According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the current plan for the future of NXT is to have the brand air on FS1, each Wednesday night from 8pm until 10pm ET.
This would put NXT vs. AEW on Wednesday nights as AEW’s weekly TNT TV show premieres on Wednesday, October 2 from 8pm until 10pm ET.
There’s no word yet on when WWE will announce the big move, when the show will premiere on FS1, or if it will remain on the WWE Network on Wednesdays. There’s also no word yet on if the show will air from Full Sail Live, or if they will start traveling for TV each week.
The new report noted that WWE has had plans to bring NXT to FS1 for some time, but they weren’t going to finalize the timeslot until AEW and TNT officially announced their timeslot. The move is obviously not official until WWE makes the announcement, but it’s far enough along that Fox has already informed some affiliates. The deal was apparently agreed on in late June or early July.
The working idea is that NXT will air each week as a live two-hour show. The internal feeling is that a taped show will not work up against AEW, which will air live each week also. WWE officials feel like they have a strong edge over AEW, that being the endless supply of main roster Superstars that they can put on the NXT show whenever they want to. WWE also has another strong advantage and that’s being able to promote the show on RAW and SmackDown, as well as other Fox programming.
Regarding the WWE vs. AEW Wednesday Night Wars, the Observer noted that TNT airs in more homes and is a much higher-rated channel, but WWE is obviously the known name brand to the general public, and NXT would be promoted on two of the most-watched cable shows, among other programs.
Imlie