It’s the biggest week of the year for WWE and all professional wrestling. WrestleMania 41 is a few days away. All the wrestlers, staff, and everyone in between should be focused on the PLE set for Saturday and Sunday. Yet, WWE Executive Nick Khan is taking some interesting, unnecessary, and in some cases, outright fictitious shots at All Elite Wrestling.
Khan is one of several members of WWE staff taking media rounds during this important week. While speaking to Bill Simmons on The Bill Simmons Podcast, Khan had more than a few headline-worthy comments.
Nick Khan does not hold back his thoughts on AEW
“We’re always the underdog at WWE,” Khan said when asked about AEW being a rival. “We always feel that people underestimate us, that we’re looked down upon. And we like it that way. Like bet against us. We prefer that and allow us to show you what we can do.”
This would be a strong comment from an executive at a new organization. WWE was founded in 1953. How are they the underdog in this discussion? This is the company that generates the most revenue in professional wrestling, consistently breaking financial records. WWE is more mainstream than any sports entertainment or wrestling business has ever been, so it’s quite a statement to consider this group the “underdog.” Those statements didn’t stop there.
“That’s something we won’t do,” Khan said when talking about utilizing performers or keeping them off television. “We don’t sign and bench people. We sign people who we want to use. If another entity signs and benches people now, that’s not something we would do.”
Again, that’s just not the truth. This comes at a time when members of the women’s roster have outwardly complained about the division’s booking heading into WrestleMania. This comes at a time when fans point to the lack of representation for Black and Asian performers in the men’s division on the main roster. WWE NXT is an example of where the company gets things right, but the booking on SmackDown and Monday Night Raw should be called out.
“In terms of the other wrestling promotional company, they have a lot of talented wrestlers and we’re happy about that,” Khan said when talking about performers moving between WWE and AEW. “When, contractually, they are available to talk to and have conversations with, assume a number of them will come over. Nothing but respect to the father who finances it and owns the Jaguars and all those other things.”
These are the types of statements that will generate buzz during an important media week. Expect AEW and Tony Khan to respond because the company or its wrestlers always do. Competition is what is best for business, whether it is professional wrestling, video games, or the car market. Nick Khan had quite a bit to say about the company run by Tony Khan (no relation), and fans should hope this only leads to better quality products from both organizations, and the performers must leverage this competition into bigger contracts. Because that is truly what is best for business.