All Elite Wrestling is kicking off the new era of AEW Dynamite in a big way. On Thursday, Tony Khan announced a championship main event for next week’s broadcast: Darby Allin will challenge Samoa Joe for the AEW TNT Championship.
Allin is the longest-reigning TNT Champion in history. He defeated Cody Rhodes to win the title (AEW Dynamite, 7/11/20). He was champion for 186 days and had eight successful defenses before dropping the title to Miro (AEW Dynamite, 12/5/21).
Joe has been TNT Champion since Full Gear, when he won a 3-way match that involved Powerhouse Hobbs and former champion, Wardlow.
Wardlow got his rematch against Joe this past week on Dynamite, but came up short. After the match, Joe was confronted by Allin, setting up next week’ clash.
Allin and Sting will address the upcoming match against Joe on Friday’s edition of Rampage.
AEW Dynamite Preview (January 4, 2023)
Here’s the updated card for next week’s AEW Dynamite from Seattle, WA:
Darby Allin challenges Samoa Joe for the TNT Championship
Chris Jericho vs. Ricky Starks
Bryan Danielson vs. Tony Nese
In addition to these matches, Dynamite will feature an all-new look, including a new set, graphics, music and lighting.
Sting has had another run in his legendary pro wrestling career in AEW by being paired with Darby Allin. This was after he wasn’t medically cleared to wrestle following a 2015 match in WWE with Seth Rollins due to him having spinal stenosis.
Allin and Sting most recently teamed together to score a win over Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett at AEW Full Gear. Now that he’s in his 60s, Sting does have an idea in mind for how he wants to end his wrestling career
He shared that information with The Ringer’s Cameron Hawkins and noted that Darby is going to be involved in that match whenever it comes.
The Vision
“I’ve plotted out my endgame. I know Darby’s going to be a part of it, for sure.”
– Sting
Sting has wrestled mostly tag matches throughout his AEW run. It doesn’t sound like that will be changing any time soon.
“I won’t have a singles match at this point,” said Sting. “Darby will be along with me and I’ll be along with him. But I have a few people [in mind] and I really don’t want to say now.”
Sting believes that if the former TNT Champion stays in the wrestling business with AEW, he’ll eventually land a role in creative control and/or leadership. They are heading to Pro Wrestling NOAH in Japan to team with The Great Muta (Keiji Muto) in January.
Sting revealed earlier this month that he underwent surgery and had his knees cleaned out. It’s unclear when his next AEW match will take place.
Sting’s AEW run and the things he’s been able to do at this stage of his career are nothing short of incredible. He’s done it all in this business and is very lucky to write his final chapter on his terms – whatever he has planned.
Head over to The Ringer to read their full interview with Sting.
Posted December 29th, 2022 in AEW, News. Tagged: Sting.
Is CM Punk open to returning to All Elite Wrestling given the right circumstances?
Duh!
Punk hasn’t been seen on AEW TV since All Out where he became a two-time World Champion, dethroning Jon Moxley.
The Chicago-Made wrestler’s incendiary comments on the post-show media scrum would lead to a fight backstage, resulting in Punk and others being suspended.
Duh
It is believed that Punk’s time with AEW is coming to an end, with reports that he is seeking a buyout from the promotion.
During this week’s FTR podcast, Dax Harwood spoke about his hope that Punk will be able to return and make amends with The Elite
“This is my plea to all four guys. Please find a way to make it work. If we can make it work, we can set up the future of professional wrestling for a long time.”
Dax Harwood.
Responding to a quote of Harwood’s comments, which added that Punk and the Elite should “just shake hands and say sorry” Punk responded with a simple “Duh.”
CM Punk has reportedly requested a buyout of his AEW deal, something that the company is in no hurry to grant him.
The belief is that AEW’s higher-ups fear Punk will join WWE soon, bringing a ton of attention to their competition.
It has been reported that some in WWE are against the idea of bringing Punk back, believing he will only bring trouble similar to what has been seen in AEW.
Actor, former WWE writer and wrestling podcaster Freddie Prinze Jr. discussed the hypothetical scenario of working for All Elite Wrestling on the latest episode of his Wrestling with Freddie podcast.
Prinze prefaced his thoughts by stating he doesn’t think Tony Khan is looking to hire any writers, he doesn’t think he’d have the time to commit to a full-time writing gig and he still plans on launching his own wrestling promotion. All that aside, he does have an idea of what an ideal gig working for AEW would look like.
