Tony Khan did an interview with TV Insider to look back on the year that AEW has had in 2021. Here are the highlights:
What he has learned about himself as the head of AEW in 2021:
“I learned personal relationships I’ve tried to build the last several years in the wrestling business are very valuable. CM Punk had never worked for AEW until August, but I’ve spent a lot of time over the past few years trying to build a good relationship with him. I really value the friendship we built. We stayed in touch pretty regularly through the pandemic. I think we built a friendship where it was pretty clear to both of us we wanted CM Punk in AEW. I don’t think it would have been possible without the personal relationship we built.
Adam Cole is the boyfriend of Dr. Britt Baker. Dr. Britt Baker is a world champion here and one of our top stars and someone I have a great relationship with. I think Adam knew he could trust me and that I was being truthful and forthcoming when it came to me wanting to have him here in AEW. It’s going to be huge for us to debut Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, and Kyle O’Reilly as a trio on Dynamite. We spent a good amount of time on TNT going head-to-head with that trio [when they were on WWE NXT]. It’s very cool they are in AEW now.”
Being more pickier about signing talent:
“I do think I have to be more discerning than ever in talent acquisition because we have such a strong roster. I was aggressively expanding with the launch of Rampage. We made some big signings in the past including CM Punk. Bryan Danielson, Adam Cole, Ruby Soho, Thunder Rosa, Kyle O’Reilly, Bobby Fish, Andrade El Idolo, Malakai Black. Christian Cage and many others. We’ve also continued our partnerships with great international companies like New Japan Pro Wrestling and Lucha Libre AAA. We have a lot of great talent working, but it’s time for me to be more discerning than ever in terms of acquisitions.”
More talent coming into next year:
“Yes. We will continue expanding the roster. Absolutely, there will be more people coming into AEW.”
