AEW set to go head-to-head with WWE Royal Rumble 2023

AEW is running a show against WWE Royal Rumble 2023 this weekend, the first time a promotion has run head-to-head with Vince McMahon's promotion for over a decade.

The Royal Rumble event has long been one of WWE's four major events and marks the beginning of the 'Road to WrestleMania.' This year's show has so much excitement surrounding it, with the likes of The Rock, Cody Rhodes, and even Steve Austin speculated to win the Rumble match. The winner of the said match will undoubtedly get their shot at Undisputed Champion Roman Reigns in the main event of WrestleMania, marking another major turning point in the almost three-year tale of the Tribal Chief.

However, WWE won't be the only major promotion scheduled for this weekend. AEW Dark is being taped this weekend in Orlando, Florida, for release in February. The evening's batch of tapings will go head-to-head with the Rumble.

However, with the tapings in Orlando and WWE's event in San Antonio, Texas, there is unlikely to be much of an effect in terms of the local market. Dark will not air live, so there is no broadcast clash either.

The last time a major rival went head-to-head with a WWE event was when TNA ran a house show against Night of Champions 2012. Multiple WWE and AEW stars, including AJ Styles and Jeff Hardy, were featured for TNA.

Former AEW star Cody Rhodes is a favorite to win the Royal Rumble match

After co-founding AEW with The Elite and Tony Khan in 2019, Cody departed last year to return to WWE at WrestleMania 38. He has since made it abundantly clear that the WWE title was on his mind and remains one of the leading favorites to win this year's Rumble match on the path to the title.

He has been out of action since a pectoral muscle tear ahead of Hell in a Cell. Despite the injury, he battled Seth Rollins in the main event of the show and emerged victorious. He was then viciously attacked by The Visionary on the following episode of RAW.

Nevertheless, almost a year after departing the company he helped to build against WWE, Rhodes could walk out of the Royal Rumble as a future WrestleMania main eventer.

Would you like to see the companies go head-to-head more? Let us know in the comments section below.