AEW’s Wrestle Dynasty event, co-promoted with NJPW and other major wrestling promotions, took place late Saturday night, featuring a stacked card with AEW stars like Mercedes Moné, The Young Bucks, Ricochet, and Kenny Omega in action. Despite the event’s significance, AEW did not promote it beforehand, leaving fans wondering about the lack of hype from the company.
On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez explained the reason behind this absence of promotion. According to them, AEW was unable to advertise Wrestle Dynasty due to restrictions in their deal with MAX, as the pay-per-view aired on a competing streaming service, NJPW World, and TrillerTV.
Alvarez: “So then we had the Collision show, which was completely bizarre, because this aired immediately prior to Wrestle Dynasty, and literally, the words Wrestle Dynasty were mentioned one time on this show in an inset promo by Don Callis. They didn’t plug this show. They didn’t tell you when it was on, what was happening, nothing. It was like it didn’t exist.
Meltzer: ”There was a reason.”
Alvarez: “Because of the MAX deal is on a different streaming service. But, man, it was weird to watch.”
Meltzer: ”It was really weird, yeah, especially because it started, like, literally, the moment the show ended, the other show started.”
Alvarez: “Yeah. It’s like this was the lead into something they couldn’t talk about.”
Meltzer: ”They’ll probably talk about it next week because they got to show footage of Kenny Omega, right?”
Alvarez: “I don’t know. I know he has, but you know what? On Wednesday, they literally were saying, ‘We don’t know when he’s going to be back.’ It was like Japan didn’t even happen. I presume, but I wouldn’t say it’s a certainty.”
Meltzer: ”Well, they gotta bring up the Young Bucks winning the Tag Team Titles too.”
Alvarez: “Well, maybe, but the young bucks went home, and I’m not sure the Young Bucks are even gonna be on TV anytime soon, so they may not even have to mention it….I don’t know. The last we saw them, they said, “We’re going home. We’re gonna work remotely. We’ll see you later.’”
Meltzer: “I think that they’re in Japan till the 10th…..I mean, they should be on soon. I was told it’s like till the end of the year, and then they were coming back. But so they should be back soon. I don’t know what their program is going to be, because the way they left, it was just so weird how they left. Just weird. “
This restriction underscores the complexities of AEW’s broadcast agreements and highlights the challenges of navigating multi-platform partnerships in the modern wrestling landscape. Despite the lack of promotion, Wrestle Dynasty delivered an exciting evening for fans and showcased AEW’s talent on a global stage.
(h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription)
