Why Eric Bischoff Sees WWE NXT Potentially Outperforming AEW Dynamite
With an infusion of main roster talent and intertwining storylines, "WWE NXT" is on a roll of late, scoring its highest average rating in two years and surging in average yearly viewership to creep awfully close to "AEW Dynamite" territory. Former WCW President Eric Bischoff has long thought this might be possible, predicting as much in the past, and says it's a great move to be bringing in bigger names to WWE's developmental territory.
On the latest episode of "Strictly Business," Bischoff referenced last week's episode, headlined by Dominik Mysterio's North American Championship defense against Dragon Lee, featuring Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio in Lee's corner. "Right now, arguably, Dominik Mysterio is probably not the hottest talent in WWE," he said. "But he's pretty hot and now you bring Rey in as part of the storyline that's going on — brilliant idea."
The stories that WWE has been telling, led by premier factions in The Bloodline and The Judgment Day, have consistently been leaving viewers wanting more and forcing them to tune in from show to show for many months now. By involving "NXT" in that process, with the Judgment Day having a heavy presence of late, and also repackaging superstars like Mustafa Ali, Dana Brooke, and others, more and more eyes have been focused on weekly television from the WWE Performance Center.
Bigger Stars Equal Bigger Ratings
Last week's show garnered 776,000 viewers and a 0.23 in the coveted 18-49 demographic for the third week in a row. As "NXT" inches ever closer to gaining "Dynamite" numbers, Bischoff is quick to note the difference between the two shows. However, he also acknowledges the strategic shift for "NXT" of late.
"People have to remember," Bischoff explained, "NXT is a developmental organization. It isn't [WWE's] biggest, brightest stars as it is with AEW — you see their top talent on that show regularly. NXT is a developmental company and I wouldn't expect it to get [these] kind of ratings with people who are trying to become stars as it will get when it has people who are established stars on the show."
Harkening back to a prediction he made for 2023, Bischoff noted that if this trend continues in the near future, his vision might just come true. "I predicted it last year or early this year," recalled Bischoff. "At some point in time, NXT is going to outperform Dynamite and they're within about 100,000 viewers or less of doing that. I predicted it would happen this summer [and] I'm gonna stick with that."
With All In – a show Bischoff isn't sold on thanks to recent decision-making — set for Wembley Stadium in just over two weeks, AEW is showing growth in some areas, too. But that doesn't discredit what "NXT" has done of late to heighten the competition. As such, the collective hype for wrestling across the board remains positive for all parties.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Strictly Business with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.