran hasn't competed since being sidelined by a concussion in February 2020.
Last week saw AEW make the Wednesday night slot its own following WWE NXT's move to Tuesday nights. NXT saw benefits of its own, with its viewership increasing to 805,000, but Dynamite took a colossal leap and was up by around 77%. Previous unopposed weeks had seen AEW score an average viewership of 972,000.
The 1.2 million episode of Dynamite was bolstered by a Mike Tyson appearance, a TNT Title main event, and the Tag Team Title opener pitting The Young Bucks against PAC and Rey Fenix.