WWE, AEW, NXT & TNA Major Shows | Would Tony Khan Buy TNA? | Pollock & Thurston
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston discuss WWE, AEW, and TNA business metrics, including ratings analysis, ticket pricing trends, and whether Tony Khan would acquire TNA. They also cover WWE's content strategy driven by algorithms, upcoming wrestling events on a crowded weekend, and media ethics around off-the-record communications.
Summary
The episode opens with discussion of ongoing legal matters, including voice message recordings from Vince McMahon and Ari Emanuel in the WWE-TKO merger lawsuit that are taking exceptionally long to deliver via thumb drive. This sets up a broader theme about institutional inefficiency and the slow wheels of justice.
The hosts address a crowded wrestling weekend featuring TNA Slammiversary (moved to afternoon to avoid AEW Forbidden Door), WWE Night of Champions in Saudi Arabia, the free Great American Bash on CW, and AEW's Forbidden Door pay-per-view. Brandon notes this creates a difficult environment for TNA's business prospects. WWE's Saudi Arabia deal is analyzed as a $50 million commitment from a 10-year deal starting in 2018, with questions raised about whether WWE still needs multiple shows annually there versus saving such relationships for premium events like WrestleMania.
Brandon reports on Tony Khan's media call where Khan was asked if he'd acquire TNA. Khan declined a hypothetical $40 million offer, explaining it would require "the right price" and isn't a current priority. He compared it to car shopping—interesting at the right price but not a top acquisition. Khan did confirm visa issues affecting several international talents for Forbidden Door and expressed confidence Jack Perry would re-sign. Regarding Bushiroad transferring New Japan shares, Khan offered only that it's "something to keep an eye on."
The hosts discuss Khan's vision for MyAEW as a distribution hub for independent wrestling promotions around major AEW events (potentially like WrestleMania weekend), allowing hardcore fans to access a complete wrestling ecosystem on one platform. This represents a shift from library acquisition strategy to becoming an event distributor.
Paul Heyman's interview with Chris Van Vliet reveals WWE's creative philosophy has evolved into what he calls serving multiple masters: Netflix, NBCU, Disney/ESPN, distributors, audiences, and talent—in that order. Heyman frames this as Paul Levesque (Triple H) being uniquely suited to navigate algorithm-driven content decisions, claiming he's "better now" than a few years ago. Braun Strowman responded skeptically on social media, saying "ratings say otherwise."
Brandon presents extensive ratings data: SmackDown is down 17% total viewership on USA Network; Raw on Netflix shows roughly even year-over-year when excluding the debut episodes; NXT is down 17%; AEW Dynamite is up 2% (essentially flat) while Collision is up 12%. Market-by-market attendance comparisons show WWE with 17 negative stories versus 5 positive in Q2, while AEW has 10 negative to 3 positive.
The most detailed analysis covers ticket pricing trends using Polestar data. From 2023 through mid-2025, WWE showed an "era of ticket price increases" with nearly uninterrupted green (price increases) across markets. However, recent data shows red (price decreases) appearing more frequently. Several markets show problematic patterns: Boston attendance down 31% (John Cena comparison); London down 31% in attendance but up 12% in price; Atlanta gate down; but Sacramento up 24% in gate with only 10% price increase. The key tension is whether increased ticket prices offset moderate attendance declines—so far they largely do, but recent examples suggest some limit to price elasticity.
The hosts conclude that WWE peaked in 2024-2025 and is now seeing normalization, while AEW appears to have bottomed out but hasn't yet reversed course significantly. The John Cena retirement storyline is credited with masking what would otherwise be a steeper decline for WWE this year.
Finally, they discuss journalist Diana Russini's attempt to place text responses to New York Times reporters off-the-record without explicit pre-agreement. The Times correctly published her comments, establishing that off-the-record requires mutual agreement, not unilateral declaration by the interview subject.
