Maxwell Jacob Friedman has become one of the biggest stars in All Elite Wrestling and is in line for a shot at the AEW World Championship.
MJF cut a backstage promo on this week’s Dynamite and revealed that he doesn’t like himself either, but he has to be the bad guy. Stokely Hathaway interrupted and MJF threatened to fire The Firm as his stable on retainer.
The 26-year-old vowed to capture the AEW World Championship. Jon Moxley is set to defend the title against former champion Hangman Adam Page on a special Tuesday night edition of Dynamite on the 18th.
Jim Cornette Explains What Sets MJF Apart
Legendary manager and promoter Jim Cornette discussed MJF on episode 265 of Jim Cornette’s Drive Thru. A fan compared MJF to Stone Cold Steve Austin in 1997 and Cornette disagreed. Jim pointed out that Austin may have been a heel at the time, he wasn’t a smart a** that insulted people all the time.
That was completely different than MJF, who is pretty thoroughly in every aspect a heel, unlikeable, untrustworthy, will use other people to fight his battles, will jump somebody from behind, take advantage of someone, will back off from a face-to-face confrontation.
He will verbally annihilate somebody when the opportunity is there but then show fear and or trepidation if they’re in front of him.
The reason why everybody is cheering MJF now has nothing to do with the reasons they started cheering Steve Austin then.
Cornette said that fans are smarter to the business nowadays and can appreciate MJF’s performance. Jim added that there is currently a lack of entertaining wrestlers and MJF fills that void for many fans.
He’s the only one working anymore. He makes you want to see s*** and then takes it away from you until the last minute. He doesn’t just bump for the sake of bumping for everybody.
Because he knows that first he has to piss the people off so they will want to see him have his comeuppance.
So he’s got a mind, he’s got a mouth, and he’s got a physique that he knows how to use in the ring.
He’s ahead of 90% of the other people in the business and he’s more entertaining than almost all of them.
Cornette noted that Death Matches used to be popular in the territory days because they were unusual but now they are commonplace. Jim claimed that MJF is one of the only wrestlers today that knows how to cut a promo and work in the ring.
It’s all the same except for guys like MJF. The reason why all that other s*** used to get over in the territory days (Death Match) is that it was different and unusual.
Everybody else was wrestlers that knew how to talk and work. Now he’s one of the only ones of those left. MJF’s out there running a business, so they like him.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Jim Cornette’s Drive-Thru with a H/T to SEScoops for the transcription.
