Having a “back” button on your remote control was a rite of passage at the height of the “Monday Night Wars” between the WWE and World Championship Wrestling. Flipping between “Raw” and “Nitro” to see what was going on between the two rival companies was a thrill unlike any other for pro wrestling fans.
For at least one night, fans will be able to dust off the trusty button – or at least get the multi-view setup ready for Wednesday night.
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WWE and All Elite Wrestling (AEW) – the two top pro wrestling promotions in the U.S. – will go head-to-head with programming. WWE moved NXT to Wednesday night due to the midterm elections, while AEW will air its regularly scheduled episode of “Dynamite.” Both programs will take place at 8 p.m. ET. NXT will air on CW and AEW will be broadcast on TBS.
Usually, NXT is reserved for the next generation of talent. Several WWE wrestlers have started their careers in the developmental brand and made their way through the system to become major stars. But because NXT is airing on a different day, the big guns are being included in the showcase.
John Cena is slated to appear on NXT as he begins to invite talent to the John Cena Classic. Cody Rhodes will deliver the trophy to the winners of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. The match will be between Romeo Moreno and Noam Dar and Hank and Tank.
Meanwhile, CM Punk will challenge Grayson Waller for the NXT Championship. Punk made the challenge after Waller defended the title against Tony D’Angelo at Halloween Havoc. Kelani Jordan will defend the NXT Women’s Championship against a mystery opponent. Chad Gable, Dragon Lee and Rey Fenix will take on The Vanity Project in a six-man tag match.
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Royce Keys, the fearsome leader of 946, also teased an appearance. Cruz Montana, who started in NXT after joining WWE from Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), joined 946 this past Monday. He might have something to say.
For AEW, “Dynamite” is set for a bloody war.
Blood and Guts has always been an interesting special that AEW has run. The main two matches will feature two groups of women and two groups of men, respectively, battling it out between two rings and one gigantic cage.
Adam Copeland, Darby Allin, Steve Borden, The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson) and Will Ospreay will go up against representatives of the Don Callis Family, which features Jake Doyle, Kazuchika Okada, Kevin Knight, Kyle Fletcher, Mark Davis and Wardlow in the men’s match.
Queen Aminata, Alex Windsor, Jamie Hayter, Willow Nightingale, Harley Cameron and Kris Statlander will take on Lena Kross, Megan Bayne, Persephone, Julia Hart, Skye Blue and Thekla in the women’s match.
There’s one thing you can be certain of – there will be blood.
It will be a great night of pro wrestling with top stars in the sport being featured across both companies’ shows. Tribalism aside, there’s nothing like watching the best of the best go at it no matter what company you’re fond of.
Regardless, it’s an important night of pro wrestling that, hopefully, will only impact storylines in a positive way. WWE has two premium live events this month and AEW has a pay-per-view.
We can all hope that everyone comes out of these showcases unscathed and ready to put on a show on a bigger stage when the time comes. Everyone leaving the ring healthy Wednesday night will be a huge win for all.
My advice? Watch both. Feel fortunate with how lucky we are to live in a world again with two top-tier pro wrestling companies willing to give it their all to put on the best shows possible on a Wednesday freaking night.