By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
All Elite Wrestling is featured in a Bleacher Report story that includes quotes from Tony Khan, Matt Jackson, Nick Jackson, Cody, Brandi Rhodes, Jim Ross, MLW’s Court Bauer, and more. The following are among the highlights of the article, which can be read in full at BleacherReport.com.
-Nick Jackson on Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling: “You know what’s sad? New Japan and ROH could have easily come together and offered us the contracts they wanted, but they just didn’t do it. New Japan never saw the value in Matt and I. They never paid us good. We would have had to work with New Japan for another two decades to even get close to retiring, and the style they demand is backbreaking. Ring of Honor paid us a lot better than New Japan. We could have probably retired there, but we would have to work probably another decade with them. We pitched it to both of them: Why don’t you guys get us a dual contract? And they just didn’t get it done. We would have easily stayed, and there would have never been an All Elite Wrestling if they would have met what we wanted, but it didn’t get done.”
-Cody on a pro wrestling union: “When I said a union would kill wrestling, I was specifically talking about your mom-and-pop indies that can’t afford an ambulance to come to the building. There’s a lot of people who saw the story John Oliver did and immediately called for a union or better care for their wrestlers. Better care is paramount, and one of the first ways you do that is raise the pay floor, which we’ve done.”
-Tony Khan on running opposite WWE television: “”I’m not gonna go on Monday night or Friday night, and I would never go head-to-head with the NFL or pay for time on television.”
-Matt Jackson on not watching WWE programming: “For me, as a writer, I am trying to tune out of what everyone else is doing. I don’t want to subconsciously book a similar show to anyone else. I genuinely haven’t watched WWE television in years. I don’t want it to sound and look the way their show feels. This needs to be different for it to succeed.”
Powell’s POV: There’s plenty of additional quotes in the actual article, which is a good read. MLW promoter Court Bauer echoed what I’ve heard from others in the industry in that they want AEW to succeed to prove to the world that WWE isn’t the only company that can be successful. In other words, if AEW does well, it could open doors for MLW, ROH, NJPW, Impact Wrestling, the NWA, etc.
Check below for the latest Pro Wrestling Boom Podcast with Jason Powell and guest Conrad Thompson discussing Starrcast II, Undertaker pulling out of the event, hosting AEW rallies and his friendship with Tony Khan, thoughts on how WWE podcasts could work, and more.
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