Instead of spreading himself too thin and writing for the entire roster, Prinze says he’d prefer focusing on one or a select few performers. He envisions working with somebody the company doesn’t believe in, getting them over and rubbing it the company’s face. He cited Jeff Hardy as an example of someone he did this with during his stint as a WWE writer.
Prinze says the creative writing process is very different in WWE vs. AEW. In WWE, the writing process is more streamlined with an army of writers on staff and a lot of scripting. He recalls having to earn the respect of other writers in WWE and joked that he didn’t win everybody over by the time he left the company.
In AEW, the talent has more freedom and he’d need to respect that format. He sees working with talent to find some middle ground. Tony Khan is the booker, so he’d find out what match was planned for the next pay-per-view three months away, then get started on ‘how we get there.’ He’d then go to the talent, give them his ideas and still allow them the freedom to write their own promos and add their own flavor to his ideas.
It sounds like a structure that could yield positive results, but again, don’t get your hopes up on this happening. Prinze emphasized that he’s got a movie that begins filming early next year and is still very serious about starting his own wrestling federation.
You can listen to the latest episode of Wrestling with Freddie here:
Is FTR’s tenure as AAA World Tag Team Champions coming to an end? Those in the company sure think so.
The team of Dash Harwood and Cash Wheeler won the titles for the first time on the October 16, 2021, episode of AEW Dynamite, defeating the Lucha Bros.
For the match, FTR donned green outfits and masks and called themselves ‘Las Super Ranas’ which translates to ‘The Super Frogs.’
FTR’s 438-day reign (and counting) is the third-longest reign in the history of the AAA World Tag Team Championships.
The End is Near
FTR’s tenure as the best tag team in AAA has been impressive but it could all come crashing down soon.
AAA talent are of the opinion that the World Tag Team Titles are expected to change hands “sooner rather than later” according to Fightful Select.
The team’s last AAA title defense came on the April 6, 2022 edition of AEW Dynamite, where they retained against the Young Bucks.
Their last title defense on an AAA show was back in March at AAA Gira Aniversario XXX, where they retained against Dragon Lee and Dralistico.
Other Titles
FTR has proven to be a dominant duo as the AAA World Tag Team Championships, but that’s not the only gold they have.
Harwood and Wheeler are also the reigning IWGP World Tag Team Champions, having won the titles from United Empire at AEWxNJPW: Forbidden Door.
The Top Guys will defend these titles against Bishamon (Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi) at next week’s NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17 event on January 4.
FTR recently held the Ring of Honor World Tag Team Championships which they lost to The Briscoes at Final Battle earlier this month.
As good of friends as they’ve become, they didn’t actually meet until Punk came to work for AEW. Harwood had a preconceived notion of his new co-worker and thought Punk would say something about his clothes. Punk didn’t and Harwood realized he was wrong about him.
Dax Harwood on WWE and AEW locker rooms
When asked if there’s less communication because AEW flies its talent in weekly versus traveling together for days at a time, Harwood says no. “I don’t think there’s less communication in comparison to WWE. I think there had been times where wrestlers have leaked that to the dirt sheets for whatever reason, but they’ve never experienced wrestling outside of independents; I have. In WWE, at the time that I was there — it could’ve changed now — there was no communication at all. Even up til the start time of the show, communication was very hit or miss.”
“So, I don’t think there’s a lack of communication there. As far as politics go, the political game in WWE was not bad at all. The boys got along great. I think the girls got along great as well. There was no real political maneuvering there in WWE. I think the problems were between the office and the boys. That’s where the problems were.”
“In AEW, I don’t think there’s a lot of politics there either, to be honest. The boys have a male locker room and the people who share that locker room, share a bond and share a kinship and every single day — and I think you could ask anybody — every single day, myself or myself and Cash bring a bottle of tequila and we have drinks with the guys, just to make that camaraderie even stronger. To make the kinship even stronger. So, I don’t think there’s any political games as far as that goes.”
Competition with the Young Bucks
“I think that when you’re in a position of power, obviously — even when you’re not in a position of power — you’re going to look out for your best interests because no one else is going to look out for your interests the way you are. But, when you’re in a position of power, you’re allowed to look out for your best interest and more often than not you’re allowed to get it. But again, playing politics; I don’t know if that’s what you call it.”
“(…) I feel like there’s that competition between us and the Young Bucks. I think it’s a healthy thing because that’s why our 2022 was so great because we didn’t know what we were going to get. We didn’t know what opportunities were going to come our way. We knew and had made a promise at the end of 2021, that whatever we got, we were going to kill it and we were going to have fun doing it. And so whenever you have competition, some things could be misconstrued as political agendas, but more often than not, you’re just trying to compete and be better than everyone else.”
