WWE Accused of Flooding Weekends to Keep AEW from Thriving

WWE might not be trying to win every weekend—but according to Dave Meltzer, they’re doing just enough to keep AEW from thriving.

On the July 12, 2025 episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Meltzer dove into WWE’s current strategy of stacking events against AEW shows, particularly noting how WWE loaded the same weekend as AEW All In: Texas with Saturday Night’s Main Event, NXT Great American Bash, and Evolution. But it’s not about ratings domination. Meltzer believes the true goal is to drain AEW’s momentum over time.

“Even if it doesn’t work, they’re going to do the strategy. They’re going to keep doing the strategy. It’s a battle of attrition. They can be annoying and be annoying and be annoying and hold them back and hold them back. The thing is, you know, again—up until recently, AEW had a very negative rep. And WWE was the cool thing. I think that’s starting to change. But WWE’s goal was never to win this weekend—it’s to wear AEW down over time. And the only way AEW loses is if they stop growing.”

Meltzer also tied WWE’s behavior to Vince McMahon’s post-WCW mindset—an aggressive survival instinct that treats any competitor as a threat from day one. According to Meltzer, even WWE President Nick Khan appears to have adopted this approach despite not coming from a wrestling background.

This kind of “death by a thousand cuts” strategy isn’t about big moments—it’s about consistency. WWE doesn’t need to kill AEW in one blow. They just need to keep them from thriving.

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