Eric Bischoff Predicts The Winner Of This Week's Tuesday Night War Between WWE & AEW

When "AEW Dynamite" and "WWE NXT" went head-to-head the last time around, on October 18, 2022, it was Tony Khan's promotion that prevailed, defeating WWE's developmental show by a margin of 752,000 to 676,000 viewers. Exactly a year later, AEW's flagship show is once again being preempted to Tuesday due to the MLB Playoffs, but the stakes are a lot higher this time.

Eric Bischoff — who knows a thing or two about competing with WWE for eyeballs — does not expect the same outcome this time around, citing the fact that WWE is calling upon big guns such as John Cena, Paul Heyman, Cody Rhodes, and possibly The Undertaker to crush the competition. 

"Paul Heyman and John Cena are massive stars. Because of the curiosity factor, I don't see AEW breaking 500 [thousand viewers]," Bischoff predicted on "Strictly Business" podcast. When reminded of "Dynamite" defeating "NXT" during the Wednesday Night Wars between October 2019 and April 2021, Bischoff explained why the current circumstances are different. "It's a developmental [show] ... You're talking about putting your first team in against your third string."

As expected, both companies are pulling out all the stops to win the eyeballs of the wrestling faithful. Almost immediately after WWE revealed that the first 30 minutes of "NXT" would run commercial-free, AEW countered with the same announcement. Furthermore, both shows will reportedly receive 10-minute overruns, another sign of the networks getting invested in the ratings battle. 

While AEW's show will be built around matches such as Adam Copeland's in-ring debut, Bryan Danielson vs. Swerve Strickland, and Hikaru Shida vs. Saraya, "NXT" will be headlined by Bron Breakker (with Heyman) vs. Carmelo Hayes (with Cena), Roxanne Perez vs. Asuka, and Brawling Brutes and Tyler Bate vs. Gallus in a Pub Rules Match. Also, Rhodes will be making "a major announcement" in his first-ever "NXT" appearance.