Jimmy Smith Discusses Why WWE Won't Co-Promote A Show With AEW

While the Forbidden Door has been opened within professional wrestling outside of WWE and the likes of IMPACT, AEW, and NJPW have all worked together over the last 18 months, WWE very much remain aloof from the rest of the wrestling world outside of brief talks with New Japan last year.

The collaboration between AEW and NJPW has reached the point they will hold the joint Forbidden Door pay-per-view at Chicago's United Center on June 26. WWE Raw Announcer Jimmy Smith doesn't foresee WWE ever co-promoting a show with AEW, however, and he explained why that was the case.

"Here is the rule of thumb. The smaller promotion doesn't hesitate to cross-promote because they have less to lose. If Kayla Harrison loses to Cyborg, okay, fine, Cyborg is the bigger name anyway. If Cyborg loses to Kayla Harrison, there is the implication that, 'Hey, maybe PFL is just better than Bellator.' It's always better to shoot up and miss than shoot down and hit. If you're the UFC and WWE, you're the top dogs. You have no reason to bring up another product and make them look like they are on your product's level," Smith said on his Unlocking the Cage podcast.

"If so and so from AEW, and I don't know because I don't have time to watch AEW, but if somebody came up from AEW and it was WWE vs. AEW, what you're implying is they are on the same level. This champion from AEW, whoever it is, I know CM Punk is the champion right now so let's say CM Punk gets in there against Roman Reigns, what you're saying is this guy is on Roman Reigns' level, and the WWE will never, ever do that, and why should they? UFC is never going to do that with anybody at any other level. Will we see more of it? Yes. Are WWE and UFC worried about it? No, they are not."

H/T to WrestlingNews.co