FTR will be facing Bishamon (Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI) for the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Titles on January 4, 2023 at Wrestle Kingdom 17.
Don’t expect to see Shawn Spears back in All Elite Wrestling any time soon.
The former Pinnacle member has only competed for AEW eight times this year. His record stands at 5-3. Spears made a surprise return back in October, when Dynamite and Rampage took place from his hometown of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He and FTR picked up a victory in a six-man tag match against The Embassy’s Bishop Kaun, Brian Cage & Toa Liona.
A fan on Twitter asked Spears when he’ll be returning to AEW television. He replied:
“Don’t hold your breath… Not going there anytime soon.”
– Shawn Spears
Spears is married to former WWE Superstar Cassie Lee (Peyton Royce). The couple are expecting their first child together.
Dax Harwood of FTR is starting a new podcast with co-host Matt Koon for Ad-Free Shows. And while many in AEW remain tight-lipped about the ‘CM Punk Situation’ in AEW, Harwood is dedicating an entire podcast episode to it!
For those unaware, CM Punk has been MIA since his world title win against Jon Moxley at AEW All Out, in September of 2022. This is due to comments he made at the post-show media scrum, in which he called members of The Elite ‘Children’ who ‘couldn’t manage a Target.’ Punk also called ‘Hangman’ Adam Page ‘an empty-headed f*cking dumb f*ck.’
Punk also had words for Colt Cabana and others. The situation was a bleak one, made even worse by an alleged ‘backstage melee’ that occurred between Punk, Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, Ace Steele, Ace Steele’s wife, and Larry the Dog. It’s alleged that punches were thrown, chairs were also, um, thrown, and arms were bitten. It was a very volatile situation that resulted in the suspension of The Elite and the banishing of Punk.
There are still so many questions that have yet to be answered regarding that night in Chicago. It looks like it may still be sometime before fans get answers, but Harwood is certainly open to giving his own opinion about the situation.
Punk’s Love for AEW
Harwood spoke in-depth about how much Punk loved being in AEW.
“Punk was still so joyous and happy to be in the wrestling business,” Harwood stated. “To be honest, he told me, when they were going to put the belt on him, that he didn’t want the belt. He said, ‘I just want to have fun,’ but he understood that Tony putting the belt on him would put AEW in a better light. He took it, begrudgingly a little bit, but he took the belt.
At the time, he was taking me, Cash, Max [MJF], Wardlow, Hobbs, I’m missing so many guys, he was taking us out to eat, always paying for it. He bought all the girls in the locker room Starbucks gift cards and had one of the girls hand them out, anonymously, and didn’t say who they were from, but it was from him, just because he loved the atmosphere and loved being there. He also loved the work the girls were putting in. He thought they were busting their ass to try and get the attention that WWE’s women’s division was getting.”
CM Punk vs ‘Hangman’ Adam Page
(via AEW)
That love for wrestling was obvious in many of the interviews and promo segments that Punk offered, but it seemed as though things took a turn during Punk’s program with Hangman Adam Page. Punk alleges that Hangman went “off script” during a promo segment between the two, and that’s when things began going downhill.
“After the promo segment, I went to Punk and I said, ‘that was really good, that was a great segment,” Harwood shared. “They got the fans to react. It’s hard sometimes to get the fans to react to a babyface-babyface match. I thought it was a great segment. He was like, ‘Ahhh, I’m kind of feeling a certain way about it.’ I had no inkling that anything went wrong or went sideways or anything like that.”
But sideways it did go; the result of which being Punk no longer in AEW for the time being. Harwood said that he had no idea about the fight that happened backstage until Punk actually called him to explain the situation.
“All the boys in the locker room were drinking and having a good time, and we were hugging, I have picture of me and Jay Lethal on the ground together just laughing our ass off,” Harwood remembered. “I had my wife and daughter there, Cash had his girlfriend. It was such a great time. After our match was over, I shower up, we had a couple of drinks with the guys real quick, grab my girls, and head back to the hotel. I was laying in bed and I got a text from one of the wrestlers that said, ‘is this shit true?’ I had no idea what he was talking about.
Right after that, I got a call from my buddy CM Punk and he told me what happened. I said, ‘You’re lying to me dude. There is no way that happened.’ He was covered in blood from the match. He Face-Timed me, it was that night. He said, ‘I want to let you know, you’re going to hear some things. I want you to hear it from me. This is what happened.’ I said, ‘Dude, are you okay? Do you need anything? I’ll come right now to help you out, get you cleaned.’ ‘No, no, everything is fine, it’s died down, we’re good.’ That’s when I first heard about it.”
