The final weekend of June 2026 will be a very busy one as WWE, TNA, AEW, and now “WWE NXT” will be running major shows. It was recently announced that “NXT” will be hosting its next Premium Live Event, The Great American Bash, on June 28 at 7PM ET, with the show airing on The CW for the very first time. This means that “NXT’s” show will go directly against AEW and NJPW’s Forbidden Door pay-per-view, while also taking place immediately after TNA’s Slammiversary pay-per-view that takes place earlier in the day, and the day after WWE Night of Champions in Saudi Arabia.
In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer called WWE’s decision to once again try and counterprogram AEW questionable for a variety of reasons — the main one being that WWE attempted this same tactic multiple times in 2025, as well as the odd occasion in the years prior to that, and it simply didn’t work. WWE put both main roster and “NXT” shows against a number of AEW pay-per-views in 2025, only for AEW’s shows to not only perform better than expected, but for the WWE shows to underperform.
Knowing that it didn’t work the first time, Meltzer questioned why WWE would attempt it again, especially with a brand like “NXT” which is not as hot as it was two years ago. While Meltzer completely understands that, on paper, running a PLE on free TV against a pay-per-view that costs fans $40 or $50 should hurt AEW, he noted that all it will do is draw comparisons between “NXT” and AEW that won’t be favorable to WWE, especially if AEW produces a show of the quality of Double or Nothing 2026.
TNA Is The Real Victim
As mentioned, it won’t just be WWE and AEW hosting shows on June 28 as TNA presents its annual Slammiversary pay-per-view, with an afternoon start time to avoid clashing with AEW (and now also “NXT”). WWE’s attempt to hurt its biggest rival seems simple enough, until you realize that TNA will suffer as much, if not more than “NXT” will, regardless of whether AEW puts on another standout show.
Meltzer believes that of the three shows on June 28, Slammiversary will end up taking the biggest hit from both a fan perspective and a logistical standpoint. WWE adding a show to that date could hurt their business partners in TNA as little-to-no “NXT” talent will be sent over to be a part of the show, which is what aided last year’s Slammiversary and Bound For Glory events from a promotional standpoint. What makes it even worse for TNA according to Meltzer is that WWE tried to frame the scheduling as a coincidence, though he noted that the counterprogramming has happened so much that it’s almost impossible that it was just coincidental.
Fans of WWE who have watched TNA because of the partnership will likely choose to skip TNA and wait for “NXT” in the evening, especially with The Great American Bash being on free TV while Slammiversary is on pay-per-view. In turn, this takes viewers away from TNA as casual fans will want to save money and watch a show they have access to for free, but Meltzer feels that some won’t want to be fatigued after already watching WWE Night of Champions the day before. However, the fatigue could also hit “NXT” hard as well if fans watch Night of Champions and Slammiversary instead, meaning both shows will be hurt while AEW gets to dominate the Sunday night/Monday morning discourse.
