While the mainstream media might not be covering it to the degree that they would with other sports, pro wrestling is undergoing a very interesting period of existence. In fact, between AEW’s debut in 2019 and the organization managing to defeat WWE’s flagship Monday Night RAW in key demographics, one would have to argue that the biggest name in Sports Entertainment is on the ropes.
And believe it or not, that’s a good thing! It’s actually the best thing possible for both products and pro wrestling in general. For example, AEW has been on a roll since acquiring Bryan Danielson, CM Punk, and Adam Cole that they are starting to beat WWE in key demographics. Keep in mind that AEW has only been in existence for two years and is competing with a company that has been around for decades.
According to Showbiz.com“The post-All Out Dynamite drew a 0.52 rating in the key 18-49 demographic this week. This is up 40.54% from last week’s 0.37 rating…Dynamite beat this week’s Raw 9/6/2021 in key demographic viewers. Dynamite had 681,000 viewers from the 18-49 demo, while Raw had 678,000 from the 18-49 demo.”
AEW’s first big move was CM Punk versus Darby Allen at All In, where Punk came away with the victory. The company is also now doing Bryan Danielson versus Kenny Omega, which should be quite a show for die-hard wrestling fans. Finally, AEW now is running Friday Night shows called, “Rampage” and it is starting to catch up to WWE in demographics.
WWE – WE’VE GOT A PROBLEM…
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This has forced WWE into some pretty big decisions, including having Big E. winning The WWE Title, bringing back Finn Balor’s Demon King character, and Brock Lesnar’s return. Only time will tell if these changes resonate with fans or not, but they are very interesting responses to what AEW is doing.
Also, keep in mind that all this comes only a couple of months after AEW won the Wednesday night War and forced WWE into moving their NXT program to Tuesday nights. This is the same NXT that was once heralded as the company’s last good show and is now being retooled by Vince McMahon. If nothing else, both sides have prompted a lot of change out of each other. It’s also brought out the best in them.
With that being said, the real winner here is the wrestling fans that get to take part in this magical period of pro wrestling. Of course, it’s not the boom period either of these company’s need right now, but it does lend itself to a lot of good television. The two organizations are forcing each other to better themselves with every step and it is resulting in a lot of great content.
Whether it be Roman Reigns’ heel run as champion on Friday Night SmackDown, CM Punk’s first pro wrestling run in over seven years, or something else, there is a lot to enjoy here. One could even say that there is something for everyone here and that’s just the best part. It’s a new era in pro wrestling and while it might not be as glorious as the Attitude Era, its still a once in a lifetime kind of feeling.
Jim Cornette on Mick Foley’s Comments About Young Wrestlers Not Trusting WWE
From Episode 398 of the Jim Cornette ExperienceArtwork by Travis Heckel!Send in your question for the Drive-Thru to: CornyDriveThru@gmail.com Follow Jim and …
Below is the schedule for pro wrestling every week.
- Monday. 8pm. Monday Night Raw USA Network
- Tuesday 8pm NXT USA Network
- Wednesday 8pm AEW Dynamite TNT
- Friday 8pm Friday Night SmackDown Fox
- Friday 10pm AEW Rampage TNT