“Nobody Knows the Full Story”
Harwood referenced the fact that all sorts of wrestling news sites picked up the story; it was one of the biggest from 2022. But, he said, nobody has the full story. Nobody even knows the full story.
“Obviously, I wasn’t there,” he admitted. “Who I perceive to be God is the only person who really knows the truth. Everyone is going to have their own version in their head. We’ve all done it before, we’ve made what we perceive to be the truth. What I’ve heard that is reported, there are elements of truth in it, but then there are also some things that raise a red flag to me. It seems like we’re only getting a portion of the story or what this journalist wants to put out, whether he has a bias or grudge against one of the parties, that’s just how I felt. I also knew that I didn’t know the whole story.
I also felt that the stories that I heard from a few people, I don’t feel like they would blatantly lie to me. I do think there are bits of truth, but I also believe that some fans have read too much into it and I think they should let what happened, happen, and it die down. When it’s all said and done, I can’t tell you that I know 100% of the truth and I can’t tell you that the journalist reporting is 100% of the truth. I know what I perceive to be the truth and from the things I’ve read and heard, there is partial truth and partial things that are a bit exaggerated.”
Dax Wants Punk Back in AEW
People may never know the full story of what happened that night in Chicago. But, Harwood is of the belief that there are still bridges to be mended, and money to be made. He wants to see CM Punk back in AEW.
“I can tell you what I hope, because I don’t know,” he said. “Everyone knows about the legalities of the situation and no one is really expressing what is going to happen, what has happened, and what won’t happen. I can tell you, all I can be truthful about, I can only tell you what I know and what I perceive to know, I hope that he comes back. I feel that AEW should have the Young Bucks in their locker room. AEW should have Kenny Omega in the locker room. I know that I feel AEW should have CM Punk in the locker room. With those four entities, it makes our talent roster so much deeper and better. It’s four guys who want to be the best. Regardless of what any of us think personally, I know that we all want to be the best and I know we all want the best for professional wrestling. It’s given us a life that we could never have otherwise.”
The stories that could be told if Punk were to return to AEW could light the business on fire, once again. They could blur the lines between reality and fiction. They could fill those elements of AEW that some people feel the company is missing. It would be a story worth telling. It would be the biggest story of 2023 (probably). It would be a happy ending to this otherwise sad, weird story. That’s what Harwood wants. And it’s what many AEW fans want as well.
This is my plea to all four guys. Please find a way to make it work. If we can make it work, we can set up the future of professional wrestling for a long time and we can change the course of professional wrestling for a very long time. When you think about it, unselfishly, we’re doing this for 20-30 years down the road so guys and girls can make a living.
– Dax Harwood
You can check out Harwood’s new podcast, ‘FTR with Dax‘ when it premieres on Thursday, December 29.
AEW’s next Battle of the Belts is reportedly a matter of days away according to a recent TV listing.
As the name suggests, Battle of the Belts sees AEW’s various titles defended, which can include championships from Ring of Honor.
The most recent Battle of the Belts event took place inside Washington D.C.’s Entertainment and Sports Arena in October and featured three title matches (though no titles changed hands.)
Battle of the Belts V
In a recent schedule for TNT programming, it is noted that Battle of the Belts V will air on Friday, January 6, 2023.
The show will air immediately after AEW Rampage, which will be in its regular 10 PM to 11 PM Eastern timeslot, with Battle of the Belts going from 11 PM to midnight.
Both shows are set to air live, though no matches have been confirmed for either event.
This is the same format that was used for Battle of the Belts IV in October.
Battle of the Belts
Battle of the Belts is a quarterly special that made its debut in January of this year, and takes place every January, April, August, and October.
The show may tease title changes, but so far, only Sammy Guevara has walked away from the shows with some new championship gold.
At the first Battle of the Belts in January of this year, Guevara defeated Dustin Rhodes to win the Interim AEW TNT Championship, as reigning champ Cody Rhodes was out with Covid-19.
At Battle of the Belts two in April, Guevara once again became TNT Champion, dethroning Scorpio Sky in the show’s opener.
All Elite Wrestling has some of the most passionate wrestling fans in the world, but they may be a bit too devoted for Booker T’s liking.
AEW was founded in 2019 to serve as an alternative to WWE, though the promotion is home to several former WWE Superstars.
Given the promotion’s role as an alternative to WWE, the company has developed a large fanbase from an audience tired of what they’ve seen from the Stamford-based promotion.
Cult
AEW fans are extremely loyal to the promotion, but Booker T believes some go too far.
