AEW President Tony Khan has addressed the ongoing trend of WWE scheduling major NXT events against AEW’s biggest shows.
In recent months, WWE has run NXT Great American Bash opposite AEW All Out, NXT Battleground on the same night as Double or Nothing, and the upcoming NXT Heatwave will take place the same day as AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door in London.
Speaking on a media call ahead of Forbidden Door, Khan emphasized that AEW’s focus remains on itself and credited the promotion’s success in 2025 to staying committed to its own vision. “We’ve had a great 2025 in AEW and I believe that, in large part, that’s because everyone in AEW is really focused on making AEW a tremendous promotion and continuing this excellent year we’re having.”
Khan also praised the company’s media rights deal with Warner Bros. Discovery, highlighting AEW Dynamite and Saturday Collision airing on HBO Max as a major boost for the brand. “All these things have come together to build a lot of excitement inside AEW and outside AEW, and all around the company. I want to be able to continue that, and the most important thing for us is to talk about AEW and work really hard on AEW every week. It means not necessarily focusing on what every wrestling promotion is doing, but I do like watching wrestling and keeping up with what other wrestling promotions are doing.”
Khan continued by stressing AEW’s identity as a company that strives to be the best, even while other promotions thrive. “We’ve been in business since 2019 and in every one of those years, there have been other wrestling promotions at times doing very cool things. At the very best of AEW, we’ve been super focused on what we’re doing. Not being the only wrestling company in the world, but trying our best to be the best. I know we have the best wrestlers, and this year I think we’re doing the best TV shows and pay-per-views. I know we have the best fans.”
The trend will continue this fall, as WWE WrestlePalooza is scheduled to air the same night as AEW All Out 2025 on September 20, officially launching WWE Premium Live Events on ESPN’s new streaming platform.
(H/T to Fightful for the transcription)
