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AEW Dynamite and WWE NXT Tie in Wednesday Night Ratings Battle
December 12, 2019
For the first time, WWE NXT and AEW Dynamite tied in the ratings on Wednesday night.
The programs each averaged 778,000 viewers, per Figure Four Online's Bryan Alvarez, which was a decline for both shows compared to a week ago. AEW narrowly outdrew NXT on Dec. 4, averaging 851,000 viewers to its competitor's 845,000.
NXT included a pair of marquee matches. Finn Balor defeated Keith Lee and Tommaso Ciampa in the main event to become the No. 1 contender to NXT champion Adam Cole. Angel Garza also defeated Lio Rush to win the NXT Cruiserweight Championship.
On Dynamite, The Young Bucks earned a hard-fought victory over Santana and Ortiz in a Texas Street Fight, becoming the No. 1 contenders for the AEW tag titles. Chris Jericho also offered Jon Moxley a spot in The Inner Circle, calling back to their shared history in WWE.
The biggest development in AEW on Wednesday came when the promotion announced its next pay-per-view. Revolution will take place Feb. 29 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.
This will be AEW's first chance to really use Dynamite to build up to a major show.
Full Gear was Nov. 9, just over a month after Dynamite debuted Oct. 2. Now, the company will have more than two months to set up the biggest matches and feuds for Revolution.
NXT, meanwhile, is pushing full steam ahead toward its next TakeOver on Feb. 12 in Portland, Oregon.
Next week's show will shape the title picture for TakeOver. Balor will challenge Cole for the NXT Championship, while Shayna Baszler will defend the NXT women's title against Rhea Ripley.