Speaking on the latest Hall of Fame podcast, Booker addressed tribalism in wrestling when one listener referred to AEW fans as like a ‘cult.’
“You know, I agree 100 percent. I wouldn’t say all of them, I’m not going to say all of them, but a lot of them. Sometimes they’re just looking for it. It’s like being in a relationship, you know where you got one of those girlfriends that’s just looking through your phone all the time, just looking for something … making up excuses to have a fight, stuff like that, that’s the way AEW fans are.”
“Making up excuses to have a fight, stuff like that, that’s the way AEW fans are.”
Booker T.
“You could be talking about something totally irrelevant to AEW and they’re like, ‘Wait a minute, he’s talking about AEW, did he say Kenny Omega?’ It’s that kind of stuff, it’s like they’re paranoid. Relax, no one’s thinking about AEW that much enough to where we’re going to try to talk in code about it.”
AEW recently held its Winter is Coming event, and next week’s Dynamite will see the launch of a new production design for Tony Khan’s first wrestling company.
All Elite Wrestling is set for a major change next year, with a new look coming to Television very soon.
Last week, it was reported that AEW TV will have a new look, starting with their January 4, episode of Dynamite.
During last week’s AEW Rampage, fans got their first glimpse of the new production for the show.
Tony Khan Comments
Speaking to Grapsody (and reported by Fightful Select) Tony Khan confirmed that the changes to AEW Dynamite won’t just be from a production standpoint.
Khan added that changes to the set are coming, and visual and production changes that will be made and will stick around
Addressing the changes, the AEW President assured fans that they’ll still get their fix of regular AEW action no matter what.
“The wrestling is going to be the same great wrestlers and the same great fans, but it’s in a new city, Seattle, and the look, the changes to the set, and the presentation are going to be changes that we’re going to keep. I’m really looking forward to the new look for the show.
“I’m really looking forward to the new look for the show.”
Tony Khan.
“I find, in wrestling, when you overpromise, you can disappoint people. It’s a set and a presentation. At the end of the day, the most important thing is what the fans bring, what the wrestlers and the staff of AEW and the crew bring every week, but the look of the show is important too and it’s going to look really cool.”
It has been announced that Ricky Starks will face Chris Jericho on the January 4, Dynamite.
Tony Khan may present himself as a much different boss than Vince McMahon, but like the former WWE CEO, he believes that not everybody can be happy.
2022 has arguably been AEW’s most difficult year, with multiple injuries to top talent and the fallout from All Out being huge parts of the year.
Throughout 2022, there have been reports of talent being unhappy within AEW, which led to meetings backstage with the roster earlier this year.
Can’t Please Everyone
Unhappy names on any roster in wrestling is nothing new, and the AEW President realizes he can’t please everyone.
In an interview with Fightful Select, Khan said that you’re never going to keep every single person on your roster happen.
The AEW President added that he takes every bit of criticism from talent with a smile.
A “series of circumstances” has led to people not being on Television in a regular role, but no details of those ‘circumstances’ were given.
Unhappy Talent
With such a huge roster (one that is too big in the opinion of some fans) it is not surprising that many names do not make it to TV.
Former TNT Champion Miro has been open with his disapproval of his booking in AEW, and liked a tweet suggesting he would do better if he returned to WWE.
Ricky Starks finished 2022 strong and looks forward to keeping the momentum going in the new year. The 32-year-old from New Orleans has been feuding with Maxwell Jacob Friedman, AEW’s reigning world champion. Starks won a tournament to earn a shot at MJF at Winter is Coming. Friedman retained the title, but Starks has more than held is own on the mic and in the ring during this program.
‘Absolute’ recently spoke to Casual Conversations and discussed his goals for 2023. The main thing he’s looking for is overall satisfaction and fulfillment.
“My main goal for this year is to really carve out my own type of… I want to be so fulfilled in myself,” he said. “What I mean is, I want to be fulfilled creatively, I want to be fulfilled in the ring, on the mic.”
Starks continued by saying he wants to be spoken about in the same way as AEW’s main event players.
“I want to be fulfilled as a person, on this television show, that has stepped up and is now on another level and he should be talked with those other people on that level.”
Championship Dreams
(AEW)
As a former member of Team Taz, Starks previously held the FTW Championship. He just challenged for the AEW World Championship, but he’s yet to hold a sanctioned championship in the promotion. He wants to get back in the hunt for the TNT Championship currently held by Samoa Joe. “I would love to win the TNT Championship, if I don’t get to the AEW Championship first. Those are things I want to do.”
