The more likely scenario is that modern WoW will beat Classic, at least in terms of making money for Activision.
Keep in mind that in order for Classic to be better from a business standpoint, the money from subs for Classic has to outweigh not just subs for retail but also people buying all the cash shop stuff.
Aggressive monetization is being used by nearly every major publisher right now because it works. It’s going to continue to work until gamers stop buying into that crap.