WWE Network to stream Evolve 131, same night as AEW event

Is it a sign of the competition ahead that WWE will stream Evolve 131 on the same night as AEW’s Fight for the Fallen, or just a coincidence?

In an exclusive with The Wrap, WWE announced that the WWE Network will be streaming EVOLVE Wrestling’s 10th Anniversary Celebration, Evolve 131, on July 13 at the 2300 (formerly ECW) Arena in Philadelphia. EVOLVE, the Gabe Sapolsky-run promotion, has had longstanding support from the WWE dating back to 2015, and has been the source of many of its more popular talent acquisitions, such as Matt Riddle and Adam Cole.

Given the level of celebration that EVOLVE wants to put on for its 10-year anniversary, there’s no doubt that the promotion would be seeking WWE’s approval for EVOLVE alums to appear on the show. Indeed, Riddle and Cole, among others, will have matches.

Riddle is set to face WWE Cruiserweight Champion Drew Gulak in a non-title bout. Cole will defend his NXT Championship against Akira Tozawa. Other matches are set to feature NXT’s Babtunde and Arturo Ruas, and EVOLVE Tag Team Champions Joe Gacy and Eddie Kingston will also have a match against to-be-determined opponents.

Triple H (Paul Levesque), WWE executive vice president and the man in charge of NXT, told The Wrap, “[EVOLVE] was the birthplace for many current WWE and NXT Superstars so it is only fitting that their 10th Anniversary Celebration will be showcased live on WWE Network.”

The choice, however logical, is also an intriguing one given the timing. July 13 is also the date of All Elite Wrestling’s third big event in the nascent promotion’s history, Fight for the Fallen, which takes place in Jacksonville, Florida at the same time as EVOLVE’s event and will also stream on B/R Live.

It’s hard not to view WWE’s decision as not just a way to boost EVOLVE’s signal (and celebrate a promotion with which WWE has worked for nearly five years) but also to serve as counter-programming to what could be WWE’s biggest North American competition since the demise of WCW in 2001.

AEW executive vice president Kenny Omega seemed to think so. In a since-deleted tweet, Omega commented on WWE’s decision (h/t to Cageside Seats):

"If lining your pockets with blood money is okay, then what’s wrong with trying to undermine a charity show for victims of gun violence? I hear that healthy competition is supposed to be a good thing and yet I can’t help but feel like I’m gonna be sick."

AEW’s Fight for the Fallen will be donating part of the gate to the Victim Assistance Advisory Council, a Jacksonville-based nonprofit that helps victims of violent crimes. Omega’s “blood money” comment refers to WWE’s agreement to run shows in Saudi Arabia.

Whether or not AEW’s show influenced WWE’s choice to run EVOLVE 131 on the WWE Network, it does look like the competition between the two promotions is very much on. And WWE cannot be faulted for wanting to support a company that has been a source of high-level talent on its 10th anniversary.

Nevertheless, pro wrestling fans might have to make a choice on July 13 when it comes to what to watch live. Either that, or firing up a few different streaming devices could make for a pretty epic night of wrestling.