WWE reportedly got a real wake-up call from running AAA Ola de Calor and NXT Heatwave back-to-back last Sunday at the Bert Ogden Arena in Edinburg, Texas.
Both events were part of a single-ticket doubleheader. AAA kicked off at 11 a.m. CT, with Heatwave following at 2 p.m. CT (3 p.m. ET).
According to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, people within WWE described the crowd response as an “eye-opener.” The company put NXT on last, believing its brand would be the bigger draw in the U.S., but a significant portion of the audience left after the AAA show wrapped up.
Meltzer said he was told that possibly only half the original crowd remained by the time the Heatwave main event began. The Mexican talent also reportedly got much stronger reactions than nearly the entire NXT roster.
The big exception was Zilla Fatu, who was described as extremely over inside the arena. Kendal Grey, Tony D’Angelo, Myles Borne, and even Nattie, who was expected internally to have strong crowd appeal, reportedly didn’t get a comparable reaction.
Edinburg’s demographics help explain the gap. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 86.7% of the city’s population is Hispanic or Latino. On the morning of the event, WrestleTix estimated 5,440 tickets distributed for the combined card.
Even with the reduced crowd, Heatwave ended with a major title change. Grayson Waller defeated Tony D’Angelo, Cruz Montana, and Zilla Fatu in the main event to capture the NXT Championship.
According to Meltzer, the main internal takeaway was simple: if WWE runs this doubleheader format again, NXT should probably go on before AAA.