He also expressed an interest in an acting career, a path taken by many other pro wrestlers. Starks wants to be star in the entertainment world and won’t let anything get in his way.
“Stepping out of the wrestling stuff, I want to star in a TV show, I want to star in a movie,” he said. “These are things that I want, that I’m going to get, because I deserve it. I’m going to make sure that I get it. Regardless, nothing is going to stop me.”
AEW’s W. Morrisey and Lexy Nair are celebrating after the two went public with their engagement.
On Twitter, Nair shared an image of her engagement ring, confirming her upcoming nuptials to the former WWE Superstar saying that “Mr. and Mrs. Morrisey coming soon.”
Jade Cargill is one of the most dominant competitors in All Elite Wrestling, but she’s in no rush to go after the AEW Women’s World Championship.
Cargill has been impressing wrestling fans since her in-ring debut on the March 3, 2021 edition of AEW Dynamite. She and basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal defeated Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet that night. She’s left a trail of bodies in her wake ever since.
As the reigning AEW TBS Champion, she’s got the gold to back up her pride. She talks about running out of worthy competitors, but wants to continue on the same track she’s on for now.
On Friday, Cargill fielded questions from her fans on Twitter. When asked when we can expect to see her go after AEW’s top prize for female wrestlers, Cargill showed a rare glimpse of humility.
“I have to get warm,” she said. “I think everyone should be HAPPY and GRATEFUL they seen me in MY FIRST match EVER!”
Some very talented women have held the AEW Women’s World Championship, including Britt Baker, Thunder Rosa and reigning champion, Jamie Hayter. Cargill says, “Most of the women who have carried the main title have hundreds of matches. I’ve literally had ONLY 45 and 1 off grid match.”
“Let me take my time. U all KNOW I’m going to be great”
– Jade Cargill
Jade Cargill has been AEW TBS Champion since January 5, 2022 (approximately 350 days). She defeated Ruby Soho in the finals of a tournament to crown the inaugural champion. She maintains an undefeated record of 45-0, with an additional victory in an unsanctioned match.
At only 30 years old, Cargill could have a long career still ahead of her. She’s confident that she’ll reach the top of the mountain in AEW, but is sticking with what’s working by getting more experience.
Learn more about Jade Cargill from her recent appearance on AEW’s Hey! (EW) digital series:
Kevin Sullivan, All Elite Wrestling’s Vice President, Post Production, has provided a sneak peek at the visual overhaul that’s coming to AEW Dynamite.
AEW President Tony Khan recently confirmed Dynamite will have an all-new look starting January 4, 2023. During a conversation with SEScoops correspondent Scott Fishman for TVInsider, Khan said, “This will affect the way people view AEW on Wednesdays and Fridays in terms of presentation with the set and the show with the same great action.”
On Saturday morning, Sullivan uploaded a video that gives us a first look of what to expect from the ‘new look’ of AEW’s flagship show.
In a message posted on Twitter, he says the AEW production team set out to create a new ‘brand identity’ for Dynamite. The new identity includes many elements, including a new stage (yet to be seen) and a new comprehensive set of ‘package elements.’
Dynamite and Rampage have kept a similar look since the shows premiered. In addition to the first week of January marking the new year, it’s also the one year anniversary of Dynamite’s move from TNT to TBS.
Sullivan says his team is thrilled to finally share their new, bold vision that he feels will help usher in a “new spirit” for the show.
He also revealed this project has been nine months in the making. He thanked Tony Khan, the team at Warner Bros. Discovery and AEW’s graphics team for making this vision a reality.
AEW fans have been concerned regarding the health of Adam Cole as he’s been on the sidelines for months.
The promotion is being cautious with him, although there is still no timetable on when he will return to the squared circle. Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer has reported the update after a fan asked him on Twitter where things stand with the former ROH World Champion.
Still No Return
“He’s doing much better. The last I heard is they were being cautious. Don’t have any time frame for a return. With concussions, you can’t predict a time frame,” Meltzer tweeted.
Cole has been out of action since he suffered a serious concussion at the Forbidden Door pay-per-view this past June when he was involved in a Four-Way for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship on the show with Jay White, Kazuchika Okada, and Hangman Page.
The popular star fell to the ground at the end of the match, leading to White covering him immediately. He reportedly suffered another concussion at Double Or Nothing.
In August, Cole resurfaced for one show so he, Kyle O’Reilly, and Bobby Fish could turn on The Young Bucks but he hasn’t been seen on TV since. Cole has been a part of AEW since September 2021.
Mike Mansury has opened up about the journey that has led him to AEW after working as Vice President of Global Television Production for WWE and is now working in AEW as a co-Executive Producer and Senior Production Executive.
