Tony Khan has addressed the question of whether or not he thinks AEW has captured WWE’s attention.
AEW was founded in 2019. The company’s first airing of Dynamite was held on TNT back in October of that year. That episode brought in 1.409 million viewers.
Since that time, AEW has been riding a wave of momentum, signing a new deal with TNT and adding the Rampage show. While WWE isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, many believe the promotion has at the very least been keeping tabs on AEW. Tony Khan agreed with that notion when speaking to AP.
“I’m a big wrestling fan and I would say, objectively, AEW is the hottest wrestling company right now. So many people who watch wrestling know that AEW’s gaining ground, AEW is hitting all-time highs. It’s helping us build new fans, it’s helping people want to take the leap and check the shows out. I’m sure other wrestling companies are paying attention to that. We have great relationships with a lot of wrestling companies that know what’s going on with AEW. I think if you work in the wrestling business, you’re following what we’re doing and the success we’re having. We’re catching a lot of eyeballs outside of the world of wrestling and mainstream attention, so you better believe in the world of wrestling people are paying very close attention to it.”
AEW is set for its biggest show to date. The promotion will be hosting Grand Slam editions of Dynamite and Rampage. The action will be held inside Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City. Dynamite airs live on Sept. 22 and Rampage airs on Sept. 24 via tape delay.
On Dynamite, Bryan Danielson will make his in-ring debut for AEW against Kenny Omega. Omega’s AEW World Championship will not be on the line. The AEW Women’s World Title will be at stake as champion Britt Baker takes on Ruby Soho.
The Rampage episode will see CM Punk take on Powerhouse Hobbs. There will also be a Lights Out tag team match between Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston vs. Minoru Suzuki and Lance Archer.