About this episode
<p><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/iamjohnpollock.bsky.social" rel="nofollow"><strong>John Pollock</strong></a><span> and </span><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/brandonthurston.bsky.social" rel="nofollow"><strong>Brandon Thurston</strong></a><span> discuss four major shows coming up this weekend, WWE’s return to Saudi Arabia, and Tony Khan is asked about his interest in purchasing TNA.</span></p><p><span>VIDEO VERSION: </span><a href="https://youtube.com/live/H3IM-02-Bwo" rel="nofollow">https://youtube.com/live/H3IM-02-Bwo</a></p><p><span>Topics this week include:</span></p><ul><li><span>Major weekend of shows from WWE, AEW, TNA & NXT </span></li><li><span>WWE’s latest trip to Saudi Arabia: What do these shows mean now?</span></li><li><span>Tony Khan’s Forbidden Door media call: Would Tony buy TNA? Will MyAEW partner indies be a part of a PPV week of events?</span></li><li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?pp=ygUdc3RlcGhlbiBhIHNtaXRoIHBhdWwgbGV2ZXNxdWU%3D&t=1527s&v=F521J7YZO6Q" rel="nofollow">Paul Levesque’s interview with Stephen A. Smith</a></li><li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?pp=ygUKY3Z2IGhleW1hbg%3D%3D&t=2269s&v=moi7Sa6CU-U" rel="nofollow">Paul Heyman comments on the creative process and his role</a></li><li><span>TV ratings & attendance trends for WWE & AEW </span></li><li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/24/nyregion/dianna-russini-mike-vrabel-athletic-new-york-times.html" rel="nofollow">This week’s lesson on what “off the record” means</a><span> </span></li></ul><p><br /></p><p><em>Music courtesy: </em><a href="https://soundcloud.com/IAmBenTramer" rel="nofollow"><em>“Panic Beat” by Ben Tramer</em></a></p><p><strong>POST Wrestling</strong></p><p><strong>Subscribe: </strong><a href="https://postwrestling.com/subscribe" rel="nofollow"><strong>https://postwrestling.com/subscribe</strong></a></p><p><strong>Patreon: </strong><a href="http://postwrestlingcafe.com" rel="nofollow"><strong>http://postwrestlingcafe.com</strong></a></p><p><strong>Forum: </strong><a href="https://forum.postwrestling.com/" rel="nofollow"><strong>https://forum.postwrestling.com</strong></a></p><p><strong>Discord: </strong><a href="https://discord.com/invite/Q795HhR" rel="nofollow"><strong>https://discord.com/invite/Q795HhR</strong></a></p><p><a href="http://www.twitter.com/POSTwrestling" rel="nofollow"><strong>Twitter</strong></a><span>/</span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/POSTwrestling" rel="nofollow"><strong>Facebook</strong></a><span>/</span><a href="http://www.instagram.com/POSTwrestling" rel="nofollow"><strong>Instagram</strong></a><span>/</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/POSTwrestling" rel="nofollow"><strong>YouTube</strong></a><strong>: @POSTwrestling</strong></p><p><strong>Bluesky: </strong><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/postwrestling.com" rel="nofollow"><strong>https://bsky.app/profile/postwrestling.com</strong></a></p><p><br /></p><p><strong>Wrestlenomics</strong></p><p><strong>Subscribe: </strong><a href="https://wrestlenomics.com/podcast/" rel="nofollow"><strong>https://wrestlenomics.com/podcast/</strong></a></p><p><strong>Patreon: </strong><a href="https://patreon.com/wrestlenomics" rel="nofollow"><strong>https://patreon.com/wrestlenomics</strong></a></p><p><strong>Substack: </strong><a href="https://wrestlenomics.substack.com/" rel="nofollow"><strong>https://wrestlenomics.substack.com/</strong></a></p><p><a href="http://www.twitter.com/wrestlenomics" rel="nofollow"><strong>Twitter</strong></a><span>/</span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/wrestlenomics" rel="nofollow"><strong>Facebook</strong></a><span>/</span><a href="http://www.instagram.com/wrestlenomics" rel="nofollow"><strong>Instagram</strong></a><span>/</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/wrestlenomics" rel="nofollow"><strong>YouTube</strong></a><strong>: @Wrestlenomics</strong></p><br /><br />Advertising Inquiries: <a href="https://redcircle.com/brands">https://redcircle.com/brands</a><br /><br />Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href="https://redcircle.com/privacy">https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>
Key Insights
- Paul Heyman claims Paul Levesque is uniquely qualified to serve WWE's multiple masters (Netflix, NBCU, Disney/ESPN, distributors, audiences, talent), ranked in that order, making him irreplaceable.
- WWE's ratings are down 17% for SmackDown and NXT year-over-year, while Raw on Netflix is roughly even when excluding debut episodes, contradicting claims of continuous improvement.
- WWE experienced an era of nearly uninterrupted ticket price increases from WrestleMania 2024 through SummerSlam 2025, but recent data shows price increases leveling off and some decreases appearing.
- Tony Khan declined a hypothetical $40 million offer for TNA, stating it's not a priority acquisition and would need to be at the right price, treating it like any consumer purchase decision.
- WWE's strategy of counter-programming with the free Great American Bash on CW against AEW's Forbidden Door pay-per-view appears to harm WWE's own show more than AEW's, based on past head-to-head results.
- TNA Slammiversary has distributed approximately 2,600 tickets for a 9,000-seat arena with claims it will sell out, raising questions about the accuracy of sellout predictions.
- Market-by-market WWE attendance comparisons show 17 negative stories versus 5 positive in Q2 2026, indicating broader attendance softening beyond specific cities.
- Several WWE markets show problematic ticket pricing: London saw 31% attendance drop with 12% price increases and gate revenue down; Seattle saw 130% price increase from first return since April 2023.
- MyAEW is being positioned as a distribution hub for independent wrestling around major AEW events, shifting strategy from acquiring libraries to facilitating multi-promotion event weekends.
- WWE's Saudi Arabia deal at $50 million per show raises questions about long-term necessity, as normalization goals may have been achieved, with potential to scale back to annual events after the 2028 deal expiration.
- AEW Dynamite is essentially flat (up 2%) in total viewership year-over-year, while Collision is up 12%, suggesting the secondary show is gaining traction more than the flagship.
- Diana Russini's attempt to declare text messages off-the-record without pre-agreement with New York Times reporters failed because off-the-record status requires mutual consent, not unilateral declaration.
Topics
Transcript
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