He explained that it was inferred that he was going to be the successor to Kevin Dunn and while he was praised for his work, they didn’t know what to do with him until they figured out what Dunn’s future was.
“I knew that there was more that I was capable of but I had already excelled at everything they allowed me to do at that point. I was looking for that new challenge and even if it was something that were outside of the scope of what people would have defined as my potential, it would have been nice to be able to kind of spread wings a little bit and take on a new challenge so, once I kind of realized I was in the lane that I was in and the path to the destination wasn’t really gonna change or even progress that much, I knew it was time to make a change.”
The Decision
He decided to leave WWE in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic started. After giving them his notice, they offered him the opportunity to rescind his resignation. While he appreciated the offer, felt that if he did not give notice and bow out then, he would never do it.
“I remember I had gone back up to Stamford and they had offered me the opportunity to rescind my resignation and I was beyond appreciative of it but you know, I told them, I said, ‘Look, I know we’re heading into uncertain times but if I don’t do this, I’m never gonna do it and I need to.’
AEW Talks
Mansury dove into his talks with AEW and how joining the promotion came about. It happened when Mike and his wife were in Singapore as they moved to the country for his job with ONE Championship MMA.
Mansury felt it was not the right time, and AEW already had a solid team with Keith Mitchell at the helm, but Mitchell retired from his role months after those talks.
“I don’t think they knew Keith was gonna wind up retiring a couple months later. But a lot of folks on the AEW side that we had known from WWE had spoken to Tony [Khan] a lot and had talked to me about coming down and just checking things out and just saying hello. But ultimately, you know, ONE was the new home.”
Things picked back up again as the two sides began talking over the summer between Mansury, Tony Khan and Chief Legal Officer Megha Parekh. They expressed to Mansury that they feel AEW is ready to break into their next level and he felt like there was some unfinished business.
“I don’t know that I left wrestling feeling fulfilled. I think when I left the WWE, I was burned out at that point and I was frustrated.”
“The great thing about wrestling is it doesn’t matter what company you work for, what promotion, anything can happen. Let’s be honest, we know that everyone always returns back to WWE at some point.”
“Everyone always returns back to WWE at some point.”
CJ Perry
Speaking about Rusev Day, arguably Miro’s most popular gimmick, Perry said the idea will live on, and reiterated her belief that he will return.
“Rusev Day will never die. It’s always going to be around, the kids are going to want to sing it and I’m sure it will make a return in WWE at some point. Rusev — well, whatever he shows [up] back in; whatever frickin name or gimmick or character he returns [as] at some point, in WWE is going to be iconic.”
Unhappy
Miro held more titles and was more prominently featured in WWE, so it’s hardly surprising that he is reportedly unhappy in AEW.
Earlier this year, Miro liked a tweet suggesting that his AEW run had been a dud so far.
The tweet also suggested that Miro would do much better if he returned to WWE.
The identity of the man who attacked Keith Lee on this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite has been revealed.
During a segment, rapper Rick Ross attempted to mediate a discussion between Lee and tag-team partner Swerve Strickland.
After Strickland warned Lee to be wary of his surroundings, the Limitless One was attacked by Parker Boudreaux and a mystery man, bringing an end to Swerve in Our Glory.
Granden Goetzman
After AEW Dynamite went off the air, Lee’s attacker was revealed to be Granden Goetzman, according to Fightful Select.
It is reported that Goetzman has been training for quite some time in preparation of his AEW debut, and has been working hard at Jay Lethal’s wrestling school.
Sources who spoke to Fightful said that his debut has been planned out for at the least a couple of weeks before last night’s show.
Goetzman was also backstage at AEW Dynamite on October 10, and sources said he’s been with AEW for “quite some time” anticipating his debut.
Goetzman Before AEW
The 30-year-old Goetzman joins AEW with a background in baseball, which he played professionally until last year.
A second-round pick by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2011, Goetzman has been playing in the minor league system in Mexico.
Listed at 6-4, Goetzman made it all the way up to AAA in the Rays minor league system before moving on to the St. Lous Cardinals and Houston Astros farm systems until 2019.
The outfielder was primarily known for his speed but did not end in the major leagues.
MJF is featured in a new spotlight trailer for the upcoming AEW Fight Forever video game.
AEW has released a new trailer for Fight Forever that features clips of “The Salt of The Earth” in action. He also tweeted the video and wrote in the caption, “Even in video game form I’ll be better than your favorites in #AEWFightForever and you know it.”
