AEW News Roundup: Wrestling veteran on whether Chris Jericho will return under Triple H's leadership, WWE legend believes CM Punk will bury Tony Khan's promotion upon leaving (25 August 2022)
AEW Dynamite has left fans reeling after the recent episode saw CM Punk lose the World Championship to Jon Moxley in mere minutes.
The promotion has had a difficult past few weeks in light of all the rumors suggesting that numerous stars have unresolved issues in AEW.
Despite all the alleged troubles in Tony Khan's fledgling promotion, all the stars have continued to march on forward. Continue reading as we list three of the most recent stories surrounding the promotion in today's AEW News Roundup.
#3. Wrestling veteran Konnan believes that AEW is worryingly mirroring WCW's final days
WCW was once the second-biggest wrestling promotion and even went head-to-head with WWF (WWE) during the late 90s. The current "war" between AEW and WWE continues to remind fans of the "Monday Night Wars," especially with stars jumping back and forth from the promotions.
During a recent episode of Keepin' It 100, Konnan shared a conversation he recently had with Tony Khan about AEW.
“[Tony Khan] asked me ‘is this what WCW was like?’ I go ‘this is exactly how WCW started to get’ and he was like ‘oh f**k,’" Konnan said. "Then the last time I was there, bro you have no idea how many people came up to me and they were p***ed with the booking, they weren’t happy with how they were being used and they were very very vocal about it.” [ From 3:22 onward]
On this day 23 years ago, the finger poke of doom took place.
Not only did WCW spoil the results of Raw (that'll put butts in seats), but Hulk Hogan would poke Kevin Nash in the chest, allowing him to win the title. https://t.co/zn6QGo7rSu
Konnan continued, noting that Tony Khan is likely simply using the bigger talent on the roster and not purposely burying any talent.
"You could imagine what a Sonny Kiss or a Joey Janela and all these other guys that were there at the beginning are feeling when all of these other people are coming in and it was always going to happen, when you get bigger fish, you’re going to use them,” he added. [3:00 onward]
AEW, unfortunately, has a massive roster with just over 2 hours of television time per week. Because of this, stars will naturally get lost in the shuffle.
#2. WWE legend Dutch Mantell recently commented on CM Punk's alleged backstage issues within AEW
CM Punk has, unfortunately, had a bad reputation as somewhat of a "drama queen" backstage, with some personnel remarking on poor experiences with the veteran. While none of these claims have outright collaborated, Punk has now been the subject of more backstage rumors in AEW.
During the most recent episode of Sportskeeda's SmackTalk, Dutch Mantell touched on rumors of CM Punk allegedly being unhappy in All Elite Wrestling.
“I don’t like that in the dressing room. ‘Oh, I’m gonna quit, I’m gonna quit.’ You had no problem in taking the job. I think it’s very unprofessional if Punk had said stuff like that. And if he gets his way? That sets a very, very bad example to all the other guys on AEW. And Tony Khan, if he has any balls at all, he’ll stand up to him and tell him if he wants to leave he can leave," Mantell said. [From 06:55 onward].
Mantell continued, advising what he would have done in Tony Khan's stead.
"Then, if I was Tony Khan, I’d get up on that TV myself and I would bury him. Because he’s gonna bury the company when he leaves if he’s mad, anyway. So go on TV and bury him first, that’s what I would do. It’s been done before and will be done again, so hopefully, they’ll get this straightened out because there’s a lot of things about AEW that needs work on." [From 07:41 onward].
Unfortunately for fans wanting any more substantial information, the promotion has opted to be tight-lipped about the rumors at this stage.
#1. Disco Inferno and Konnan believe that Chris Jericho will likely return to WWE before his career ends
Chris Jericho has had a monumental career that's seen him in promotions all across the globe. However, fans will likely remember his stint with WWE the most, where he first introduced fans to his Y2J persona. The veteran left the promotion in 2018 and hasn't looked back since.
During a recent episode of Keepin' It 100, WCW veterans and co-hosts Konnan and Disco Inferno speculated if Chris Jericho would ever return to WWE.
"I don't know. But I would doubt that Chris is gonna end his career in AEW. I would think he probably end his career in [World Wrestling Entertainment]," Disco Inferno said. [From 0:48 onward]
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The Best In The World At What He Does G.O.A.T @IAmJericho Always A WWE Legend For Me Tho 👏🏻 https://t.co/amXyQvmKU3
"Let me tell you, he doesn't have to put them over to try to get work. He's Chris Jericho. If he called tomorrow and said, 'Hey, I'm ready to come back.' Do you think they're gonna say no? But it is kind of funny because for a while, he was totally burying WWE," Konnan added. [From 0:55 onward].
Right now, Chris Jericho is in the early stages of what seems to be a build-up to a heated feud against Bryan Danielson surrounding Daniel Garcia.