Previous reports stated that the WWE had plans to move NXT into a larger venue to better compete with AEW, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. At least, not yet. As of right now, NXT staying at Full Sail University is more of a contractual issue than not.
The magical contractual date is…
March 2020. Yep. The WWE is contractually required to remain at Full Sail until March 2020. After that, the WWE can move NXT shows anywhere they can schedule them. There are a couple of questions about this like will they or should they?
The should they part is hotly debated among fans. To be honest, if they want to have the big show/event feel they need to move. The thinking is with a not so congested or claustrophobic environment, they can add more people, pyrotechnics, and other big stage bells and whistles we see on Raw, Smackdown, and AEW Dynamite. It’ll create more of a feel of a larger stage and draw people in.
Small intimate places are great for developmental territories or smaller promotions embracing the 70s and 80s feel many fans desire, but not on Vince McMahon’s big stage. McMahon implemented a system that’s been proven to work by going bigger and better than the competition. It’s tried and true, so it’s understandable why this would be expected to increase their viewership numbers.
But then, there’s always a catch.
Winning the Ratings
Moving NXT into larger venues was expected if they didn’t start beating AEW Dynamite in weekly ratings. While it was just a spark at first, adding NXT to Survivor Series was a stroke of genius, and NXT has been doing better viewers-wise since then, winning several weeks. While they may have stumbled this week with their worst ratings performance yet, the fact they won a few times may be enough to give pause to pushing the button and moving them to a larger venue.
Another obstacle in this is Triple H, as he reportedly wants to keep NXT in Full Sail, but that could change as well. If NXT doesn’t start winning regularly, he may change his mind as well. Interesting enough, there were rumors through November and December that Triple H could be fired in 2020 if NXT doesn’t perform better. To be honest, I don’t see that happening. Triple H has too long a history with the company, has shown a phenomenal talent at running NXT that if would be foolhardy to consider firing him.
So, it all comes down to performance, and Vince McMahon’s take on things. It’s no secret that McMahon has the final say, and barring an unforeseen exchange of power, he’ll decide if NXT staying at Full Sail is feasible.
As an old school wrestling fan, I’d prefer for NXT to remain at Full Sail. Only time will tell what’ll happen.
What are your thoughts? Do you want to see NXT in a bigger venue or stay at Full Sail? Let us know below.
