On a recent episode of Busted Open After Dark, WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray gave his take on WWE’s upcoming Wrestlepalooza event, which will air live on ESPN on September 20, the very same night as AEW’s long-scheduled All Out pay-per-view.
The move has sparked widespread debate over whether WWE is deliberately counter-programming AEW.
Bully Ray drew parallels to wrestling’s past, recalling a famous tactic from the late 1980s. “Reminds me of back in the day when WCW put on the Clash of the Champions for free to go head-to-head with WrestleMania,” he said.
He then posed the central question to listeners: “How do you feel about the WWE running a show opposite All Out? Do you think the WWE considers AEW competition? I know they say they haven’t, but is running a show right up against All Out the WWE basically saying, ‘yeah, they are competition,’ or are they just trying to squash the competition before the competition becomes competition?”
While acknowledging the speculation, Bully Ray offered his own perspective. “I don’t think that the WWE currently looks at AEW as competition,” he stated. “But I don’t think the WWE is going to give AEW an opportunity to become competition.”
He also addressed the fan sentiment that WWE’s move may be unnecessary or spiteful. “One of the words that I’ve heard thrown around is petty. It’s petty of the WWE to do this. Do you agree?”
Ultimately, Bully Ray framed WWE’s decision as a calculated strategy rather than a reaction. With the company now launching its first premium live event on ESPN, he suggested this is less about acknowledging AEW as a direct threat and more about preventing the rival promotion from gaining further ground, a tactic rooted in WWE’s long history of fending off competitors.