The release date has yet to be revealed for the game, but it is scheduled to arrive sometime in 2023. The game will be released on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and Microsoft Windows.
There had been rumors about an M for Mature rating, but the word is that the game will be rated T for Teen.
Fight Forever is All Elite Wrestling’s first console video game. A website with information has been launched, and a teaser trailer is out. Wrestlers, move-sets, entrances, and arenas in the game will be customizable. There will also be a deep career mode.
MJF became the AEW World Heavyweight Champion when he beat Jon Moxley with the help of William Regal at Full Gear. He retained his championship last week against Ricky Starsk on Dynamite: Winter Is Coming.
Posted December 21st, 2022 in AEW, News. Tagged: MJF.
AEW has matured a lot as a company in 2022 and made a number of key structural changes within the promotion. Jim Ross believes that the next big change for the organization could be the introduction of live events.
The wrestling veteran talked about this possibility on the latest episode of his Grilling JR podcast. He discussed the importance of live events and the various benefits it provides to talents and the company.
JR noted that live events can help younger talents gain experience as well as bring in extra revenue if used strategically. He mentioned the recent hiring of Jeff Jarrett and shared the belief that AEW will expand their schedule in 2023:
“I believe, I don’t know this to be a fact but I believe in 2023, that AEW will be in the house show/ live event business to some degree.
“I just think that it’s an opportunity that can be capitalised upon if AEW is strategic in their planning. I think that’s what Jeff Jarrett is working on.”
– Jim Ross
Jeff Jarrett made his AEW debut in November. He was given the title of Director of Business Development by Tony Khan, indicating that Jarrett will play a key role in the next phase of the company’s expansion.
Tony Khan has provided new details about the “new look” coming to AEW programming in the very near future.
AEW Dynamite and Rampage have maintained a similar production aesthetic since the shows premiered. Following the recent hire of Michael Mansury as Senior Vice President and Co-Executive Producer, it’s been reported that big changes are in store for the look and feel of the company’s flagship shows.
Khan spoke with Scott Fishman for TV Insider this week and laid out what fans can expect on the first Dynamite and Rampage of 2023.
Changes Coming January 4
Wrestling fans won’t have to wait long to see the ‘new’ incarnations of Dynamite and Rampage. To commemorate the one-year anniversary of Dynamite moving to TBS, the show is getting a facelift.
“I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag necessarily, especially so close to the big day. But at the start of 2023, we’re going to open the year on Wednesday, January 4 with the first Dynamite in Seattle, marking a full year of Dynamite on TBS,” said Khan.
We’ll definitely have a new look, to say the least. I’m excited about it. I think it’s a nice thing to present to the fans.
– Tony Khan
He doesn’t want to hype up the set re-design too much, because that can create expectations that are impossible to live up to. However, he couldn’t contain his excitement.
“I will say the set will be beautiful though,” he aded. “The look of Rampage will also be different. This will affect the way people view AEW on Wednesdays and Fridays in terms of presentation with the set and the show with the same great action.”
Khan was also asked about signing Mansury and what he brings to the team. He called it a huge acquisition for AEW and put him over for his knowledge of TV production.
He feels Mansury is a great signing for the company and important to have someone with his experience and can’t wait to see what he brings to AEW.
Chris Jericho may be a member of The Elite alongside Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks for one night only as the top AEW star suggested a dream tag team with Omega for an upcoming huge event.
AEW will make its debut in Winnipeg with a live episode of Dynamite and a taping of Rampage on March 14. This is the hometown of Jericho and Omega.
The Possibilities
While speaking with Winnipeg Sports Talk, the former ROH and AEW World Heavyweight Champion was asked about potential plans for AEW in Winnipeg. He suggested the possible dream tag team.
“That’s three months from now, so we’ll have to see where the storylines take us. We just finished up with the Blackpool Combat Club. The biggest upset in pro wrestling history when Action Andretti beat me on Dynamite last week.”
The former AEW World Champion hinted at a potential rivalry with Ricky Starks, who recently fell short to current World Champion MJF on last week’s Winter Is Coming special.
“We’ll have to address that. Ricky Starks is another one that we’re looking at getting involved with. There are a lot of great programs. That’s the thing with me and the Jericho Appreciation Society. We always want to work with somebody new and really sink our teeth into the storyline.”
Jericho hinted at a possible plan discussed for the team.
“In mid-March, we’ll probably have a lot of cool things going. We’ve already discussed a few ideas of what we could do that night. Maybe something with Kenny and I, Kenny and I tagging, it all depends on what the storylines are. It doesn’t matter what the exact storylines are, I know it’s going to be a great show.”
