AEW’s Initial Collision Plans Aimed at Avoiding WWE SummerSlam Overlap

WWE is bringing SummerSlam to Cleveland on Saturday, August 3. AEW has a weekly show on Saturday nights, called Collision, and they will face competition with WWE’s biggest party of the summer this Saturday. This competition is something AEW tried to avoid.

AEW has moved Collision to an earlier start time, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET on TNT. The company will tape the show on Thursday night at Esports Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

WWE announced on Monday during RAW that SummerSlam will have a three-hour pre-show starting at 4 p.m. ET, while the main card starts at 7 p.m. ET. Kickoff shows are usually one or two hours, so tacking another hour to the pre-show festivities is newsworthy.

While on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer noted that AEW had originally planned to air Collision on Friday night to avoid competition with SummerSlam, but plans changed.

“They moved Collision to not go head-to-head, that’s why it’s on at 5 o’clock. I had thought they were going to put Collision on Friday night, which at one point was the plan. That’s why they’re taping on Thursday this week. For whatever reason…they’re not going to do a good number for Collision. It’s gonna be brutal between SummerSlam and the Olympics. It’s gonna be real, real tough for Collision this week.”

Whenever Collision goes up against WWE PLE competition, it takes a significant hit in the ratings, regardless of whether it’s head-to-head or airs hours later after an afternoon WWE show. It only makes sense that more pro wrestling fans will be watching WWE’s premium live event, especially since SummerSlam has been slotted into a place where it is the second-most important event on the company’s yearly schedule.

We will have to see how WWE books SummerSlam. There is a lot of hype as the date in Cleveland gets closer. Only time will tell what WWE does during the biggest party of the summer, but we will be here with all the updates you need, along with AEW Collision coverage.

What’s your take on AEW running Collision during WWE premium live events? Do you think this is a good idea? Let us know what you think in the comments section!